AI Innovation Puts Kids First at Davos Summit

The next generation of AI is being built with children's brains in mind, and tech leaders gathering at Davos are showing it's possible to innovate without repeating the past.

Unlike the social media era, when platforms raced ahead without guardrails and left childhood development in the dust, AI designers are now embedding child-centered protections from day one. This shift represents a fundamental change in how technology gets built.

The stakes are clear. A decade of unregulated design features like infinite scroll and personalized feeds reshaped how kids grow up, with one in ten children now showing addictive-like behaviors around social media use. Children ages nine to twelve now spend six to nine hours daily on screens, missing out on real-world interactions that build empathy and confidence.

But leaders at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting are charting a different course for AI. They're addressing risks before they scale, recognizing that generative AI is far more powerful than social media because it actively produces personalized advice and simulates conversation in real time.

The difference matters because children still developing their ability to distinguish feelings from facts can't recognize when they're interacting with machines instead of humans. Research from Common Sense Media shows some teenagers already prefer AI companions over real friendships, raising urgent questions about healthy development.

Why This Inspires

This proactive approach proves that protecting children's development isn't a barrier to progress but the foundation for it. By designing AI products with young users' needs from the outset, companies can prioritize both innovation and safety together.

The UK's Age Appropriate Design Code and similar frameworks are giving developers clear guidelines for building responsibly. These policies help ensure AI systems don't replace the vital human interactions that form the foundation of how children learn, grow, and form their identities.

Psychologists and scientists are joining the conversation, bringing emerging evidence about brain development during childhood's rapid neural growth periods. Their input helps shape products that support rather than undermine cognitive and emotional development.

The business case is becoming clear too. Protecting childhood development builds a thriving society and resilient workforce for the long term, making child-centered design not just ethical but economically smart.

This moment offers something rare: a chance to get it right before problems scale, unlocking AI's enormous benefits while safeguarding the generation that will inherit this technology.