The key facts

  • 56% of children aged 11–12 use at least one generative AI service weekly; parents estimate this share at 44%
  • 42% of parents feel no support at all in helping children with AI; 51% place responsibility on teachers and schools
  • 92% of generative AI users among teenagers spend more time with it than they would like

Parents underestimate children's AI use

A YouGov survey among French teenagers and their parents showed that parents significantly underestimate how actively their children use artificial intelligence. According to the study, 40% of children aged 11–12 use general-purpose AI services weekly, but only 26% of parents are aware of this — a gap of 14 percentage points. At the same time, 42% of parents said they feel no support at all in helping children use AI responsibly. AI is penetrating all areas of children's lives: from homework help to AI companions and features in social media and games. The long-term impact on children remains unknown.

Survey methodology

The Berlin-based NGO Interface commissioned YouGov to conduct an online survey in France from June 24 to 30, 2026. It involved 1,138 parents of children aged 11–17 and 970 children of the same age; the children participated with parental consent, from the YouGov online panel. The questionnaire included categories: general-purpose generative AI (ChatGPT, Claude), AI companions (Character.AI), AI in social media (My AI on Snapchat), and voice assistants (Siri, Alexa).

Children start using AI early

56% of children aged 11–12 reported using at least one generative AI service weekly, 40% — general-purpose AI, 33% — voice assistants, 23% — AI in social media, and 16% (roughly one in six) interact with AI companions. Interface senior researcher Jessica Galissaire noted that an AI chatbot is 'like a friend available 24/7: it never gets tired and always agrees with you.' She also pointed out that many children use services whose access is prohibited for them under platform rules: for example, Character.AI requires users to be 16 in the EU. The younger the child, the more parents underestimate their AI use: in the 11–12 group, 56% actually use generative AI (parents believe — 44%), at 13–15 — 62% (parents' estimate 52%), at 16–17 — 70% (estimate 61%). The gap narrows with age, but usage grows in all groups.

Feeling of lost time and parents' vulnerability

According to the survey, 92% of teenagers using generative AI spend more time with it than they would like. Galissaire said she does not want to call this 'addiction,' but it points to a widespread feeling of excessive time. By category, the highest figures are for AI companions (59%) and AI in social media (57%). Only 32% of parents feel sufficient support in helping children with AI, 26% — support but insufficient, 42% — none at all. Galissaire added that parents with lower digital literacy or without time find it especially difficult to set up parental controls and talk to their children.

Who should bear the responsibility

51% of parents believe teachers and schools should bear the responsibility, 41% — the platforms themselves, 30% — government authorities. This shows that parents expect involvement from authorities, educational institutions, and companies simultaneously. Context: 2026 has become a turning point for Big Tech — from the social media ban for children in Australia to lawsuits in the US against tech companies and the EU's proposed Kids Act. All of this is happening against the backdrop of French youth protests over the state of school infrastructure, teacher shortages, and the university admissions system, while the government invests in AI infrastructure.

EU Kids Act and criticism of age bans

The European Commission presented the Kids Act in September as a way to shift the burden of ensuring children's safety onto platforms. 'Our Kids Act reverses the burden of proof — it is the platforms that must show they are safe by design,' said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The draft provides for age restrictions, parental controls, combating 'sticky' features of social media, video platforms and AI chatbots, a complete ban on social media for children under 13, and 'mini-accounts' for teenagers under 15. Galissaire believes parental settings and age bans alone are not enough: 'I am rather in favor of requiring platforms to be safe by design, rather than introducing age bans that are difficult to implement and that work poorly.' She warned that bans create a false sense of security, and added: 'Regulation alone will never be enough. Prevention and the development of digital literacy must play a huge role.'