UNICEF: At Least 20 Million Children in 10 Countries Have Used AI, Adopting It Faster Than Adults

UNICEF reported on June 30 that at least 20 million children across 10 countries have used artificial intelligence, adopting the technology more than three times faster than adults. The analysis found more than 2 million children, or one in 10, turn to AI for advice on things that worry them. An estimated 13 million children use AI to support learning and homework.

A third of children reported concerns about AI being used to scam others or spread misinformation. A quarter feared their images or videos being manipulated into sexually explicit deepfakes. Surveys covered approximately 1,000 internet-using children aged 12-17 and 1,000 parents or caregivers per country in Armenia, Brazil, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Jordan, Mexico, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Pakistan and Serbia.

National estimates were weighted by UN 2024 population data and child internet-use rates. UNICEF called on governments, the private sector and partners to embed child rights in global AI governance. The statement urged investment in research on AI's effects on children, stronger laws against AI-enabled exploitation, design of systems with safety and transparency, AI literacy support, and expanded digital infrastructure.

"Children are more exposed to AI systems – including how they are designed, their underlying business models, and how their own data is used – yet have far less power to avoid or challenge them," the statement said. The analysis was timed ahead of the first Global Dialogue on AI Governance.

It drew on data from Disrupting Harm Phase 2, conducted by UNICEF’s Office of Strategy and Evidence – Innocenti, ECPAT International and INTERPOL with funding from Safe Online.