Ready or not, it would seem artificial intelligence (AI) is now part of our everyday lives. You may not realize that AI has been around in various forms for decades. Most of us have been interacting with simple versions through chatbots, digital business services and even early computer gaming as far back as the 1950s.

So, what has changed? Beginning in the late 2010s, AI became available to non-technical everyday users through Open AI and then the well-known open-source AI, Chat GPT. Most application platforms today have their own built-in AI, such as Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini. You may have even noticed that your Google search now automatically starts with an AI summary of your answer and requires continued scrolling to see the web resources used to formulate the summary. Virtual assistants like Siri and Alexa have been using AI all along, although in a more scripted way in response to common voice commands.

Regardless of how you feel about AI, it is a very much a part of the everyday lives of adolescents and as parents and educators we need to be prepared to provide critical guidance and guardrails (Brookings Institute, January 2026). Students can certainly benefit from AI applications that make learning more engaging and personalized. Educators can save time creating teaching tools and streamlining assessments. AI is a great tool for brainstorming ideas to kickstart a project – I utilized AI for this topic to ensure that I covered all the prominent issues.

The risks to young people

However, AI use also presents risks for young people. Because many AI systems are rapidly developed and released, their potential shortcomings are not always fully understood. Algorithms designed to maximize engagement can create an illusion of human‑like interaction, which may lead children to believe they are communicating with real people (APA, June 2025). These concerns have prompted calls for comprehensive AI literacy education for both youth and educators, as well as stronger safeguards to protect children (UNESCO, February 2025). Building AI literacy now will better prepare young people to use the technology safely and responsibly, both in their current lives and in the future.

More to come

The next installment in this series will explore strategies for protecting youth in AI‑driven environments. For more information about the 4‑H youth development program in Orange County, please contact us at 407‑254‑9200 or orange4h@ifas.ufl.edu.

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