Discussion with Baroness Beeban Kidron “For Children in Age of Artificial Intelligence”
‘From the beginning we believed, in the context of our strategy for artificial intelligence, That Greece can play a leading role. Understand what we can really learn from ancient philosophy and wisdom to face a deep and unprecedented challenge: the rise of artificial intelligence, “the Kyriakos Mitsotakis In the discussion he had with Baroness and a member of the House of Lords of the United Kingdom Beedan Kidron in the context of συνεδρίου «The Lyceum Project 2025 – Children in the age of AI».
The prime minister pointed out that for the first time, we have not only a tool, but something that challenges the very concept of human consciousness, existence, will.
“This is not just a technological development, nor just innovation; this is something completely different,” he said, saying, among other things, that the problem is that in the digital world we do not treat children as children, but as adults, although we recognize that they are much more vulnerable.
“We have allowed an unprecedented global experiment on the mental health of our children and adolescents. And from the scientific data we have, this is not foreseen to have a good outcome. Parents recognize it immediately. I was impressed by the support we received when we started talking about the subject, because parents see that something is wrong, but they do not know how to deal with it, “he noted.
Mr Mitsotakis said that the content in the digital world is designed in such a way that children and adolescents are glued to specific applications as many hours as possible, because technology companies make money.
“The algorithms are designed to promote addiction. This is reminiscent of the tobacco companies, who have known for decades that smoking is addictive, but continued. So here, “he continued and stressed that” as responsible leaders, we must do something. “
The prime minister said the first step was to have an open discussion with the parents. “We explain to them that there are already tools, such as ‘Kid’s Wallet’, which is linked to our digital register and verifies a user’s age. It is inconceivable to say today that “we do not know age”. Technology allows it. It is impossible to move forward without parents. We have to involve them and train them, because this is the only way to have a collective action, “he said.
Mr Mitsotakis also talked about the need for European regulation, and reminded that he was the only leader to talk about the issue at the UN General Assembly last year and said he would repeat it.
“We need to send a message to Technology Companies: You are already making enough money. You don’t have to make a profit from our children ‘, He stressed.
At the same time he referred to the issue of education and the great challenges and opportunities brought by artificial intelligence. “How do we tell children to resist a tool that offers them what they ask for? The temptation is huge and we cannot resist either. But we can’t put all the weight on parents. Parents should not be alone. Tools are needed, defined default limits, breaking the cycle of addiction, “he added.
Mr Mitsotakis also said that settings, filters, duration of use are the real weapons that can make a difference.
“And of course, the best shield for our children is sport. There is nothing better than investing in infrastructure, physical activity, socialization. In the end, we cannot allow platforms to continue to function as neutral, without responsibility for the content they host, “he said.