Articles about this topic can be seen now everywhere, both online and in newspapers. In the digital age we live in, our society - described as a "network society" by Manuel Castells in his book "Communication Power" - has increasingly transformed its way of living and perceiving the outside world. This is evident in communication, information, and particularly in education, where Artificial Intelligence (AI) has suddenly emerged and taken on an increasingly prominent role. This topic is actually on everyone's lips.

Children are no exception in this context. AI is an emerging technology, which is used in various areas of our lives, and is also making its way into educational settings. Using language, which is the primary thing that distinguishes us from all other living beings on our planet, to craft stories has been a key goal since ancient times. From recounting the past to our children through stories of ancestors to simply narrating what happened yesterday, storytelling has been integral to human evolution, shaping the civilization we live in today.

For children, storytelling is one of the last skills they acquire. Initially, they learn to say "mom" and "dad", and later they will be capable of recounting what they did at school or daycare. However, the ability to listen is one of the earliest skills in which children excel. Studies show that even before birth, babies listen to us, and they can recognize their mother's voice as early as three months old. Furthermore, up until the first two years of life, a child's vocabulary expands progressively, sharpening their listening skills and leading to the full mastery of language.

This brings up an important question: in today's world, where digital tools assist us in nearly every daily activity and where speed and haste dominate our society, what can AI do for children? Research has shown that there are now systems, platforms, websites, and applications that can help parents to not count on the same bedtime stories night after night. Even if children may love hearing Pinocchio, Cinderella, or Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs for multiple times, some software developers have considered as necessary the integration of storytelling abilities into AI, which were skills that once seemed belonging only to humans.

The first system I tested was, of course, the famous Chat GPT (we all have it saved in our favourites, let's admit it!). It works through a command, request, or question with enough details to allow the system to fulfil the request. One evening, I wrote this: "Create a 5-sentence story about Sharky, a superhero shark who brushes his teeth. Each sentence should be a bullet point." Every child’s story should have a moral and conveying values that can shape child's beliefs or add new ones. We might expect a story that teaches the importance of brushing teeth, encouraging the child to do so. The result was as follows:

- Sharky, a little shark with a blue cape, protects the ocean from trash and evil creatures.

- Every night, before going to sleep in his underwater cave, Sharky takes his special algae-made toothbrush and brushes his sharp teeth.

- Thanks to his magic fish-flavoured toothpaste, Sharky's teeth become strong and shiny, ready to chew up any adversary.

- One day, while brushing his teeth, Sharky discovers a secret message hidden in the toothpaste bubbles, warning him of an imminent danger.

- With clean, shiny teeth, Sharky sets off on a new adventure, ready to save the ocean once again.

We want the sequel now, please.

I made the same request but without bullet points, to get a linear story, and in this case, something changes:

Sharky, a superhero shark with a red cape, prepared every morning for a new adventure. Before leaving, however, he never forgot to brush his teeth with his coral-made toothbrush. As he brushed, his squid-flavoured toothpaste made his sharp teeth sparkle like starfish. With clean teeth and a dazzling smile, Sharky felt stronger and more confident, ready to protect the ocean. That day, thanks to his bright smile, he managed to convince a group of frightened fish to join him in defeating an evil octopus.

As with the bullet-point story, the language is simple and highly understandable for a child. But there might be space for a critique to the values and morals that these stories would like to show. Anyway, I will explore it later.

Among all the results of my research, what intrigued me the most was Wendy Story Teller, a chatbot application named Wendy that tells stories. It is based on GPT 3.5 and is an Italian startup founded by Luciano Ballerano, who was interviewed a few months ago by "Il Sole 24 Ore," an important Italian newspaper (link to the interview: https://www.infodata.ilsole24ore.com/2024/03/30/wendy-storyteller-ecco-come-funziona-il-chatbot-che-racconta-storie-per-i-bambini/). Wendy Story Teller is available in 8 languages and allows you to customize some details of the story you want to create, such as the child's age or interests (for example, which character they would like to identify with), as well as story details like the setting, genre (fairy tale, adventure, mystery, sci-fi...), moral and values to teach, number of characters to include and which ones (e.g., wizard, cat, witch...). In the paid versions, audio and images will also be available if you want to make the story even more personalized and believable. However, one of the best innovations in this case is the possibility of having your voice cloned by the application, so that the story can be narrated in the parent's voice!

Even Amazon's Alexa has integrated functions dedicated to children, such as the bedtime rhyme, but this voice-cloning innovation is still missing: I think this is a great innovation. The idea of all these tools, in any case, is to use the voice interface to create a child-friendly environment (3-12 years old): on one hand, a safe world is created, with functionalities and settings that limit the operation for children and give parents more control, and on the other hand, there is interesting content for each age group. Technology, if used correctly, can play a positive role in the daily lives of families, who want, indeed must, be always present in their children's digital discovery journey.

There is also a curious case (https://ew.com/books/2018/04/17/artificial-intelligence-brothers-grimm-fairy-tales/) where artificial intelligence was used to create new fairy tales inspired by the Brothers Grimm's stories. In this instance, the AI analysed classic stories and generated new plots, often with bizarre and eerie results, but with a unique charm. The project explores how advanced technologies can reinvent traditional storytelling, blending human and algorithmic creativity.

In short, these are significant technological advances, fuelled by large companies that, in the consumerism age, seek to make our lives more technological and simplified. The use of AI with children is an activity that certainly brings them closer to technology, which they will use as adults: it stimulates creativity and imagination through the engaging experience of creating customizable stories and fairy tales; the content would be diversified, as AI algorithms would allow access to infinite stories inspired by different cultures and traditions, expanding the child's knowledge and understanding of the world. Regarding education, specific values and concepts intended to be taught through these stories, would be learned through more dynamic, accessible, and probably fun teaching.

However, some aspects require further reflection: AI has no empathy, the so-called "ability to put oneself in others' shoes", and cannot experience emotions or feelings for now. This would result in the loss of human interaction, potentially hindering a child's emotional and relational development. Additionally, the risk of addiction may be lurking, as excessive use of these platforms could interfere with sleep and lead to too much screen time. Finally, AI in this context could impact a child's cognitive development by encouraging passive learning and would limit the development of their cognitive and critical thinking skills.

Using AI to tell stories to children can offer new educational and creative opportunities, but it is essential to balance its use with human interactions and non-digital activities to ensure healthy and balanced development.

And you, what do you think? Do you believe these new technological innovations can help us in the challenging task of be parents (especially mum or dad), particularly in entertaining our children? Can AI replace the stories we've all grown up with, or is it better to return to reading classic children's books before going to bed?

Read it in italian: https://www.publish0x.com/simos-blog/bambini-e-intelligenza-artificiale-e-se-la-usassimo-per-racc-xpxeqzk