What To Know Before Letting Your Kids Use AI

Parents are already worried about screen time, social media and games like Roblox. Now we have another digital threat to lose sleep over: Artificial intelligence. And like my kids, yours might already be using it. Maybe they've asked a voice assistant a stream of endless questions or come up with creative prompts to generate otherworldly images.

AI is increasingly woven into our children's daily lives, from homework help to entertainment. But is AI safe for kids? Two experts share what parents need to know to navigate this new landscape with their children.

What exactly is AI, anyway?

To answer this question, I asked Gemini, the AI assistant from Google.

"Artificial intelligence, or AI, is the technology that allows computers to learn and perform tasks usually requiring human thinking. This includes abilities like understanding language, recognizing images, or making predictions based on information. You encounter AI in many everyday tools, from helpful voice assistants to personalized suggestions online. It's essentially about getting machines to think and act in intelligent ways."

But as Dwayne Matthews, founder of TomorrowNow Learning Labs, explains, AI language models aren't actually thinking. They mathematically determine the next word that should appear based on the huge amounts of text they've analyzed from the web. This process results in remarkably accurate responses that sound very much like human conversation.

AI is rapidly changing, and what it's capable of seems to grow every day. That's why it's so important for parents to stay on top of AI and AI-driven technology. "Starting early and talking often to your children is essential. Especially since children begin engaging with AI through social media, search engines, and smart devices at a young age," says Ateba Whitaker, Associate Professor of Practice at Virginia Tech, and a parent of a teen.

Your family is probably already using AI

You and your kids may be using AI without even knowing it. It's woven into the apps and services you use every day, often invisibly. According to Matthews, "If kids are on Snapchat or Instagram, for example, machine learning and artificial intelligence are sitting in the background of a lot of those social media sites." AI is also behind the recommendation engines in streaming services like Netflix and Disney+. Plus, any time you use a voice assistant on a smartphone or speaker, you're using AI.

AI is increasingly being built into the devices we use every day, too. This includes phones, laptops and tablets. The new iPad Air, for instance, comes with built-in artificial intelligence features. Users can find or create images with just a description, help improve writing, and get quick tips and help from Apple's virtual assistant Siri.

It's also possible that your kids are using it intentionally, particularly if they have access to a laptop or tablet and you're not always looking over their shoulder. We're pretty strict about screen time in our family. My kids only get 40 minutes on week nights, and I monitor what they do fairly closely. But one day, while talking about AI, my nine-year-old revealed that he uses a site called Craiyon to generate images. I had no idea.

What can AI do?

When most people talk about using AI, they mean large language models, LLMS or image generation tools. Large language models are tools like Chatgpt, Gemini and Perplexity that answer questions. These AI services can do everything from answer what AI is to creating a recipe for dinner using the ingredients in your fridge.

Image generation tools can be used to create detailed illustrations or photo-realistic images from a text prompt or other image references. It can also create realistic voice conversations and even videos. The possibilities are endless and extremely believable.

A very short list of possibilities:

• Make images based on your descriptions
• Write stories, poems and songs
• Help you create a recipe using the ingredients in your fridge
• Explain hard-to-understand topics
• Help you with math homework
• Assist with research for school projects
• Help you choose the right products to buy based on your family's needs and budget

Now that I know he's using AI, my son and I use it together. He likes to ask AI to imagine far-off planets and to describe them in detail. Then he takes those descriptions and feeds them into an image generator to see what the world would look like.

Matthews encourages his seven-year-old daughter to experiment with AI. His daughter has a list of potential prompts on a list on the wall. "She'll pick one or two or five, depending on what time it is and if she's trying to extend bedtime," he says. She asks using her voice (versus typing), and she's figured out how to say "explain it to me like I'm a seven-year-old."

Potential benefits of AI for kids

Educational opportunities

Matthews, whose focus is on personalizing education through technology, says that AI can help kids who wouldn't normally have academic support outside of school. He says that students who have access to tutors have a leg up on those who don't, but now with AI, kids can get help with math questions they don't understand, for instance.

Of course, how much a kid learns depends on that child, how they use the answers AI gives them and how much parental supervision they have.

Creative expression

As Matthews says, "Kids do not have the normal constraints that adults have about what's possible and what's not possible. And once they have the vocabulary to give their creativity space to maneuver, they'll definitely go for it." So the sky is the limit.

Kids can use AI to give them prompts for creative story writing, or to generate images to go with a story they've written. They can even get help from AI to compose songs or music. While technology should never be a replacement for a pencil and paper, it's a tool they can use to extend their abilities and creativity.

Skill development

Beyond concerns, interacting with AI can foster critical thinking by requiring kids to evaluate AI-generated content rather than blindly trusting it. As Whitaker emphasizes, parents should encourage kids to question what they see and understand how AI works.

Using AI tools helps kids develop problem-solving skills because it acts as a tool to assist their thinking process. It can help them define tasks, break down problems into steps, and brainstorm ideas. This encourages kids to evaluate the suggestions and figure out the path forward themselves.

Also, figuring out how to prompt AI effectively introduces foundational computational thinking concepts.

Red flags and risks of AI

While AI offers a lot of great opportunities, there are some safety issues to keep top of mind.

Privacy concerns

Generative AI tools, including apps and chatbots, can collect children's personal information—like names, locations, or usage habits—which may be used for profiling, targeted ads, or even embedded in AI training without clear consent.

What to do: The best place to experiment with AI is in a closed-loop environment. That means that the AI isn't sharing your information or using it outside of your device. Apple products, like the new iPad, offer this capability by processing many AI tasks directly on the device itself, keeping your data private and secure within your ecosystem.

Of course, many AI platforms exist on the web and are fun to test out. Parents should carefully review privacy policies and ensure privacy settings are appropriately configured to limit data collection and protect their child’s digital safety.

Bias and discrimination

AI models are trained by humans on human-created content on the internet. Humans have biases, even if they don't realize it. So the content and information AI shares may include biases or could be discriminatory.

What to do: Talk to your children about what they're learning online—whether that's on AI platforms or the web in general. Not only does AI have biases, but kids can come across misinformation just about anywhere. And with AI, people are able to create videos, images, and even convincing news stories that aren't real.

"Parents should nurture critical thinking by asking open-ended questions and co-exploring content with their children. An example might be: 'Do you think this image is edited?' or 'Why do you think this video was recommended?' The goal is to build analytical and emotional awareness. Studies show that co-viewing and open dialogue at home support digital resilience and reduce blind trust in AI," says Whitaker.

Inappropriate content

Just as you're probably not letting your young children search the web for anything they like (or you're monitoring their searches), you may not want to let your child ask AI anything they want. It's possible and likely that they'll eventually encounter information that is inappropriate or simply beyond their comprehension.

What to do: Sit with your kids when they're using AI or searching the web. Use parental monitoring tools to ensure that you know what your kids are doing online and what they have access to.

Over-reliance

Giving kids free rein on any web-based platform can be questionable. Your kids need to flex their critical thinking skills without the help of a virtual assistant.

What to do: Simply set limits on screen time and specific apps and platforms. Most operating systems make this pretty easy and allow you to see where your kids are spending their time online.

The bottom line

Understanding AI and how it works is essential for parents. It's hard to warn your kids about misinformation or privacy risks if you don't know exactly what you're cautioning them about. Play with AI platforms, read about it online, and even ask AI about AI. And don't be afraid to include your kids in this research. Learning together is even better.

Experts

• Dwayne Matthews is the founder of TomorrowNow Learning Labs.
• Ateba Whitaker is an Associate Professor of Practice at Virginia Tech, and a parent of a teen.