ChatGPT, AI chatbots, and the growing world of artificial intelligence: it's another conversation parents may not have planned on having with their kids.
A new Harvard study found that half of all young adults have already used AI, and younger kids are quickly joining in.
Karl Ernsberger, a former high school teacher turned AI entrepreneur, says that’s not necessarily a bad thing.
“It is here to stay. It’s like people trying to resist the Industrial Revolution,” Ernsberger said.
Ernsberger believes tools like chatbots can be powerful for learning, but only if kids and parents know the limits.
One example is “Rudi the Red Panda,” a virtual character available for free in kids mode on X’s Grok AI. When asked, Rudi can even answer questions about Arizona history.
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“The five C’s of Arizona are Copper, Cotton, Cattle, Citrus, Climate,” Rudi said.
But Ernsberger warns that children may struggle to understand that Rudi isn’t real, and that “friendship” with a chatbot is different from human connection.
“It’s hard for the student to actually develop a real friendship,” he said. “They get confused by that because friendship is something they continue to learn about as they get older.”
When asked if Rudi was really my best friend, it replied: “I’m as real as a red panda can be in your imagination. I’m here to be your best friend.”
That, Ernsberger says, is where parents need to step in.
For families trying to keep kids safe while exploring AI, Ernsberger’s first recommendation is simple.
“Use it yourself. There are so many use cases, so many different things that can be done with AI. Just finding a familiarity with it can help you find the weaknesses for your case, and its weaknesses for your kids.”
Then he says if your child is using AI, be there with them to watch over and keep the human connection.
“The key thing with AI is it’s challenging our ability to connect with each other, that’s a different kind of challenge to society than any other tool we’ve built in the past,” Ernsberger said.
Regulators are paying attention, too.
Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes, along with 43 other state attorneys general, recently sent a letter to 12 AI companies, including the maker of Rudi, demanding stronger safeguards to protect young users.
