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Just Say No to AI Toys

They may be cute. They may be clever. But they’re not good for kids. Child health experts are warning not to buy children’s toys that use artificial intelligence.

Child advocacy non-profit Fairplay, along with child developmental experts from the Global Alliance for Inspiring Non-tech Infant Nurturing and Growth, advise that AI toys “can undermine healthy development and pose unprecedented risks for kids and families.”

What are AI Toys?

AI toys are plushies, robots, and other playthings embedded with artificial intelligence chatbots. The AI mimics human characteristics and acts as a child’s friend.

Some AI toys are on wheels and can snake through cluttered playrooms. Cameras behind their eyes record and relay to the manufacturer what they see and hear.

Sparkly angel teddy bears are online for children “ages 0 to 20”.    

Toy makers are telling families the products are safe and beneficial “before their impact has been assessed by independent research,” says the Fairplay advisory.

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Turns out, Parents of Babies and Toddlers are Irreplaceable

For little ones, nothing can match their parents’ human touch. So says an unprecedented 37-nation alliance of clinicians, researchers, educators, and advocates.  

The group cites a cascade of new research supporting an age-old notion: parents and caregivers provide the back-and-forth responsive attention and play that children need in their first years of life—and screen time can’t compare.

Babyhood: A Once in a Lifetime Opportunity

Babyhood is the only time in life the human brain is growing so quickly.

“The first years of life are a critical time for brain development, when the baby’s back and forth social experiences with loved ones build the brain connections for processing language and social information,” says Karen Heffler, M.D., a developmental researcher from Drexel University School of Medicine in the U.S.

“Screen time disrupts and displaces these essential experiences,” she underscores.

Heffler is also part of the Global Alliance for Inspiring Non-tech Infant Nurturing and Growth, or GAINING.

To inform governments, healthcare providers and parents worldwide about new research on the developmental needs of children from birth to age 3, GAINING is distributing “awareness alerts” worldwide.

A “News to Know” alert for parents explains “how the brain develops in the first years sets the foundation for your child’s overall health and well-being” and that screen time can interfere.

Parents Stretched Thin

Though parents have the best of intentions, giving their all can be tough when attention-grabbing screens are everywhere and stress is a daily reality.

“To support parents and acknowledge how difficult life can be, we strived to be understanding in what we wrote,” María de los Angeles Paúl, pediatrician from Chile and GAINING member told the journal Perspectives in Infant Mental Health.

Tech has Unfair Advantage

GAINING also cites research that the “educational” label on apps and shows made for the youngest children can be misleading.

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If It’s Not Your Kid, Don’t Gift a Smartphone

Woman reaching out with wrapped holiday gift. Photo by Kira auf der hyde

It may be tempting to want to please a child pleading for a shiny, new smartphone. But if you’re a grandparent, family friend, or any loved one who is not the child’s parent, granting that wish could do more harm than good. Read on for the scary reasons why and for a list of non-tech gifts kids will also be excited to receive.

I’ve always held that giving a child a cellphone has more strings attached than the coolest pair of sneakers. But looking back, this 2014 post seems quaint and innocent. In the decade since, smartphones and their content have become extremely sophisticated—and downright treacherous for children.

Smartphone as delivery vehicle

I know a mom who has two young daughters. Since before they were born, we’ve talked about how she would introduce them to the digital world. She’s done a great job thoughtfully helping them balance the time they spend on technology with everything else they need to do to grow up confident and self-sufficient.

So I was surprised when she told me her 12-year-old had a smartphone. “My mother promised her a phone when she got to middle school,” she said with a sigh.

I asked if her daughter had social media. “Well, not really, except for Snapchat. She begged for it since everybody has it—and we said yes.”

I thought for a minute if I should tell her.

The tragic case of Sewell Setzer

That very day, I’d learned of a lawsuit filed over the death of 14-year-old Sewell Setzer.

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Preventing the Phone-Based Childhood: Attention Preschool Parents

Preschool aged child using tablet. Photo by Merrily Pierce

Though it seems little kids everywhere are on hand-held screens, scientists are just catching up with effects that digital devices have on growing minds.

A new study adds to increasing concerns for preschool parents.

Turns out that mobile device use can interfere with how preschool-aged children learn to manage their emotions. The more time on screens, the more a child tends to struggle with anger and frustration.    

“What we seem to be observing is the emergence possibly of a vicious cycle over time.”

That’s the word from Caroline Fitzpatrick, Canada’s research chair on the impact of digital media on children. The work of her team at Quebec’s University of Sherbrooke is in JAMA Pediatrics.

The Canadian Tablet Study

Sherbrooke followed more than 200 preschoolers—checking in on each one at ages 3, 4 and 5.

The more time 3-year-olds spent on mobile devices, the more they were prone to anger and frustration one year later.  

4-year-old device users with anger management issues used screens more as they got older.

“We found that by the age of 5, children with worse emotion regulation skills were spending more time using tablets,” reports Fitzpatrick.

3-year-old device users were most vulnerable to emotional upheaval.   

How Digital Pacifiers Backfire  

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