Age against the machine

As AI-based applications permeate our everyday lives, their impact on children and their futures requires critically examination. While several global and national policy frameworks on Children and AI are being developed, there is still little discussion with children on the limitations, inherent biases, and lack of diversity in current design and development of AI-based applications. Further, as ethical aspects with regards to AI design and use come to the forefront, AI literacy for children becomes imperative. As part of our projects, we have been exploring approaches towards critical AI literacy for children - from hands-on design and making workshops reimagining the future of schooling, to activities with generative AI. We also conduct workshops with Child-Computer Interaction (CCI) experts, and those interested in CCI, to evaluate and extend our methods repertoire through our researchers' toolbox for the future workshop series in India, Finland, and Denmark (https://interact.oulu.fi/researcherstoolbox). As a part of this workshop series, we propose a workshop at the AfriCHI 2023 conference welcoming conference participants interested critical AI literacy, children and AI, speculative and critical design, and ethical AI.