Parenting in the Age of AI: What I Wish I Had 2 Years Ago

When my first child was born, I installed every “learning app” I could find.

Bright colors. Animal sounds. “Toddler genius” branding everywhere.

And it felt… hollow.

I’m a developer. I know when an app is just a noisy front-end with a dopamine loop. I wanted something deeper — something that respected my kid’s potential, and my time as a parent.

But here’s the thing no one tells you about tech and parenting:

Most products are built for the child.

Almost none are built with the parent in mind.

The Problem Isn’t Just Screen Time — It’s Blind Time

Let’s be honest: we all use screens to buy ourselves a moment of silence.

But what if screen time didn’t have to be a “necessary evil”?

What if it could actually build skills — and reflect them back to us in ways that helped us grow as parents too?

That’s what I was missing: feedback.

Not just for my kid — for me.

A New Kind of UX: From Solo Play to Parent Partnership

A few weeks ago, I tested a platform that totally flipped the script.

It combined engaging, story-based games for kids aged 3–8 with a companion app for parents that gave real-time insights.

Not just usage stats. Not dopamine scores. Actual cognitive and emotional patterns:

• “Your child is experimenting with patience.”

• “She prefers structured tasks over open-ended play.”

• “Try giving her a choice between two tasks after screen time — she’s developing agency.”

And these weren’t fluff. They were actionable.

It felt like the kind of UX I wish more parenting tools had — designed for humans with real emotional stakes.

We Need More Tech Like This

I don’t want to ban screens.

I want to use tech that respects both sides of the screen — the child and the parent.

There’s a new release coming soon from the platform I tested, and it’s open for early access. If you’re a parent in tech, you might want to check it out:

👉 Pre-register here (free + they send some cool parenting tools too)

Final Thought

As builders, we think about user journeys, gamification, retention.

But as parents? We want something much simpler:

💡 A tool that makes us feel less alone, and our kids more understood.

I believe the future of EdTech is exactly that.

More about them - https://kidstimesite.squarespace.com/