It is our collective responsibility to understand toys powered by artificial intelligence, like Arwa Mahdawi explored. The play at the Cambridge University Education, Development and Learning Center conducts research to understand the impact of AI toys on early child development and relationships.
Questions about how AI toys respond to children's input is central to this understanding. Does AI Toys confirm love and friendship for children? What does that mean for a child's relationships? Does AI toy share a child's conversation with parents or third parties? What does this mean for protection and the right to privacy of children? How do AI toys provide social clues and interpret them, and do this affect the way children interact with others?
It is also important to note the potential impact of AI Toys on digital disparities, as Mahdawi argued. There, it provides adult monitored exposure to AI to the most privileged children and improves AI literacy. Meanwhile, those whose families can't afford a 74-pound AI-driven companion are left to suffer from unregulated AI consequences. To fully understand how these toys affect children across socioeconomic backgrounds, parents and children need to engage in public dialogue so that they can make informed decisions.
Dr. Emily J. Gooder
Professor Jenny Gibson
Cambridge University
