Research reveals hidden AI anxiety in Australian families

92% of Australian parents believe their family is keeping pace with AI but 41% of younger parents fear their children falling behind

• 40% of parents aged 25–34 say helping their Gen Alpha children learn or develop new skills is their top AI priority
• Yet only 42% say they review or discuss how their children use AI
• Three quarters (75%) of parents say their school-aged children use general AI tools for schoolwork, study help and research
• Among parents aged 25–34, 62% already pay for an AI tool, compared with 46% overall, while 49% welcome AI playing a bigger role in family life
• Nearly one third (32%) say their children aged five to 12 regularly use AI

Australian parents who already use AI regularly feel confident that their families are keeping pace with the technology, but the research points to a quieter concern about whether children are developing the skills they will need as AI becomes a bigger part of everyday life. Among parents aged 25 to 34, 40% rank helping their children learn or develop new skills as their number one AI priority, according to new research from TrendLife, the consumer business unit of Trend Micro Incorporated.

The AI and Family Life study surveyed 1,030 Australian parents who use AI regularly and have at least one school-aged child using AI at home. This has unveiled the AI blind spots in Australian family life.

Generational divides: younger parents are leading adoption and feeling the pressure

The research also points to a generational divide in how families are adopting AI. Parents aged 25 to 34 years old are both the most enthusiastic and the most anxious. 62% in this age group already pay for an AI tool (compared with 46% overall) and 49% say they expect AI to play a bigger role in family life and welcome it, against 41% overall. At the same time, 41% say they are very or extremely concerned about being left behind if they don't keep developing their AI use. In addition, 40% rank helping their children learn or develop new skills as their number one AI priority.

Confidence is high, but conversations are lagging 

The findings show that 92% of parents believe their family understands or uses AI at the same level as, or better than, other families and 82% feel at least moderately confident they could protect their children from cybersecurity and safety risks related to AI. 

Yet only 42% say they review or discuss their children's AI use with them, and 38% say they are concerned about how either their children or an older relative is using AI.

Almost six in 10 (58%) name the privacy and security of their family's personal data as a top three concern, followed by AI's accuracy (47%) and family members over-relying on AI rather than forming their own judgement (45%). Thirty-four per cent say they are very or extremely concerned their family could be left behind socially, professionally or financially if they don't keep developing their AI use.

AI use is reaching nearly a third of primary school-aged children at home

Three quarters (75%) of households in this study say their school-aged children use general AI tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini or Claude for schoolwork and usually for study help and research. More striking though, is how young that usage is starting: 52% of parents say the teenagers in their household regularly use AI, but 32% say the same of children aged five to twelve.

Dads are driving AI use in the home

The research also found a gender divide in AI adoption: Fathers are also more likely than mothers to pay for AI tools (54% versus 37%) and to welcome a bigger role for it in family life (46% versus 36%).

Lynette Owens, Vice President of Consumer Education at TrendLife, comments,"AI has moved into family life faster than the conversations that should go with it. These are parents who already use AI themselves and have children who use it too, yet they are more confident than their level of oversight would suggest. Confidence is not the same as active oversight when children are using AI.”

"What stands out is that the parents leading adoption are also the ones most worried about falling behind. Interestingly, dads are paying more, upgrading more, and both parents are pushing their kids to build AI skills early. There are real concerns about privacy and over-reliance but these concerns reinforce the need for AI tools that build privacy, safety and oversight into family life, so confidence is matched by informed use.”

The research findings will be unveiled at the Families in the Age of AI in Sydney on 23 September. The event will bring together leaders from education, consumer protection and technology to examine how families can navigate the opportunities and risks of AI as it reshapes how children learn, communicate and connect, including:

• Jayde Richmond, General Manager of the ACCC’s National Anti-Scam Centre
• John Livingstone, Head of Digital Policy in Australia for UNICEF, the United Nations children’s agency
• Dr Beth Chapman, an education academic and researcher focused on rethinking how we learn, teach and lead in a digital age. 

To learn more about the findings in more detail along with TrendLife please visit:trendlife.com.