If your child uses AI to complete homework, asks a chatbot for personal advice or experiments with AI-generated images, knowing how to guide them can be challenging. Dubai has launched a free online platform designed to help parents navigate these situations and build healthier AI habits at home.
Called GenDubAI, the platform offers practical advice for families with children aged 8 to 15. Rather than focusing solely on how artificial intelligence works, it explores everyday situations parents may encounter as AI becomes part of children’s learning, creativity and social lives.
Here’s how the platform works, what parents can learn from it and how to access the free resource.
Who Launched GenDubAI?
GenDubAI was launched by the Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DCAI) in collaboration with the Community Development Authority (CDA) and the Dubai Future Foundation. The platform is available in both Arabic and English and is designed specifically for parents and caregivers of children aged 8 to 15.
Its goal is to help families better understand how children interact with AI, recognise potential risks and develop a more informed approach to using these tools. Instead of treating AI as something children should simply avoid, GenDubAI encourages parents to guide their use through conversations, practical activities and age-appropriate boundaries.
How GenDubAI Helps Parents Navigate Everyday AI Use
GenDubAI focuses on situations that can arise when children use AI tools at home or for school. Parents can explore step-by-step guidance, suggested conversation starters, safety advice and activities to complete with their children.
The idea is to make conversations about AI more approachable, particularly for parents who may not feel confident using the technology themselves.
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Six Common AI Situations Covered By GenDubAI
The platform’s main section explores six scenarios that parents may encounter as their children become more familiar with AI.
1. When Children Use AI For Homework
AI can help children understand difficult topics, brainstorm ideas and practise new skills. However, it can also make it easier to submit answers without understanding the subject.
GenDubAI helps parents recognise the difference between using AI as a learning aid and relying on it to do the work. It offers guidance on encouraging children to explain answers in their own words, check information and use AI to support rather than replace their learning.
2. When Children Turn To AI For Personal Advice
Some children may begin asking chatbots about friendships, emotions, school problems or personal worries. Because AI tools can respond conversationally, children may perceive them as trusted companions.
The guide helps parents approach these situations without immediately confronting their children or demanding access to private conversations. It encourages open communication and helps parents understand what their children find useful about interacting with AI.
3. When Children Use AI To Create Things
AI tools can help children experiment with quizzes, songs, stories and even simple applications. GenDubAI encourages parents to support this creativity while ensuring children remain actively involved in the process.
Rather than allowing AI to make every decision, parents can encourage children to develop their own ideas, make creative choices and understand how technology contributes to the final result.
4. When Children Become Too Dependent On AI
One concern is that children may begin relying on AI for answers instead of developing their own problem-solving skills. The platform offers guidance on helping children recognise when AI is useful and when they should attempt a task independently.
Parents can encourage children to think through problems first, compare AI-generated answers with other sources and explain their reasoning rather than accepting responses automatically.
5. When Children Encounter Fake AI-Generated Images
AI tools can generate convincing images of real people, creating potential concerns around privacy, consent and online harm. GenDubAI helps parents respond to different situations, whether their child created an image, shared one made by someone else, received an image of themselves or encountered manipulated content online.
The guidance focuses on understanding what happened, avoiding immediate assumptions and taking appropriate action if an image is harmful or has been shared without consent.
6. When AI Gives Answers That Conflict With Family Values
AI-generated responses may not always align with a family’s beliefs, expectations or approach to sensitive topics. The guide helps parents discuss these differences with their children and explain why AI responses should not automatically be treated as correct or appropriate.
It also encourages children to think critically about the information they receive and understand that AI tools can produce responses that need to be questioned or checked.
What Should Parents Do If Their Child Talks To AI Instead Of Them?
One of the more sensitive situations covered by GenDubAI is when a child begins sharing personal feelings or problems with a chatbot rather than a parent or caregiver. The platform encourages parents to approach the subject calmly instead of treating it as a confrontation.
For example, parents could start with a simple question:
“I’ve been reading about kids talking to AI about personal stuff. Has that ever happened to you?”
This gives children an opportunity to discuss their experiences without feeling immediately judged. If a child says a chatbot understands them better, parents can ask what they find helpful about those conversations and consider how to make discussions at home feel more comfortable.
The guide also highlights the importance of respecting children’s privacy while keeping communication open. Rather than demanding to read every conversation, parents can establish clear expectations about when AI use may create safety concerns and when a child should seek help from a trusted adult.
How Does GenDubAI Advise Parents To Handle Fake Images?
AI-generated images of real people can create particularly serious concerns when they are humiliating, threatening, sexual or shared without consent.
GenDubAI encourages parents to establish what happened before deciding how to respond. The appropriate next steps may differ depending on whether the child created the image, shared it, received it or appears in it.
- If the child created the image: Discuss consent, privacy and whether the person depicted would be comfortable with it.
- If the image has been shared: Help report it and seek removal through the relevant platform.
- If the child is depicted without consent: Avoid forwarding or redistributing the image and seek appropriate safeguarding support.
The guide also addresses situations where children dismiss harmful images as jokes or do not understand why their actions could affect someone else. The emphasis is on responding proportionately, protecting the child involved and addressing the harm without jumping to conclusions.
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How To Use GenDubAI
The platform is designed for mobile devices and is available in Arabic and English. Parents can begin by choosing one of three pathways, depending on what they need help with.
1. My Child Is Using AI
Find guidance on homework, creativity, personal conversations and situations involving family values.
2. I Want To Feel More Ready
Learn about AI basics, privacy, online safety, age considerations and potential risks before guiding your child’s use.
3. I Want To Build Good AI Habits Together
Explore short family activities designed to encourage discussion and help parents and children make decisions about AI use together.
GenDubAI combines international guidance on artificial intelligence with research involving UAE families. It is currently operating as a pilot, with future development expected to draw on parent feedback and potentially introduce additional content, tools and learning resources.
Is GenDubAI Free?
Yes. GenDubAI is a free online resource available in Arabic and English. Parents can access its guidance and activities directly through the platform without needing to purchase a course or sign up for a paid programme.
How To Access GenDubAI In Dubai
Parents can visit the official website to explore the available guidance and choose the pathway most relevant to their family.
Visit: GenDubAI official website
Why GenDubAI Matters For Families In The UAE
As AI tools become increasingly accessible, parents face new questions about how children should use them for schoolwork, creativity, relationships and everyday decision-making. GenDubAI offers a starting point for those conversations, helping parents move beyond simply allowing or banning AI and towards teaching children how to use it thoughtfully.
For families with children aged 8 to 15, the platform provides practical ways to discuss privacy, question AI-generated answers and maintain healthy boundaries. The broader message is that children do not need to navigate AI alone. With informed guidance and open communication, parents can help them explore the technology while continuing to develop their own judgement, creativity and critical-thinking skills.
