
08/14/2025
Stories - and fears - about children and suddenly seem to be everywhere, making it seem as though kids just picked this new habit up yesterday.
But they didn't.
I've been tracking this trend since early 2024, when publications like The Verge and the BBC first started writing about platforms like Character.ai, and the "friends" and "therapists" teens were starting to form bonds with in these virtual spaces.
Through my own work on , I have witnessed firsthand how this last year ushered in a new concern for districts: students using companion bots to engage in sexually explicit conversations.
So now we're in a spot where young people have already been using these technologies for a good amount of time, and the questions we urgently need answers to are:
• How exactly are K12 students using these tools?
• What deeper needs do these bots fulfill?
• How do we provide guidance and support to youth and their families to ensure safe and beneficial use?
These are the questions I'll be addressing in my 2026 presentation, if you help me make it to Austin next year!
My session is titled:
"The New Imaginary Friend: Children and their AI Companions"
Please take a minute - it will literally take you that long - to cast your vote and help me bring these important insights to thousands of educators from the United States and around the world.
Thank you!🤠
https://participate.sxsw.com/flow/sxsw/sxsw26/community-voting-edu/page/community-voting/session/1753337732902001R2q2