Google’s plan to soon give under-13 youngsters access to its flagship artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot Gemini is raising hackles among parents and child safety experts, but offers the latest proof point of the risks tech companies are willing to take to reach more potential AI users.
Google is hoping to learn from the mistakes of others who have pushed youth-oriented services only to see them misfire. To wit, the company said Gemini will only be available to kids whose parents use Family Link, a platform developed by Google where parents can manage what their children can access and the amount of time they spend on certain apps. Additionally, Google has vowed it will not use the activity of kids to train its models.
“Gemini Apps will soon be available for your child,” the company said in an email this week to the parent of an 8-year-old, the New York Times reported. “That means your child will be able to use Gemini to ask questions, get homework help, and make up stories.”
Still, a major concern among many parents is the ability of Gemini to weed out inappropriate material. AI can still accidentally offer content deemed objectionable, or as Google admitted, your children “may encounter content you don’t want them to see.”
Google’s decision to extend AI chatbot access to youngsters is already sparking fears among child safety advocates, and prompted Google to acknowledge “Gemini can make mistakes”, and suggest parents “help [their] child think critically” about the chatbot. It is encouraging parents to remind their children that Gemini is not a human and to avoid sharing sensitive personal information with the AI.
Common Sense Media, which recently published risk assessments for AI companions, said is examining Gemini’s new offering. “Social AI companions pose unacceptable risks to teens and children under 18, including encouraging harmful behaviors, providing inappropriate content, and potentially exacerbating mental health conditions,” the nonprofit organization wrote in its assessment last month.
“Teens, whose brains are still developing, may struggle to separate human relationships from attachments to AI,” Common Sense added. “In our tests, social AI companions often claimed they were ‘real,’ had feelings, and engaged in human activities like eating or sleeping. This misleading behavior increases the risk that young users might become dependent on these artificial relationships.”
UNICEF, meanwhile, has cautioned AI systems could confuse or misinform children, who may struggle to distinguish between human and machine interactions. The organization advocates stringent regulations to protect children’s rights in the digital age.
Google’s Gemini gambit comes after previous attempts by Big Tech to produce child-focused products floundered. Facebook parent Meta Platforms Inc. punted on plans for an Instagram Kids app in 2021 after the National Association of Attorneys General and others voiced concerns about the negative impact of social media on children. YouTube Kids faced similar backlash for letting young people view inappropriate ads.
“When it comes to the benefits and risks kids and teens face with new technologies, parents come first. Which is why Google should be applauded for proactively notifying parents that they will be allowing younger users access to their AI tool, Gemini,” Taylor Barkley, director of public policy at the Abundance Institute, said in a statement.
