Peer-to-Peer Wellness Program Enhancement

The Listening Lab is a wellness innovation designed by the Feminine Intelligence Agency to support emotional regulation through peer-based group pods. These pods serve as affordable, accessible alternatives to therapy for individuals navigating intense emotions and seeking prevention before turning to unhealthy coping mechanisms. Unlike traditional peer therapy groups, the Listening Lab assigns structured roles that discourage unsolicited advice or unqualified therapeutic intervention. Instead, participants are guided toward coaching, artistic expression, and somatic regulation. The Lab has already undergone simulation testing by psychology students and an evaluation of ethical risks by mental health professionals.

Create prototype MVP for one of our projects

The Feminine Intelligence Agency (FIA) is an innovation lab building scalable, peer-to-peer tools for emotional wellness, relationship discernment, and digital safety. We have a suite of in-development products — each designed to prevent harm before it escalates — and we are looking for a team of engineering students to choose one and take it forward. This project is ideal for students who want to critically engage with real-world social challenges using engineering, design, and AI-based innovation. You’ll get to explore complex human factors (like trust, emotion, manipulation, safety), while applying your technical skills in areas such as product development, systems design, UX research, and AI integration.

Which biological signals show the earliest measurable signs of acute stress in response to perceived interpersonal threat — and which consumer wearables can best detect them?

The Feminine Intelligence Agency (FIA) is an innovation lab that builds tools to prevent manipulation, coercive control, and relational abuse. We focus on scalable, tech-enabled solutions that help people improve their social discernment — the ability to spot subtle red flags in relationships before they escalate. This project investigates how wearable health technology can be used to detect early signs of distress in high-pressure or coercive relationships. By identifying measurable biological responses (e.g., heart rate variability, skin conductance), we hope to understand which biomarkers are most useful for real-time detection of emotional harm.

Scaling the Listening Lab Initiative

he Listening Lab is a non-clinical, psychologist-reviewed group wellness experience designed for emotional regulation, especially for individuals who are emotionally overwhelmed but not seeking formal therapy. Participants gather in structured “pods” with designated roles to avoid advice-giving and encourage expressive, coaching-style, and creative interaction. This project offers students an opportunity to develop operational, technical, and strategic plans to scale the Listening Lab in healthcare-adjacent environments such as community wellness centers, university mental health programs, and domestic violence prevention services. Key Capstone Focus Areas Students will choose one or more of the following to develop as a team: AI Integration – Chatbot Support System Design a training framework for a chatbot that can help keep pods on track (e.g., when members go off-topic, offer grounding techniques or redirect questions). Propose ethical and practical guardrails (e.g., data privacy, non-therapeutic scope, prompt design). Technology & Application Design Develop requirements and mockups for a digital platform or mobile app to host and manage pod participation. Consider calendar integration, onboarding, role assignment, session structure, and light analytics (e.g., post-session check-ins). Strategic Marketing & Partnership Plan Identify potential healthcare or wellness organizations as partners. Draft outreach and communication strategy for user acquisition and institutional support. Design a marketing plan tailored to underserved or therapy-averse populations. Training Methodology & Implementation Playbook Create clear, accessible training materials that explain how to participate in a pod (e.g., facilitator guides, sample scripts, role explanations). Recommend digital onboarding and role rotation processes that minimize facilitation burden.