
For years, Aviv Shoshan felt he experienced the world differently. Diagnosed with attention and concentration difficulties, and with a younger sister on the autism spectrum, he grew up aware of how hard it can be to read social cues. “I was surrounded by people but felt on the outside, like I wasn’t really part of the experience,” he recalls.That feeling eventually led the 22-year-old, a graduate of the “Masa El HaOfek” program, to develop a virtual “assistant” — an AI-based tool that simulates everyday conversations and lets young adults on the spectrum practice social situations such as job interviews, dates or casual chats. The idea, he says, is to train and build confidence in a discreet, judgment-free environment.

