Cassie Coccaro is the Head of Communications at Thorn. In this role, she leads external communications, media relations, and thought leadership strategy – translating complex, often difficult work into stories that help the public, journalists, the tech industry, and other stakeholders better understand and respond to modern child safety issues.

Cassie is also the co-host of Safe Space, a podcast that goes beyond the technology to explore the personal journeys of the people working behind the scenes to protect millions of users every day. 

Her work is rooted in a belief that the hardest problems get solved not by any one person or sector, but by bringing the right voices together around a shared understanding.

Pailes Halai is the Key Account & Partnership Manager at Thorn, a nonprofit that builds technology to defend children from sexual abuse and exploitation. He partners with tech platforms to integrate Safer, Thorn’s flagship detection tool that helps teams detect, review, and report suspected child sexual abuse material and exploitation at scale.

As co-host of Safe Space, Thorn’s podcast spotlighting the people behind online safety, Pailes brings listeners inside the real work of building safer digital spaces—featuring candid conversations with practitioners, content moderators, and trust and safety experts shaping the future of the internet.