September 25, 2025 • 20 mins
aiEDU Studios has launched a separate podcast entitled Raising Kids in the Age of AI, created in collaboration with Google!
Co-hosts Alex Kotran and Dr. Aliza Pressman will explore how AI is shaping the future of parenting and learning in conversations with parents, students, and leaders in education and technology.
Meet Isabell, a 13-year-old entrepreneur who is using AI to enhance (Not replace!) her creativity as she builds her handmade product business: "I like to have control over everything I do," she explains, demonstrating wisdom beyond her years in how she leverages technology while maintaining her own vision. Her mother Tiffany strikes the perfect balance of curiosity and caution, showing how parents can guide without hovering.
We also spoke with Maureen Heymans, VP of Learning at Google and a mother of two teenage sons. She shares how her boys have used "vibe coding" to bring their passion projects to life — one created a website for his honey business despite no coding experience, the other developed an app to help cyclists identify bike problems. Maureen emphasizes that AI should function as "an extension, not a replacement" for children's thinking, and encourages parents to foster independent brainstorming before turning to technological assistance.
What emerges throughout our conversations is a powerful realization: the core principles of raising adaptable, healthy, and connected children haven't changed, but our approach must evolve. Parents don't need technical expertise to navigate this landscape — they simply need to maintain open communication, cultivate curiosity, and become their child's "encourager in chief."
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Lisa, I want to ask you what's the number one thing
when it comes to raising goodhumans?
Speaker 2 (00:04):
I would say it's to raise adaptable, healthy,
connected kids.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Now the same question , but what's most important for
parents in the age of AI Likeare we at the point where we
need to update parenting manuals?
Speaker 2 (00:18):
It's all the same.
It's just that there are somany questions that come with
raising kids in an age of AI,like how do you stay connected,
how should they approacheducation, how do we keep them
safe?
I mean just a lot morequestions about exercising these
really important muscles.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
Yeah, I think you hit the nail on the head and I'll
say answering these questions iswhat we work on every day at
AIEDU.
Since 2019, we've been workingwith schools across the country
and we help them adapt theircurriculum and their teaching
practices, and we're focused ontwo things One, basic knowledge
about AI and two, what we callthe human advantage, which is
(00:53):
all that stuff you were talkingabout critical thinking,
communication, collaboration,problem solving.
We also know that parents havea huge role to play in guiding
the next generation through someof these big challenges and
opportunities to come from thisnew era of technology and change
, and that's why we're makingthis show so welcome to Raising
Kids in the Age of AI.
(01:14):
It's a podcast from AIEDUStudios in collaboration with
Google.
We want to help parentsunderstand AI and how their kids
are going to encounter it inschool and throughout the world.
We want them to be empowered intheir journey with AI.
I'm Alex Katran.
I'm the founder and CEO ofAIEDU.
We're a nonprofit that helpsstudents get ready to live, work
and thrive in a world where AIis everywhere.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
And I'm Dr Lisa Pressman, a developmental
psychologist, professor,podcaster, mother of teenagers
and author of the New York Timesbestselling book, the Five
Principles of Parenting, yourEssential Guide to Raising Good
Humans.
And in each episode, alex and Iwill introduce you to parents,
educators and AI experts who canshare insights and best
practices for young people usingthese powerful tools.
(01:59):
Today we want to start close tohome and take a look at how
kids today are exploring theworld through hobbies and
interests, with AI in the loop.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
We're going to hear from a very intrepid 13-year-old
who's using AI to help herbuild her own kind of lemonade
stand.
And then we're going to go tothe experts.
We're going to hear from the VPof Learning at Google, maureen
Haymans, and she's going toshare how her own kids are
deepening their interests withthe help of AI, and she's also
going to talk about the bestpractices that she uses to keep
AI at its lane.
(02:28):
A helpful tool, but withfamilies staying in the driver's
seat.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
And I'm curious what does it look like to bring AI
into something as fun andfreewheeling as a kid,
practicing a hobby or developingan interest?
When does it help and when doesit get in the way?
Because this is such preciousand important work and the AI
part is new to me and I reallywant to make sure we get this
(02:52):
right.
Speaker 1 (02:53):
Yeah, I wonder a lot about that too.
You know, I actually went toart summer camp when I was 10.
I remember that moment is this,you know being able to show my
work to my parents and it wasspecial, not just because of
what I had painted it actuallywasn't a very good painting, but
it represented all of this hardwork.
It was this embodiment of theproductive struggle and my own
learning process.
So, you know, this worry thatproductive struggle and sort of
(03:17):
this core component ofcreativity could be skipped over
is, I think, a legitimate one,and it's something that we're
going to delve into.
Yeah, and the reality is, Ithink, a legitimate one, and
it's something that we're goingto delve into.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
Yeah, and the reality is we don't know, so we're kind
of moving right alongside allof this technology.
We know that these productivestruggles are hugely important
for raising creative, adaptive,functioning kids, and so paying
close attention to how we canharness that creativity and
(03:46):
maintain the the aspect of itthat's kind of like hard it's
the hard stuff while alsoenjoying the benefits of this
technology is going to be reallyimportant right, and it's not
just the productive strugglethat's so vital to preserve,
it's also the other intangiblestuff that is part of being
human, and that includessometimes you just have to be
(04:06):
bored we can't have creativitywithout boredom, like how kids
choose to make use of time thatis unstructured, that is not
accounted for and where there'slike nothing to do except use
your own mind to figure out asolution.
So the classic example in thesummertime is the lemonade stand
(04:27):
.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
Right, and I think there's so much learning that
comes from that.
I mean, for me it wasn't alemonade stand, it was Boy Scout
popcorn tins and you know,because it turns out it's really
hard to go door to door sellingyou know well, selling anything
, but certainly selling popcorn.
That wasn't actually that good.
But I learned about how to justhave conversations with
strangers and how to close thedeal, and so the question I had
(04:50):
was what does that process looklike in the age of AI?
Where is that productivestruggle?
Where are kids going to justsort of figure out some of this
stuff that they aren'tnecessarily learning in class
but that we know is reallycritical to their development?
And that's where we want tostart today with 13 year old
Isabel, who has a businessselling at craft fairs, and
we're also going to talk to hermom, tiffany.
(05:11):
We're going to hear how Isabeluses AI to build and run her own
business, exactly how she wantsit to be, while also learning
about being an entrepreneuralong the way.
Speaker 5 (05:21):
Hi, I'm Isabel, I'm 13 years old and I'm the founder
of my own business, shimmerHandmade.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
So it all started when Isabel wanted to sell
handmade goods at the local artsand crafts fair.
It was something fun to do withfriends and it was that.
But she also wanted to makesure her products sold, so she
took things to the next level.
Isabel built a superprofessional website and she
started shipping her productsacross the continent.
Her business, shimmer Handmade,sells homemade bath bombs.
(05:49):
They sell candles, lip balms,and building all of that has
been its own learning process,not just about business, but
about artificial intelligence.
Speaker 5 (06:00):
I personally think I've learned more by just like
doing, because that's like how Ilearned specifically, I learned
more by doing them frominstructions.
You know I've used AI for a lotof things.
I used it, obviously, for mywebsite.
So the first website wasn'tlike good and it wasn't like
really designed well.
I didn't like it either thatmuch.
(06:22):
I was very proud of myself, butI didn't love it.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
Isabel definitely wants to kind of get into the
thick of it and start doing thetrial and error, the testing.
Some of that is kids haven'tlearned like oh, don't try that,
or here's the one way to do it.
They don't have that in placeyet, so they're just like
anything is possible, and Ithink that that's one thing
that's really interesting aboutAI.
Isabel goes through a lot oflike testing and iteration when
(06:49):
she's building something likethat, and so she sort of gets
into a groove where I don't paya lot of attention, except for
when she's showing me becauseshe thinks like it's interesting
or it's cool, or maybe there'ssomething that's like slightly
wrong and she wants somebody totalk through it with her.
Speaker 5 (07:07):
Like when you finished your logo, that you
uploaded it and asked oh yeah,so I just used it for feedback
on my logo instead of asking itto just generate my logo,
because I like to have like alot of control over everything I
do.
So like I'll only use AI when,like I can change something.
(07:29):
I think using AI tools to likebuild anything, you kind of just
have to like do a lot of trialand testing and stuff, because
it can't get it right on itsfirst try.
It's like you have to describein detail what you're wanting to
(07:50):
make.
Speaker 3 (07:51):
We like to focus on the fact that if you don't know
how to do something, you won'tknow if it's being done
incorrectly when you're using AI.
So it's really important to notjust have AI do something for
you.
It's really meant to almostenhance your work or make it
faster and make it better insome way, but it's not meant to
(08:13):
do the work for you.
Part of the reason that I useAI is because I thought of my
great grandmother when I waslittle and she like didn't know
how to use a VCR.
And you know, I was probablylike eight and I was like this
is ludicrous.
It's literally one trianglebutton.
You press it.
How do you not know how thisworks?
And I'm sure that there arelots of teenagers like Isabel
(08:35):
right now who will have thatsame feeling about their parents
or the adults in their liveswho maybe aren't willing to like
invest in the technology.
So I think for me, it's justabout being curious and being,
you know, careful and then justhonestly just being part of the
conversation.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
Tiffany said two very important words curiosity and
careful.
So I loved that and she'sclearly having conversations
with her daughter veryspecifically, letting her know
like this is a tool to use onceyou've learned a skill so that
it can help you kind of problemsolve and troubleshoot and
(09:17):
enhance, but it's not somethingto use to do the thinking
instead of you, and I thinkIsabel made it very clear she
too.
You know she's like I'm goingto design a logo, but I would
like feedback and this isanother way to get feedback.
So I liked how they'reexploring.
I think it's cool that shereally is fluent sounding and
(09:39):
like how to direct AI.
So she really has to be clearon what her vision is, because
otherwise AI is going to giveher something.
So she really has to be clearon what her vision is, because
otherwise AI is gonna give hersomething that she's not looking
for.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
You know.
You have to know what you wantif you really are gonna be in
the driver's seat.
And that's sort of what I'mhearing from Isabel, where she's
not just using AI to generatethe logo and then slapping that
on her website.
She's using it to get feedbackand to iterate, almost like a
brainstorming partner.
She's using it to get feedbackand to iterate, almost like a
brainstorming partner.
It's also really important thatTiffany is having this
(10:08):
conversation with her daughterabout the experience of actually
using AI to help create thislogo and this idea of having a
vision for what good looks like.
I think that's actually reallyempowering.
It's so relevant for kids,providing them with the agency,
to know that the, you know, theAI may be able to come up with
something really polished thatlooks, you know, professional,
but it might not be what you areenvisioning and your vision,
(10:31):
you know, has to be at thecenter of what you create.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
And I think what we saw and what we have to keep
emphasizing is parents need tocollaborate with their kids and
it's kind of cool becausethey're going to be on this
journey together.
They're learning at the sametime.
I mean, the kids are going tolearn faster, but when we're
open and we're sort ofcollaborating and keeping the
conversation going, it keeps usconnected and we know that the
(10:57):
parent-child connection is likethe biggest protective factor
out there.
And this is why I want to hearfrom people who are actually
building AI and who know it andlive it and do it all day long,
and I want to gain from theirinsider knowledge so that I can
make sense of all this.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
And that's why we're bringing you this conversation
we had with Maureen Haymans.
She's the VP of Learning atGoogle and she oversees AI
integration into tools likeSearch, youtube and Google
Classroom to democratize accessto quality education.
Speaker 2 (11:28):
Maureen is also a parent to two teenage sons, so
we know she thinks about AIthrough the lens of a parent and
has thoughtful conversationsabout it with her own kids.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
Let's listen.
Speaker 4 (11:41):
AI is really a curiosity engine which can
really help you develop yourinterests and hobbies and really
understand the differentconcepts so you can create
something amazing.
You can ask clarifying questions, you can brainstorm, you can
even access different types offormats, like diagrams, to
really grasp the deep meaning ofa concept.
(12:04):
And then you can even bring thatto the next level by using
what's called vibe coding, sothat you can just write a code
and create application, awebsite, just by using prompt,
just by explaining what you aretrying to create.
One example is actually one ofmy sons used it to create a
website.
He has a little business tosell honey and eggs, and so he
(12:29):
wanted to create a website, buthe doesn't know how to use HTML.
He never got really interestedin coding, and so I kind of put
him on some of those vibe codingtools and then a few hours
later he had that website.
And my other son wanted to dosomething more related to
climate change.
He wanted to help people bikemore and he decided to create a
tool that will let you take apicture of your bike that has a
(12:51):
problem, that is broken, andthen he would actually tell you
what's broken about your bike,what tools you might need and
even connect you to like localshop.
Speaker 1 (13:02):
Okay, so I want to jump in here for a minute.
Vibe coding has become a termof art in the AI community.
You've probably heard of it,but you might not know exactly
what it is, so I'm simplifying abit.
But basically, ai now allowsyou to write software code
through like naturalconversation.
So instead of typing lines likePython or JavaScript, you
literally write something inEnglish.
(13:23):
So what's cool about vibe codingis you no longer need to be an
expert in specific codinglanguages to do simple things
like build websites, apps andother stuff, and if you are a
coding expert, it can help youwork a lot faster and more
creatively.
And in vibe coding, if you talkto folks in Silicon Valley,
what they'll tell you is vibecoding is now becoming the
(13:45):
primary way that softwareengineers write code.
It's not only making itpossible for nearly anyone to
build stuff that previously theyrequired months or even years
of training, but it's alsoexpanding the repertoire of
people who are at the frontlines of actually building some
of the more cutting edgesoftware tools that we use every
day.
Speaker 2 (14:03):
That was such a good explanation.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
Okay, back to Maureen .
Speaker 4 (14:09):
My kids are a big fan of board games.
As a family, we always love toplay board games, and so I think
you know if they want to bringit to the next level.
I think it's a great examplewhere you can use AI.
You know, upload some of therule books of existing games, so
, like, write some charactersthat you want to include and
then you can ask the tool tolike, based on all of those
(14:31):
things, right, help mebrainstorm how I can build a new
game.
You know, with those themesthat would be super fun to play
with, right.
And again, you know, like, thebenefit with AI that you can
ingest a lot of content fromdifferent sources and then start
brainstorming with you to kindof create something new.
(14:52):
So I think you know I thinkthat's a big concern people have
that AI can feel lonely, butactually I think you can really
use it as an amazingcollaborative tool and use it as
a way to create together.
One of the key elements is tohave an open communication of
how you are going to use AI,like encourage open discussion
on how they want to use it.
(15:13):
Does it have a positive impact?
Is it going to be fair andconsider bias, because those
tools are built on data that canbe biased, right.
Those tools are built on datathat can be biased, right, and
they can also hallucinate andgenerate data that is incorrect,
right, and it can be reallyconvincing.
So I think it's important tokeep that critical mind right of
(15:37):
always double checking thefacts and the information, check
the sources and make sure thatthis is actually correct, right.
I think it's also important toencourage, you know, independent
thinking first, right, not jumptoo quickly to AI, but start
thinking and brainstormingindependently.
You know, maybe start writingyour ideas first on a piece of
(15:57):
paper before you turn to AI.
It should be an extension, nota replacement.
And then it's also important tokeep agency on your journey
right, Like, make sure you setyour own goals, you know you
express your own ideas.
And then, last but not least, Iwould say that most importantly
when you use those tools is touse it a lot, right.
(16:21):
The more you use it, the moreyou learn, like anything else.
And I think it's important toplay with AI, see what works,
understand the pitfalls you know, experiment with it and build
intuition.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
I love any opportunity for words like
collaboration and creatingthings together, and I think
it's even better when it comesfrom our kids' own interests,
because it gives us another wayin to connection.
And again, it's all abouthaving conversations with your
kids.
There's no trick Like have realconversations with your kids,
(16:58):
stay connected and check inconstantly, affirming your
family's values, about how andwhen to use AI.
Speaker 1 (17:06):
We have talked a lot and we will talk a lot about the
importance of like cultivatingcuriosity among our kids, but I
actually think curiosity is soimportant for parents as well.
I think this is an opportunity.
You know, you don't have tohave all the answers, but I
think you need to be sort ofshowing up as a co-passenger in
this exploration and so sort oflike authentic curiosity is
going to go a long way, as yousort of showing up as a
co-passenger in this explorationand so sort of like authentic
(17:26):
curiosity is going to go a longway.
As you sort of have this, youknow, embark on this journey
together with your kids.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
For sure.
And if we are like operatingfrom a total fear-based place,
we can't be curious.
It doesn't give space in ourfrontal lobe to be curious.
Speaker 1 (17:42):
And I look back to.
You know my own interactionswith technology, whether it was
video games or crazy internetforums that I was like role
playing on, there was alwaysthis barrier between me and my
parents, like they didn't reallyunderstand the games that I was
playing or what I was doingonline.
That barrier, I think, issomething that a lot of parents
face.
(18:02):
I mean, not every parent has,you know, been able to roll up
their sleeves and really figureout Minecraft or Fortnite.
Ai is actually giving us theopportunity to have this bridge.
You don't have to literallylearn how to code to be able to,
you know, sit down next to themand do the one thing.
You know your one role is to beencourager in chief.
Speaker 2 (18:23):
That's a really good point, and I think what it
sounds like AI can do is forthose of us who are
technologically a little bitinexperienced, just like when
you were explaining vibe coding.
You can understand things,including how these video games
work, and kind of get payoffpretty quickly so that you can
(18:46):
connect over it instead of justagain rejecting everything.
Speaker 1 (18:49):
And so the key is, parents just need to know a
little bit about AI so that theycan actually, you know, get the
gears turning and, you know,join their kids in broadening
their world.
Speaker 2 (19:01):
Thank you so much for listening.
We have so many enlighteningepisodes coming up this season,
including our next episode wherewe dig into the basics of AI
and get to the heart of what AIis and how it works.
We'll hear from Maya Kulicki,vp of Strategy and Operations
for Google Research.
Speaker 5 (19:17):
When I think about the future and the largest
impact AI can have.
I think about the fact that theworld has a tremendous number
of problems that people need tosolve and now they have a really
remarkable, wonderful tool tohelp do that.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
We're also going to hear from Laila Ibrahim, the COO
of Google DeepMind.
That's the AI research labwithin Google that's been at the
frontiers of some of the mostcutting edge developments in
this space over the last fewyears.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
At the center of everything was this belief that
we had to do this responsibly.
It's because we thought thiscould be such transformational
technology, and transformationaltechnology requires exceptional
care.
Speaker 1 (19:57):
So find out where AI is gonna take us and future
generations next, on RaisingKids in the Age of AI.
Until then, don't forget tofollow the podcast on Spotify,
apple Podcasts, youtube orwherever you listen, so you
don't miss an episode.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
And we really want to hear from you, so take a minute
to leave us a rating and areview on your podcast player of
choice.
Your feedback is important tous.
Raising Kids in the Age of AIis a podcast by AIEDU in
collaboration with Google.
It's produced by KaleidoscopeFor Kaleidoscope.
The executive producers areKate Osborne and Lizzie Jacobs,
(20:32):
our lead producer is Molly Socha, with production assistance by
Irene Bantigay, our video editoris Ilya Magazanin, and our
theme song and music werecomposed by Kyle Murdoch, who
also mixed the episode for us.
Lisa, I want to ask you what's the number one thing
when it comes to raising goodhumans?
Speaker 2 (00:04):
I would say it's to raise adaptable, healthy,
connected kids.
Speaker 1 (00:10):
Now the same question , but what's most important for
parents in the age of AI Likeare we at the point where we
need to update parenting manuals?
Speaker 2 (00:18):
It's all the same.
It's just that there are somany questions that come with
raising kids in an age of AI,like how do you stay connected,
how should they approacheducation, how do we keep them
safe?
I mean just a lot morequestions about exercising these
really important muscles.
Speaker 1 (00:32):
Yeah, I think you hit the nail on the head and I'll
say answering these questions iswhat we work on every day at
AIEDU.
Since 2019, we've been workingwith schools across the country
and we help them adapt theircurriculum and their teaching
practices, and we're focused ontwo things One, basic knowledge
about AI and two, what we callthe human advantage, which is
(00:53):
all that stuff you were talkingabout critical thinking,
communication, collaboration,problem solving.
We also know that parents havea huge role to play in guiding
the next generation through someof these big challenges and
opportunities to come from thisnew era of technology and change
, and that's why we're makingthis show so welcome to Raising
Kids in the Age of AI.
(01:14):
It's a podcast from AIEDUStudios in collaboration with
Google.
We want to help parentsunderstand AI and how their kids
are going to encounter it inschool and throughout the world.
We want them to be empowered intheir journey with AI.
I'm Alex Katran.
I'm the founder and CEO ofAIEDU.
We're a nonprofit that helpsstudents get ready to live, work
and thrive in a world where AIis everywhere.
Speaker 2 (01:36):
And I'm Dr Lisa Pressman, a developmental
psychologist, professor,podcaster, mother of teenagers
and author of the New York Timesbestselling book, the Five
Principles of Parenting, yourEssential Guide to Raising Good
Humans.
And in each episode, alex and Iwill introduce you to parents,
educators and AI experts who canshare insights and best
practices for young people usingthese powerful tools.
(01:59):
Today we want to start close tohome and take a look at how
kids today are exploring theworld through hobbies and
interests, with AI in the loop.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
We're going to hear from a very intrepid 13-year-old
who's using AI to help herbuild her own kind of lemonade
stand.
And then we're going to go tothe experts.
We're going to hear from the VPof Learning at Google, maureen
Haymans, and she's going toshare how her own kids are
deepening their interests withthe help of AI, and she's also
going to talk about the bestpractices that she uses to keep
AI at its lane.
(02:28):
A helpful tool, but withfamilies staying in the driver's
seat.
Speaker 2 (02:31):
And I'm curious what does it look like to bring AI
into something as fun andfreewheeling as a kid,
practicing a hobby or developingan interest?
When does it help and when doesit get in the way?
Because this is such preciousand important work and the AI
part is new to me and I reallywant to make sure we get this
(02:52):
right.
Speaker 1 (02:53):
Yeah, I wonder a lot about that too.
You know, I actually went toart summer camp when I was 10.
I remember that moment is this,you know being able to show my
work to my parents and it wasspecial, not just because of
what I had painted it actuallywasn't a very good painting, but
it represented all of this hardwork.
It was this embodiment of theproductive struggle and my own
learning process.
So, you know, this worry thatproductive struggle and sort of
(03:17):
this core component ofcreativity could be skipped over
is, I think, a legitimate one,and it's something that we're
going to delve into.
Yeah, and the reality is, Ithink, a legitimate one, and
it's something that we're goingto delve into.
Speaker 2 (03:25):
Yeah, and the reality is we don't know, so we're kind
of moving right alongside allof this technology.
We know that these productivestruggles are hugely important
for raising creative, adaptive,functioning kids, and so paying
close attention to how we canharness that creativity and
(03:46):
maintain the the aspect of itthat's kind of like hard it's
the hard stuff while alsoenjoying the benefits of this
technology is going to be reallyimportant right, and it's not
just the productive strugglethat's so vital to preserve,
it's also the other intangiblestuff that is part of being
human, and that includessometimes you just have to be
(04:06):
bored we can't have creativitywithout boredom, like how kids
choose to make use of time thatis unstructured, that is not
accounted for and where there'slike nothing to do except use
your own mind to figure out asolution.
So the classic example in thesummertime is the lemonade stand
(04:27):
.
Speaker 1 (04:27):
Right, and I think there's so much learning that
comes from that.
I mean, for me it wasn't alemonade stand, it was Boy Scout
popcorn tins and you know,because it turns out it's really
hard to go door to door sellingyou know well, selling anything
, but certainly selling popcorn.
That wasn't actually that good.
But I learned about how to justhave conversations with
strangers and how to close thedeal, and so the question I had
(04:50):
was what does that process looklike in the age of AI?
Where is that productivestruggle?
Where are kids going to justsort of figure out some of this
stuff that they aren'tnecessarily learning in class
but that we know is reallycritical to their development?
And that's where we want tostart today with 13 year old
Isabel, who has a businessselling at craft fairs, and
we're also going to talk to hermom, tiffany.
(05:11):
We're going to hear how Isabeluses AI to build and run her own
business, exactly how she wantsit to be, while also learning
about being an entrepreneuralong the way.
Speaker 5 (05:21):
Hi, I'm Isabel, I'm 13 years old and I'm the founder
of my own business, shimmerHandmade.
Speaker 1 (05:28):
So it all started when Isabel wanted to sell
handmade goods at the local artsand crafts fair.
It was something fun to do withfriends and it was that.
But she also wanted to makesure her products sold, so she
took things to the next level.
Isabel built a superprofessional website and she
started shipping her productsacross the continent.
Her business, shimmer Handmade,sells homemade bath bombs.
(05:49):
They sell candles, lip balms,and building all of that has
been its own learning process,not just about business, but
about artificial intelligence.
Speaker 5 (06:00):
I personally think I've learned more by just like
doing, because that's like how Ilearned specifically, I learned
more by doing them frominstructions.
You know I've used AI for a lotof things.
I used it, obviously, for mywebsite.
So the first website wasn'tlike good and it wasn't like
really designed well.
I didn't like it either thatmuch.
(06:22):
I was very proud of myself, butI didn't love it.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
Isabel definitely wants to kind of get into the
thick of it and start doing thetrial and error, the testing.
Some of that is kids haven'tlearned like oh, don't try that,
or here's the one way to do it.
They don't have that in placeyet, so they're just like
anything is possible, and Ithink that that's one thing
that's really interesting aboutAI.
Isabel goes through a lot oflike testing and iteration when
(06:49):
she's building something likethat, and so she sort of gets
into a groove where I don't paya lot of attention, except for
when she's showing me becauseshe thinks like it's interesting
or it's cool, or maybe there'ssomething that's like slightly
wrong and she wants somebody totalk through it with her.
Speaker 5 (07:07):
Like when you finished your logo, that you
uploaded it and asked oh yeah,so I just used it for feedback
on my logo instead of asking itto just generate my logo,
because I like to have like alot of control over everything I
do.
So like I'll only use AI when,like I can change something.
(07:29):
I think using AI tools to likebuild anything, you kind of just
have to like do a lot of trialand testing and stuff, because
it can't get it right on itsfirst try.
It's like you have to describein detail what you're wanting to
(07:50):
make.
Speaker 3 (07:51):
We like to focus on the fact that if you don't know
how to do something, you won'tknow if it's being done
incorrectly when you're using AI.
So it's really important to notjust have AI do something for
you.
It's really meant to almostenhance your work or make it
faster and make it better insome way, but it's not meant to
(08:13):
do the work for you.
Part of the reason that I useAI is because I thought of my
great grandmother when I waslittle and she like didn't know
how to use a VCR.
And you know, I was probablylike eight and I was like this
is ludicrous.
It's literally one trianglebutton.
You press it.
How do you not know how thisworks?
And I'm sure that there arelots of teenagers like Isabel
(08:35):
right now who will have thatsame feeling about their parents
or the adults in their liveswho maybe aren't willing to like
invest in the technology.
So I think for me, it's justabout being curious and being,
you know, careful and then justhonestly just being part of the
conversation.
Speaker 2 (08:56):
Tiffany said two very important words curiosity and
careful.
So I loved that and she'sclearly having conversations
with her daughter veryspecifically, letting her know
like this is a tool to use onceyou've learned a skill so that
it can help you kind of problemsolve and troubleshoot and
(09:17):
enhance, but it's not somethingto use to do the thinking
instead of you, and I thinkIsabel made it very clear she
too.
You know she's like I'm goingto design a logo, but I would
like feedback and this isanother way to get feedback.
So I liked how they'reexploring.
I think it's cool that shereally is fluent sounding and
(09:39):
like how to direct AI.
So she really has to be clearon what her vision is, because
otherwise AI is going to giveher something.
So she really has to be clearon what her vision is, because
otherwise AI is gonna give hersomething that she's not looking
for.
Speaker 1 (09:47):
You know.
You have to know what you wantif you really are gonna be in
the driver's seat.
And that's sort of what I'mhearing from Isabel, where she's
not just using AI to generatethe logo and then slapping that
on her website.
She's using it to get feedbackand to iterate, almost like a
brainstorming partner.
She's using it to get feedbackand to iterate, almost like a
brainstorming partner.
It's also really important thatTiffany is having this
(10:08):
conversation with her daughterabout the experience of actually
using AI to help create thislogo and this idea of having a
vision for what good looks like.
I think that's actually reallyempowering.
It's so relevant for kids,providing them with the agency,
to know that the, you know, theAI may be able to come up with
something really polished thatlooks, you know, professional,
but it might not be what you areenvisioning and your vision,
(10:31):
you know, has to be at thecenter of what you create.
Speaker 2 (10:34):
And I think what we saw and what we have to keep
emphasizing is parents need tocollaborate with their kids and
it's kind of cool becausethey're going to be on this
journey together.
They're learning at the sametime.
I mean, the kids are going tolearn faster, but when we're
open and we're sort ofcollaborating and keeping the
conversation going, it keeps usconnected and we know that the
(10:57):
parent-child connection is likethe biggest protective factor
out there.
And this is why I want to hearfrom people who are actually
building AI and who know it andlive it and do it all day long,
and I want to gain from theirinsider knowledge so that I can
make sense of all this.
Speaker 1 (11:14):
And that's why we're bringing you this conversation
we had with Maureen Haymans.
She's the VP of Learning atGoogle and she oversees AI
integration into tools likeSearch, youtube and Google
Classroom to democratize accessto quality education.
Speaker 2 (11:28):
Maureen is also a parent to two teenage sons, so
we know she thinks about AIthrough the lens of a parent and
has thoughtful conversationsabout it with her own kids.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
Let's listen.
Speaker 4 (11:41):
AI is really a curiosity engine which can
really help you develop yourinterests and hobbies and really
understand the differentconcepts so you can create
something amazing.
You can ask clarifying questions, you can brainstorm, you can
even access different types offormats, like diagrams, to
really grasp the deep meaning ofa concept.
(12:04):
And then you can even bring thatto the next level by using
what's called vibe coding, sothat you can just write a code
and create application, awebsite, just by using prompt,
just by explaining what you aretrying to create.
One example is actually one ofmy sons used it to create a
website.
He has a little business tosell honey and eggs, and so he
(12:29):
wanted to create a website, buthe doesn't know how to use HTML.
He never got really interestedin coding, and so I kind of put
him on some of those vibe codingtools and then a few hours
later he had that website.
And my other son wanted to dosomething more related to
climate change.
He wanted to help people bikemore and he decided to create a
tool that will let you take apicture of your bike that has a
(12:51):
problem, that is broken, andthen he would actually tell you
what's broken about your bike,what tools you might need and
even connect you to like localshop.
Speaker 1 (13:02):
Okay, so I want to jump in here for a minute.
Vibe coding has become a termof art in the AI community.
You've probably heard of it,but you might not know exactly
what it is, so I'm simplifying abit.
But basically, ai now allowsyou to write software code
through like naturalconversation.
So instead of typing lines likePython or JavaScript, you
literally write something inEnglish.
(13:23):
So what's cool about vibe codingis you no longer need to be an
expert in specific codinglanguages to do simple things
like build websites, apps andother stuff, and if you are a
coding expert, it can help youwork a lot faster and more
creatively.
And in vibe coding, if you talkto folks in Silicon Valley,
what they'll tell you is vibecoding is now becoming the
(13:45):
primary way that softwareengineers write code.
It's not only making itpossible for nearly anyone to
build stuff that previously theyrequired months or even years
of training, but it's alsoexpanding the repertoire of
people who are at the frontlines of actually building some
of the more cutting edgesoftware tools that we use every
day.
Speaker 2 (14:03):
That was such a good explanation.
Speaker 1 (14:07):
Okay, back to Maureen .
Speaker 4 (14:09):
My kids are a big fan of board games.
As a family, we always love toplay board games, and so I think
you know if they want to bringit to the next level.
I think it's a great examplewhere you can use AI.
You know, upload some of therule books of existing games, so
, like, write some charactersthat you want to include and
then you can ask the tool tolike, based on all of those
(14:31):
things, right, help mebrainstorm how I can build a new
game.
You know, with those themesthat would be super fun to play
with, right.
And again, you know, like, thebenefit with AI that you can
ingest a lot of content fromdifferent sources and then start
brainstorming with you to kindof create something new.
(14:52):
So I think you know I thinkthat's a big concern people have
that AI can feel lonely, butactually I think you can really
use it as an amazingcollaborative tool and use it as
a way to create together.
One of the key elements is tohave an open communication of
how you are going to use AI,like encourage open discussion
on how they want to use it.
(15:13):
Does it have a positive impact?
Is it going to be fair andconsider bias, because those
tools are built on data that canbe biased, right.
Those tools are built on datathat can be biased, right, and
they can also hallucinate andgenerate data that is incorrect,
right, and it can be reallyconvincing.
So I think it's important tokeep that critical mind right of
(15:37):
always double checking thefacts and the information, check
the sources and make sure thatthis is actually correct, right.
I think it's also important toencourage, you know, independent
thinking first, right, not jumptoo quickly to AI, but start
thinking and brainstormingindependently.
You know, maybe start writingyour ideas first on a piece of
(15:57):
paper before you turn to AI.
It should be an extension, nota replacement.
And then it's also important tokeep agency on your journey
right, Like, make sure you setyour own goals, you know you
express your own ideas.
And then, last but not least, Iwould say that most importantly
when you use those tools is touse it a lot, right.
(16:21):
The more you use it, the moreyou learn, like anything else.
And I think it's important toplay with AI, see what works,
understand the pitfalls you know, experiment with it and build
intuition.
Speaker 2 (16:36):
I love any opportunity for words like
collaboration and creatingthings together, and I think
it's even better when it comesfrom our kids' own interests,
because it gives us another wayin to connection.
And again, it's all abouthaving conversations with your
kids.
There's no trick Like have realconversations with your kids,
(16:58):
stay connected and check inconstantly, affirming your
family's values, about how andwhen to use AI.
Speaker 1 (17:06):
We have talked a lot and we will talk a lot about the
importance of like cultivatingcuriosity among our kids, but I
actually think curiosity is soimportant for parents as well.
I think this is an opportunity.
You know, you don't have tohave all the answers, but I
think you need to be sort ofshowing up as a co-passenger in
this exploration and so sort oflike authentic curiosity is
going to go a long way, as yousort of showing up as a
co-passenger in this explorationand so sort of like authentic
(17:26):
curiosity is going to go a longway.
As you sort of have this, youknow, embark on this journey
together with your kids.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
For sure.
And if we are like operatingfrom a total fear-based place,
we can't be curious.
It doesn't give space in ourfrontal lobe to be curious.
Speaker 1 (17:42):
And I look back to.
You know my own interactionswith technology, whether it was
video games or crazy internetforums that I was like role
playing on, there was alwaysthis barrier between me and my
parents, like they didn't reallyunderstand the games that I was
playing or what I was doingonline.
That barrier, I think, issomething that a lot of parents
face.
(18:02):
I mean, not every parent has,you know, been able to roll up
their sleeves and really figureout Minecraft or Fortnite.
Ai is actually giving us theopportunity to have this bridge.
You don't have to literallylearn how to code to be able to,
you know, sit down next to themand do the one thing.
You know your one role is to beencourager in chief.
Speaker 2 (18:23):
That's a really good point, and I think what it
sounds like AI can do is forthose of us who are
technologically a little bitinexperienced, just like when
you were explaining vibe coding.
You can understand things,including how these video games
work, and kind of get payoffpretty quickly so that you can
(18:46):
connect over it instead of justagain rejecting everything.
Speaker 1 (18:49):
And so the key is, parents just need to know a
little bit about AI so that theycan actually, you know, get the
gears turning and, you know,join their kids in broadening
their world.
Speaker 2 (19:01):
Thank you so much for listening.
We have so many enlighteningepisodes coming up this season,
including our next episode wherewe dig into the basics of AI
and get to the heart of what AIis and how it works.
We'll hear from Maya Kulicki,vp of Strategy and Operations
for Google Research.
Speaker 5 (19:17):
When I think about the future and the largest
impact AI can have.
I think about the fact that theworld has a tremendous number
of problems that people need tosolve and now they have a really
remarkable, wonderful tool tohelp do that.
Speaker 1 (19:32):
We're also going to hear from Laila Ibrahim, the COO
of Google DeepMind.
That's the AI research labwithin Google that's been at the
frontiers of some of the mostcutting edge developments in
this space over the last fewyears.
Speaker 2 (19:45):
At the center of everything was this belief that
we had to do this responsibly.
It's because we thought thiscould be such transformational
technology, and transformationaltechnology requires exceptional
care.
Speaker 1 (19:57):
So find out where AI is gonna take us and future
generations next, on RaisingKids in the Age of AI.
Until then, don't forget tofollow the podcast on Spotify,
apple Podcasts, youtube orwherever you listen, so you
don't miss an episode.
Speaker 2 (20:10):
And we really want to hear from you, so take a minute
to leave us a rating and areview on your podcast player of
choice.
Your feedback is important tous.
Raising Kids in the Age of AIis a podcast by AIEDU in
collaboration with Google.
It's produced by KaleidoscopeFor Kaleidoscope.
The executive producers areKate Osborne and Lizzie Jacobs,
(20:32):
our lead producer is Molly Socha, with production assistance by
Irene Bantigay, our video editoris Ilya Magazanin, and our
theme song and music werecomposed by Kyle Murdoch, who
also mixed the episode for us.
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