Researchers are calling for tighter regulation of AI-powered toys designed for toddlers, after conducting one of the first tests in the world to investigate how under-fives interact with the technology.
The study looked at how a small sample of children between the ages of three and five interacted with a cuddly toy called Gabbo.
A number of AI toys are already on the market for children aged as young as three but there is currently very little research into the impact of the tech on pre-schoolers.
The Cambridge University team found just seven relevant studies worldwide, none of which focused on the toddlers themselves.
Gabbo contains a voice-activated AI chatbot from OpenAI. It has been designed to encourage pre-schoolers to talk to it and carry out imaginative play.
Or we could simply not buy them for the children.? My daughter has carefully structured access to apps on her tablet and AI is strictly out. She sometimes models that her school friends have access to certain apps. However, she is at an age where she is still a little upset but can understand why we have these controls.
Or we could just ban the sales of AI-based toys altogether.
I certainly wholeheartedly agree. Please note I’m not the most experienced of parents and I only have one child.
My now near adult kids have actually understood and been thankful that their childhood was ‘unfairly strict’ on what they could do on their devices. They have friends who have had unmonitored access to anything on their devices and it starts to show badly enough that even their peers notice how short their attention span is and how twisted their view of the world has become.