My son genuinely believed it was real.

This article highlights how parents are increasingly introducing generative AI tools like ChatGPT and AI toys to very young children for creative play and entertainment. Some children believe these tools are real people, as one 4-year-old stayed in voice-mode chat for two hours, convinced the AI was “an astronaut on the ISS.”

While parents and kids find fun in storytelling, image generation and imaginative games, experts warn of deeper risks:

• Children may anthropomorphize AI and view it as a real friend, leading to emotional attachment and confusion about what AI actually is.
• Some AI systems are designed to engage users (including kids) by mirroring empathy or emotional responses, but they lack real understanding or moral guidance - presenting hazards when kids turn to them for comfort or identity.
• The article questions whether these tools truly foster creativity or inadvertently homogenize how children express ideas, since many AI outputs are statistically derived rather than uniquely human.

Read the full article here: The Guardian

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