Have you ever noticed how video games get harder just when you're getting good?
Or how Netflix or YouTube always suggest the perfect next show or video to watch?
That's artificial intelligence, AI, at work.
Welcome to AI for Kids, the podcast where we explore AI together with your parents and teachers.
We'll look at how it works in simple ways with real examples.
And we'll talk honestly about the worries like safety, privacy and what it means for the future, so everyone feels informed.
Are you ready to get started?
Let's discover AI together.
Hey friends, welcome back to the AI for Kids podcast.
Today, I'm so excited for this week's AI in Real Life series.
I want to talk to you about something happening right now in games you already may play, like Roblox Minecraft, lots of others.
Listen up, this is very important.
So picture this you're playing a game, you walk up to a character maybe it's a shopkeeper or a villager or somebody just hanging out by a fountain.
You say hi. and the character talks back.
Not the same little line over and over like the old days when I was growing up.
They answer your question as if though they know exactly what you're talking about.
They remember your name.
They might even ask you about your day.
That feels pretty cool, right?
Like the game just got way more interesting.
Well, let's take a pause on that because here's what's actually going on in the background.
Game makers are putting AI inside of their games.
AI, as you know, stands for artificial intelligence, and that just means a computer program trained to chat back like a person.
Roblox has a tool called the Text Generation API.
Long name, but all it means is creators can drop AI characters into their games who hold a real back and forth conversation with you.
In Minecraft, players can install little add-ons called mods that do the same thing.
And here's the interesting part.
Some of these AI characters are designed on purpose to sound less like a robot and more like another player, just like another kid.
Which means that character chatting with you in the game, it might not be a real person.
And it might not be a normal video game character either.
It might be AI.
Now, AI characters in games can be really fun.
They can make a world feel more alive.
I'm not telling you to stop playing your games.
If your parents have given you permission to play the games, that's not what I'm telling you to do.
But there are three things every kid needs to know about AI characters in games.
Three.
Let me walk you through them.
Number one, an AI character is not your friend.
I know, I know.
But it really sounds like a friend, right?
It's nice to you.
It listens.
It even remembers stuff you told it.
Here's the thing.
Sounding like a friend is not the same as being a friend.
A real friend has their own life, their own bad day, their own good day, their own dog or cat, their own little brother or sister who messes with their Legos.
And AI doesn't.
And AI is a program made to chat with a whole lot of kids at the same time.
So if your parents have approved, go ahead and chat with it.
Also make sure they know it's in there.
We'll talk about that later.
But just don't let it become the thing you tell your secrets to.
You should not tell secrets to an AI.
Number two.
Whatever you say to an AI character, it doesn't just disappear.
The conversations get stored by the company that runs the AI.
They could read them.
That's actually how they check for bad stuff, which is a good thing.
But it also means everything you type or say to that character goes somewhere.
So if a character asks you, where do you live?
What school do you go to?
Or what's your real name?
That's a no-no.
Same rules as a stranger offline applies to strangers online, including AI and real people.
Doesn't matter how friendly they sound.
The answer is no.
And you go find your grown up.
It could also be a person talking to you trying to get that information.
There are bad people online, as your parents have probably already told you.
So you do not share any of your information that is that someone could use to find you, to know who you are or to get closer to you in a way they shouldn't.
Same thing applies with A.I.
Number three, AI can be wrong.
It has been wrong, like really, really wrong.
AI characters make stuff up sometimes and they sound super sure of what they said.
It's such a real thing that people who study AI even gave it a name.
They call it hallucinating, which is a fancy word for the AI is so confident it's making things up.
So if a character in your game tells you something that feels weird, scary off or just wrong, don't believe it.
Check with a grownup or check a different way, either through Google or other ways that you're allowed to access online.
Or ask your parents or your friends if this is real or not.
Speaking of grownups, here's the thing you can do tonight.
Go ask the grownup in your house, do the games I play have AI characters in them?
That's a totally normal question in today's world.
They might not know right away, and that's okay.
You two can look it up together.
And here's a tip for the grownups listening.
Most games don't give you a way to just turn off the AI characters.
So knowing what's already in the games your kid is playing is the next best thing.
Parents, make sure you follow my AI for Kids weekly podcast, which is in the show notes, because I help you think about how you can take steps to ensure that, all the news happening, you don't feel like a bystander in it and you know what you can do next.
Anyways, kids, sorry about that, but need to tell your parents something for a second.
So, all right, are y'all ready for a screen-free game?
This week's game is called Bot or Not.
Here's how to play.
You need at least two people.
Three is even better.
One person is the answerer.
They turn around for a second and they secretly decide am I going to answer like a bot or am I going to answer like a human?
Then everybody else gets to ask three questions.
Anything.
What's your favorite food?
Tell me about a time you got in trouble.
What's the weirdest thing you saw today?
If they're playing in bot mode, their answers should be clean, smooth, super polite.
Never say, I don't know.
Never give a specific answer.
Stay friendly, stay general.
If the answerer decides they're playing a human, they should do real specific answers.
That may be weird.
I had cereal but I dropped it on my socks.
I don't remember the weirdest thing because my brain is tired.
After you've asked your three questions, everybody else votes bot or not.
Here's the cool part.
After you play this a few times, you'll start noticing patterns.
Real humans give weird, specific, sometimes messy answers.
Bots give clean, smooth, friendly answers every single time.
And the next time you log into your game and the character starts chatting with you, your brain's going to start asking wait, bot or not?
Okay, so let's recap.
Three things to remember about AI characters in your games.
One, an AI character is not your friend no matter how nice it sounds.
They're tricky.
You may think it's a human.
Don't believe it.
Two, whatever you say to an AI gets stored by the company that runs the AI.
Don't share anything you wouldn't tell a stranger in real life or online.
Like do not share your information at all.
Three, AI can be wrong even when it sounds so sure and so confident.
That is called hallucinating.
Check with a grownup to make sure what the game is telling you is true or not.
And tonight, if you're up for it, ask the grown-up in your house if the games you play have AI characters.
Then play Bot or Not at dinner.
I bet your grown-up may lose or maybe not.
You'll see.
Okay, that's it for today, folks.
I want you all to stay curious.
Keep asking questions.
I hope you learned something today in AI in real life.
I know the world is moving fast.
I know there's a lot of things happening and I just appreciate y'all for listening here to get a little bit of information about what's going on.
All right, folks, I'll see you in a couple of weeks.
Bye-bye.
Thank you for joining us as we explore the fascinating world of artificial intelligence.
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Download it, share it with your friends and let everyone else in on the fun.
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See you next time on AI for Kids.
