Out of all the work a person takes on in their life, raising a child can be one of the most difficult, intense, and time-consuming activities. It impacts everything you do, including your job, your hobbies, your personal time, your sleep (however much sleep you get, anyway!), your relationships, and more. If it’s part of you and what you do, parenting changes it. You already know how much help technology can be, from your video baby monitor to the soothing, singing baby swing, to the educational apps of older children. Have you thought about how artificial intelligence (AI), some of the most advanced technology there is, can come into play?
Millennials will tell you how much has changed with the emergence of digital technology. Today’s children and newborns will most likely say just as much about the emergence of AI. Already, AI is so advanced that detecting it online requires a discerning eye, driving parents to explore AI detectors. But can this technology help your parenting? Here are some ways to make it work for you now, and prepare for how it will change as your children grow up.
Your Time-Saving Digital Partner
Time is your most valuable asset as a parent. You’re always running out and looking for more. It shouldn’t be surprising that AI could be helpful with this; it’s a machine, after all, and don’t you feel like a mess-cleaning, errand-running, chore-checking robot yourself sometimes? Letting AI help you optimize some of your biggest time crunches sounds great, doesn’t it?
Meal-Planning and Cooking: “What’s for dinner?” If only your kids understood how stressful that question can be! An AI-powered recipe app can look at your preferences, dietary restrictions, and—most importantly—the ingredients you actually have on hand, and provide a list of solid options that fit your needs. Just pick an ingredient and start cooking. That was easy!
Streamlined Shopping: Some grocery services offer AI-powered apps that track your purchasing habits and predict what you may need to stock up on. They can also automatically replenish household staples that will show up on your doorstep right when you need them.
Smart Home Integration: Have you ever thought you could use a full-time assistant at home? AI-powered home assistants can organize your day, remind you of appointments, and set your thermostat and home security systems for you. Don’t worry about forgetting one of the hundred time-sensitive things your kids need from you. Once you have AI watching your calendar, it’ll make sure you know what’s going on. Add on countless little time-saving features that come with a fully integrated smart home, and you’ll have less stressful days ahead.
Your Children, Their AI, and Digital Safety
Kids are already using technology extensively in their education, and to great effect. AI has gotten involved as well, making their learning tools smarter and more personalized. Interactive lessons engage children at their own pace and help ensure that content is appropriate for their learning level. This goes all the way down to newborns with AI-powered baby monitors that track vital stats and sleeping patterns to help keep babies healthy and identify potential concerns.
Toys have become smarter as well, with AI-powered toys adapting to a child’s creative play. This turns a toy into a valuable educational tool, offering new ways to engage in problem-solving and even motor skills. For your littlest kids, play is education, and every new interaction is a learning opportunity.
Technology becomes a source of stress for many parents, though, as kids decide to go online and take control of the content they engage with. AI-powered digital safety tools can help parents protect their online kids from inappropriate or harmful content. A parental safety control can use AI to analyze content before your children see it, identify material that is explicit or dangerous, or combat misinformation that could confuse kids.
AI for Your Self-Care and Personal Wellness
Go ahead and let it be about you for a few minutes. What can AI do for you? For many parents, the first thing they sacrifice for their kids is their own health, sleep, free time, and peace, but does self-care really need to be so difficult? With the help of AI, maybe taking care of your body and mind doesn’t have to be the one item you never reach at the bottom of your to-do list.
Personalized Fitness Apps: Where did all your gym time go? And what else went with it? Physical exercise is more important than most think. Living a properly active lifestyle is important to your mental wellness and your waking energy levels, and even promotes better sleep. AI-driven fitness apps can help parents stay active with fitness routines that are customized to their crammed lifestyles. Taking into account your fitness level (and all those pressures on your time!), an AI-powered app can devise short, effective workouts that you can squeeze in anytime, anywhere.
Mental Wellness: If you’re struggling to find the time to work out, how are you going to find the time for therapy, meditation, or even just a little peace? Again, AI can help with that part. AI-powered mental wellness apps can offer personalized meditation and breathing exercises, or connect you to virtual therapy sessions that work with your schedule. Perhaps the most useful feature of these apps is that they work around your schedule. The last thing anyone wants is to get stressed out trying to manage their mental health, so let the AI take some of the weight and get yourself in the right headspace.
Become the Parent of the Future
It’s easy to think of artificial intelligence as this decade’s big marketing buzzword, but if you take the time to look into what the technology can actually do for you in your daily life, you’ll be surprised. If you let it, AI can help you stay focused on your family and yourself. Take the time to look up what AI-powered apps are available to help you manage your time, plan your meals and other chores, exercise and engage in self-care, and keep your children safe and learning. With careful, mindful use, you might find a tool that becomes an essential part of a new, better routine.
Being a parent is something that touches every part of you, so any help you can get—even if it’s just making your day a little easier in some small, personal way—can make you a better parent. Take the time to check out all of the newest possibilities.
