Meet the startup combining software and home appliances to protect domestic abuse victims

For some women, the most dangerous part of an abusive relationship is when they seek help and/or try to leave. The UK government’s Femicide Census research found that 38% of women killed by an ex-partner or ex-spouse between 2009 and 2018 were killed within the first month of separation.

SafeLives, a UK-based domestic abuse charity, also reports that victims sought help five times, on average, from professionals in the year before they received effective help to stop the abuse.

Katy Longhurst understands this struggle all too well. A domestic abuse survivor, Longhurst struggled to find a reliable way to get help when she was in a crisis situation. 

“During my 2016 attack, I managed to reach my panic alarm and pressed it again, but nothing happened. I later found out the police had disconnected it without telling me,” she says.

“My son and I survived only because neighbours heard his screams and called for help. I wanted to create something that works in the reality people are living in,” she adds.

Longhurst’s experience pushed her to find a solution, an app called Ask Joan. This is a discreet safety system that is “built for moments when speaking out isn’t safe.”

Ask Joan has been developed by UK tech company Viviplu, but was created by Longhurst. The technology is a cloud-based system that connects to the user’s electricity smart meter.

It works by detecting unusual surges in electricity. The victim can do something as mundane as switching on a kettle or toaster, on and off repeatedly, and the system will recognise this irregular pattern as a silent distress signal that alerts a trusted contact or service.

“I designed Ask Joan with technology-facilitated abuse in mind, because I lived it. My ex-partner had spyware on my phone, a tracker on my car, and bugs in my home, so anything that relied on my phone or a visible device could have been seen,” she says.

“There’s no phone call, no visible panic button, and no warning to an abuser. It’s a lifeline hidden in plain sight,” Longhurst says.

While other technologies support domestic abuse survivors, such as ListenApp, a voice-activated app that can send SMS alerts to trusted contacts without requiring physical interaction with a phone, Ask Joan takes a different approach. By using everyday household appliances to trigger a discreet SOS alert, it offers an alternative for survivors who may be unable to safely access their phones, particularly when an abusive partner monitors their device.

Longhurst’s IT background was able to aid her in developing the technology and launching the company.

“I spent most of my career working in the public sector, and over the last few years I’ve moved into health tech, where I’ve been able to focus on using technology to improve people’s lives and wellbeing,” she says.

Providing another layer of support

Longhurst stresses that Ask Joan needed to be invented because victims should have many ways of accessing support when in crisis.

“Support shouldn’t depend on someone being able to shout, call, or escape,” she says. “Coercive control often means your phone is monitored, your movements are tracked, and your home isn’t private, so the usual ways of asking for help can put you in more danger.”

“Sometimes the difference between life and death isn’t a shout for help, but a silent signal that finally reaches someone who is listening.”

Longhurst also stresses that this system is only accessible for those who need it – ensuring privacy for the victim and further protection from the abuser.

Challenges and funding

Longhurst says she faced personal and industry challenges when launching the company. She says that speaking personally about her story brought her abuser back into her life, and that he has harassed her, sent death threats, and damaged her car.

“It’s been a stark reminder that the abuse I’m building this technology to address isn’t something in my past; it’s still a reality I live with,” she says.

She notes how underfunded domestic abuse services are, which has made it harder to invest in new approaches like Ask Joan, even when they can see the need for this technology.

“There’s also a unique difficulty with a product like Ask Joan: because it’s designed to be discreet, I can’t openly promote exactly how it works,” she says.

“The more widely its capabilities are publicised, the more likely abusers are to learn what to look for. That makes raising awareness a careful balancing act.”

For Longhurst, the biggest challenge has been culture – as many structures in place to support victims are outdated, especially with technology now playing a bigger role in abusing victims.

“There isn’t always recognition that innovation is key to solving what is a national emergency,” she says.

“Having spent most of my career in the public sector, I understand how these systems work and why change can be slow, but I also know that change is possible.”

Longhurst’s determination and perseverance are what she says have helped her overcome these challenges.

“I don’t stop. I keep documenting, I keep reporting, and I keep pushing, both for my own safety and for change across the sector,” she says.

“These challenges have only strengthened my resolve, because they show exactly why Ask Joan is needed. If someone can be targeted like this even after years of separation, court orders, and rebuilding their life, then the people still living with an abuser need a way to ask for help that can’t be seen.”

In May 2026, Viviplu partnered with energy-data specialist Chameleon Technology to develop Ask Joan’s ability to recognise signals sent through everyday household appliances. The partnership marks a step forward in the technology’s development, although its effectiveness in real-world emergencies has yet to be independently established.

“I’ve also had fantastic support from several local authorities, which has been incredibly encouraging, especially given the funding pressures across the sector. It shows there’s an appetite for innovation among people who understand what victims are facing,” she says.

Despite the growing recognition, interviews, and media coverage, Longhurst says that most of the funding has come from her own pocket.

“I released equity from my own home to fund the early stages, and alongside that I secured investment and a business loan to build the product. Putting my own home on the line wasn’t a small decision, but I believed in what Ask Joan could do enough to take that risk,” she says.

“I also want to mention Oasis Domestic Abuse Service in Kent. Oasis saved me. Their support was a turning point in my own journey, and having them behind me now means a great deal. Organisations like Oasis are exactly why I want Ask Joan to work alongside specialist services, giving people a way to reach that kind of help when they can’t ask for it out loud,” she adds.

A nationwide rollout

A BBC report says that Breckland Council was trialling Ask Joan, with 19 units distributed and the app offered as part of every new referral, according to a council spokesperson.

Despite the growing rollout, Longhurst hopes that Ask Joan will be adopted by every domestic abuse service and police force across the country in the next five years.

“I want to help build systems that connect the dots rather than scatter them, and protection that reflects reality, not assumptions,” she says.

“Ask Joan becoming a standard part of how services and police respond to domestic abuse would be a huge step towards that.”

“I want to reach a point where no one’s safety depends on being able to shout, call, or escape. If Ask Joan can be the silent signal that reaches someone who is listening, in every community, then it will have done what I built it to do,” she concludes.

The reality of abuse

Longhurst hopes that her story, her technology, and her company can help teach people about the complicated nature of abuse.

“I want people to understand that domestic abuse isn’t just physical. For years, the abuse I experienced left no visible marks. It was emotional, psychological, financial, and digital,” she explains.

“We must stop searching for what we think abuse should look like and start recognising what it is.”

Longhurst stresses the importance of learning to recognise signs of abuse, such as isolation, constant checking in with a partner, financial control and fear of saying the wrong thing.

“If you are suffering right now, I want you to know there is light at the end of the tunnel. There were times I truly couldn’t see a way forward, but I survived, I rebuilt my life, and today I am no longer afraid. You are not alone, and support is out there.”

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic abuse, confidential support is available

• National Domestic Abuse Helpline (Refuge): 0808 2000 247 — free, 24-hour support for women. nationaldahelpline.org.uk

• Women’s Aid: womensaid.org.uk — information, resources and access to support services for women experiencing domestic abuse.

• Men’s Advice Line: 0808 801 0327 — confidential support for men experiencing domestic abuse. mensadviceline.org.uk

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