PARIS, June 2, 2026 - Last week, at the 2026 G7 Digital Ministers’ Meeting in Paris, Robust Open Online Safety Tools (ROOST) and Mila – Québec Artificial Intelligence Institute signed a partnership to develop and distribute open source safety tools focused on some of the hardest challenges in online safety, beginning with protecting young people.
As AI chatbots become part of young people’s daily lives, many are turning to these tools for friendship, companionship and emotional support. Yet there is little open, purpose-built tooling to help developers detect harms specific to conversational AI and protect young users. General-purpose content filters are not designed to identify the psychological and conversational signals that matter in these contexts.
Through the partnership, Mila and ROOST will collaborate on research, evaluation, datasets and tool development across AI and online safety. The initial focus will be on safeguards that can detect potentially harmful interactions with conversational agents, including content that encourages self-harm or suicide, and redirect young users toward appropriate support.
Mila brings deep scientific expertise in AI, deep learning and large language models, as well as a demonstrated commitment to AI safety. In October 2025, Mila launched its AI Safety Studio, whose first initiative develops safeguards to detect and block harmful AI-generated content for young people. In March 2026, Mila also brought together hundreds of participants from across Canada through a hackathon dedicated to building youth safety solutions with input from the broader community.
ROOST shares in this community driven approach — open sourcing key AI safeguards and convening builders through hackathons and working sprints to stress-test, refine, and improve them. By partnering with ROOST, Mila will extend the reach of its AI safety work through an open safety commons where tools can be refined, evaluated and distributed for adoption by providers of all sizes. The collaboration reflects a shared belief that safety technology should not be treated as a trade secret or remain available only to the largest technology companies, but should be open, auditable, adaptable and accessible.
The announcement comes as G7 leaders gathered to coordinate international efforts on AI safety and the protection of minors online. Following its initial focus on youth mental resilience, the partnership intends to expand into other areas where open source safety tooling remains limited, including combatting violent extremism and detecting child sexual exploitation.
ROOST and Mila are also inviting developers, researchers, platforms and safety practitioners to contribute to the development of an open safety stack that can help make online spaces safer for everyone.
Quotes
“Canada’s leadership in AI has always been rooted in world-class research, openness, and a commitment to the public interest. Mila is one of the institutions that helped establish Canada as a global AI leader, and ROOST is doing critical work to make AI safety tools more accessible, transparent, and effective. By building safety tools in the open, this partnership will help organizations of every size adopt AI more responsibly. It strengthens trust, supports Canadian leadership in safe AI, and helps ensure the safeguards people rely on are transparent, verifiable, and shared.” — The Honourable Evan Solomon, Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation and Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario, Government of Canada
“As countries of the G7 are mobilizing to better protect citizens online, I am delighted to welcome this agreement between ROOST and Mila. Safety tools cannot remain exclusive to the largest companies; they must be open, auditable, and collectively improved—serving as a common good for the benefit of society. This is how we will build trustworthy AI that truly protects our children, our teenagers, and all our fellow citizens. –” — Anne Le Hénanff, Minister Delegate with responsibility for Artificial Intelligence and Digital Affairs, Government of the French Republic
“AI safety should not be left to a handful of large companies making trade-offs behind closed doors. Partnering with ROOST lets our researchers work on harms with real public stakes, and commits us to putting what we build where any provider can use it.” — Valérie Pisano, President and CEO, Mila
“The safety problems that matter most are often the ones no one has been able to solve in the open. Safety guardrails for youth resilience is a clear example: the need is global, but the tools are scarce. Mila’s scientific depth is expertly shaped to take on these problems, and they have commitments to put the results into the shared commons, where any provider can use them.” — Camille François, President and CEO, ROOST
About Mila – Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute
Founded by Professor Yoshua Bengio, Mila – Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute is the world’s largest academic AI research center specialized in deep learning, home to a community over 1500 strong. Based in Montreal, Mila was created out of a unique partnership between Université de Montréal and McGill University, dedicated to advancing scientific breakthroughs that drive innovation and ensure AI benefits everyone. A non-profit organization, Mila is strongly supported by the Government of Canada through the Pan-Canadian AI Strategy and by the Government of Quebec. Internationally recognized for its influential research, global innovation partnerships, and leadership in multilateral efforts on responsible AI, Mila continues to shape the future of AI worldwide. For more information, visit mila.quebec.
About Robust Open Online Safety Tools (ROOST)
ROOST was founded in 2025 at the Paris AI Action Summit to be an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to building the scalable, open source infrastructure the AI era demands. We provide the essential building blocks that allow platforms, researchers, and civil society to protect their communities without the high costs or black-box secrecy of proprietary technology. ROOST makes digital safety open, shared, and auditable for everyone. For more information, visit roost.tools.
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Source: ROOST & Mila
Media contacts:
For ROOST: jacqueline@roost.tools
For Mila: medias@mila.quebec
