Facebook to expand artificial intelligence to help prevent suicide

If the software detects a potential suicide, it alerts a team of Facebook workers who specialise in handling such reports.

SAN FRANCISCO: Facebook Inc will expand its pattern recognition software to other countries after successful tests in the US to detect users with suicidal intent, the world's largest social media network said on Monday. 

Facebook began testing the software in the United States in March, when the company started scanning the text of Facebook posts and comments for phrases that could be signals of an impending suicide.