Guardian Angel

Inspiration

Guardian Angel was inspired by the uneasy moments that feel predictable yet unavoidable, walking home late, commuting at night, or meeting someone new. We wanted a tool that protects people before danger escalates, not one that only reacts afterward. That led to the idea of safety that activates on a schedule, when users know they may need it most.

What it does

Guardian Angel lets users set a specific time window when they might feel unsafe. During that window, the app actively listens for a safe word or an escalation word. If the escalation word is detected or the user fails to give the safe response, Guardian Angel automatically alerts a trusted emergency contact with the relevant context.

How we built it

We built a mobile first app with a backend that manages scheduling, voice processing, and emergency alerts. The OpenAI API powers real time speech to text and intent detection, allowing reliable recognition of safe and escalation words in different environments. A messaging and calling service is used to notify emergency contacts instantly when escalation is triggered.

Challenges we ran into

Designing continuous listening without compromising privacy was a major challenge. We limited audio processing strictly to user defined time windows. Another challenge was minimizing false positives while still responding quickly under stress, especially with background noise, accents, or rushed speech.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

We’re proud of creating a safety system that feels proactive rather than invasive. Guardian Angel activates only when needed, responds quickly, and requires minimal interaction from the user in stressful situations. Building a working real time voice driven escalation flow was a big milestone for our team.

What we learned

We learned how critical latency, accuracy, and trust are in safety focused applications. Small design decisions have real world consequences. We also gained experience integrating AI into time sensitive systems where reliability matters more than novelty.

What's next for Guardian Angel

Next, we plan to add location sharing during escalations, multiple emergency contacts, customizable escalation rules, and expanded language support. Our long term goal is to make Guardian Angel a dependable companion that quietly watches over users during the moments they need it most.

Built With

• css
• html
• javascript
• openapi
• twilio