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2026 in review

The 16 numbers that defined kids and AI in 2026

Big surveys and big settlements gave 2026 its numbers. They tell a clear story: almost every kid now uses AI, many parents have not talked about it, schools are scrambling to write rules, and the companies behind kids' apps paid record sums. Each number below links to its source, with the sample and date so you can judge it. Surveys measure what kids and parents report, which runs behind reality as use keeps growing. Use these as conversation starters with your kids, their teachers or other parents.

We used national surveys, peer-reviewed or working-paper studies, court and government figures, each from 2026 or late 2025. Every figure was checked against its linked source in October 2026. Checked 2026-10-24. Nobody paid to be here and nothing is an affiliate link.

  1. 86%

    Common Sense Media census · Ages 9-17

    Share of U.S. kids ages 9-17 who use AI, in Common Sense's first annual census of 1,204 kids (fielded March 2026). About 24% use it daily.

  2. 44%

    Common Sense Media census · Ages 9-17

    Share of kids who say a parent or guardian has never talked with them about using AI safely. The same share say their school never has.

  3. 54%

    Pew Research Center · Ages 13-17

    Share of U.S. teens who have used chatbots for help with schoolwork, from Pew's survey of 1,458 teens and their parents, published Feb. 24, 2026.

  4. 12%

    Pew Research Center · Ages 13-17

    Share of teens who have turned to a chatbot for emotional support or advice. Small as a share, but that is millions of teens confiding in software.

  5. 1 in 10

    Pew via eWeek · Ages 13-17

    Teens who say they do all or most of their assignments with chatbot help, per Pew. Another 21% use it for some of their schoolwork and 23% for a little.

  6. 62%

    RAND, reported by Silicon Canals

    Share of U.S. students, middle school through college, using AI for homework by December 2025, up from 48% in May. 67% think more AI use will hurt critical thinking.

    Watch for: Secondary report of a RAND survey.

  7. 38% vs. 27%

    Family Online Safety Institute · Ages 10-17

    Kids ages 10-17 who reported using AI in the past week, versus the share their parents believed had. A 2026 survey of 4,000+ U.S. and Australian families.

  8. 31%

    Gallup and Walton Family Foundation · Ages 14-29

    Share of Gen Z (ages 14-29) who say they feel anger toward AI, up from 22% a year earlier, in a spring 2026 Gallup survey. Weekly use held at about half.

  9. 74%

    Gallup and Walton Family Foundation

    Share of students who say their school has introduced rules for AI use, up from 51% a year before. Rules arrived fast, but they vary widely between schools.

  10. 80 out of 80

    Common Sense Media via GovTech

    Times ChatGPT finished a homework assignment after testers simply deleted the Study Mode prefix, in Common Sense's 2026 tests of ChatGPT for Teens using 4,000+ prompts.

    Watch for: OpenAI disputes the testing method.

  11. Over 25%

    Common Sense Media

    Share of AI companion toy replies Common Sense judged inappropriate in January testing, including mentions of self-harm and drugs. Nearly 3 in 4 parents worry such toys will say something unsafe.

  12. 50,000

    OECD AI Incidents Monitor

    Children's chat logs that the AI plush toy maker Bondu left open to anyone with a Google login in January 2026, including names, birth dates and family details.

  13. 4.7 million

    AP

    Under-16 accounts that ten platforms restricted in Australia in the first weeks of the world's first national social media age ban, which began Dec. 10, 2025.

  14. Up to $18 billion

    AP

    Meta's August settlement with dozens of states over teen social media addiction, paid over 10 years, with new default time limits and age checks for teens.

    Watch for: First reported as $17 billion; part depends on TikTok and YouTube.

  15. About 4,600

    NBER study via HPPR

    Schools in the largest 2026 study of phone bans, which found an average effect on test scores close to zero, even as in-class phone use dropped sharply.

  16. 35 + Puerto Rico

    AI for Education

    U.S. states, plus Puerto Rico, with official guidance on AI in K-12 schools as of August 2026, per AI for Education. That leaves 15 states with none yet.

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