I Work in Tech, however I Worry AI—how I Educate My Daughter to Keep Protected

As a mom who has labored in tech for 20 years, I now have a front-row seat to how AI will have an effect on my child.

I’ve watched my college-age daughter scroll on TikTok and YouTube, so I do know she has already been uncovered to content material that is not actual. As a lot as I see the brand new expertise’s promise, and use it myself, it scares me. I do not know what this new expertise means for the following technology.

My largest concern proper now shouldn’t be display time or stranger hazard; it is actuality distortion. I am making certain my daughter understands what’s actual on social media and what has been created to trick her into clicking, subscribing, or shopping for.

I am now instructing her AI discernment, following a number of easy pointers.

Reality-check content material

I inform her that when she finds questionable information content material, she ought to fact-check as an alternative of instantly believing it.

I taught her to show to Google Information to search out at the least one professional information knowledge level supporting the social media content material. If she will be able to’t discover something on a professional information outlet supporting what she noticed, she is aware of what’s in entrance of her might not be actual.

Random web sites and YouTube channels aren’t locations to fact-check both.

Know the algorithm

I discuss to my daughter about how the algorithm actually works — how content material is personalised for her based mostly on her searching habits and what she clicks on and views extra usually.

She is sufficiently old now that she understands that YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram have enterprise objectives.

I educate her to note patterns: Why am I seeing a lot of this specific sort of content material? Why is it being pushed to my FYP? Might this be attempting to make me imagine one thing that is not true?

As soon as she acknowledges the patterns, I guarantee she understands that what the algorithm thinks she needs is not essentially actual.

Watch out for AI-fluencers

I additionally inform my daughter to not belief the influencers and creators she follows on social media and YouTube. Similar to the Huge Tech corporations, their purpose is to maintain her watching.

I’ve taught her that they are not creating content material for enjoyable; they’re additionally out to become profitable, so they could minimize corners or use synthetic intelligence to twist the reality.

Typically, the influencers themselves might not be actual — simply puppets of somebody behind the scenes, attempting to make some huge cash from promoting.

Spot the AI

For movies created by AI, I taught her to note sure particulars. There are all the time tell-tale indicators: glitchy face actions, eyes that do not blink, lip motion that is not tied to the phrases being spoken, bizarre transitions between actions, unusual hair, an odd voice or tone, unusual lighting or bizarre shadows, unusual or glitchy background components, or lack of emotion.

For instance, once I watched an AI video with a health care provider, the phony topic had no emotion in her voice when speaking a couple of supposed affected person who had developed a gap in her abdomen.

I additionally present her how AI is used to assist detect misinformation and the instruments I exploit at house and work to confirm content material.

AI is a part of the long run — whether or not we prefer it or not

I need my daughter to know that it is not all doom and gloom. AI can be utilized for good, as I see day by day within the tech sector.

The tech is not but excellent, and the AI trade wants extra builders who’re girls and oldsters who can take into consideration guardrails for households.

Within the meantime, I am elevating my child to instinctively query every part she sees on-line — greater than ever earlier than.