Artificial intelligence is becoming part of everyday digital life. For young people, this does not necessarily mean using a dedicated AI tool every day. AI is increasingly present in the platforms, services and digital environments they already use: from social media and content recommendations to online search, communication and content creation.
As AI becomes more embedded in these experiences, knowing how to use digital tools is no longer enough. Young people also need to understand how AI works, what its limitations are and how to make informed decisions about when and how to use it.
This is at the heart of AIDA – Artificial Intelligence for Digital Awareness, an Erasmus+ project focused on digital literacy, responsible AI use, inclusion, employability, intercultural dialogue, democratic participation and sustainability. AIDA_Partner_Agreement_PiGreco_…
AI is already part of everyday digital experiences
Many of our online experiences are influenced by algorithms and AI-powered systems. Recommendations suggest what we watch or listen to. Search engines help us navigate enormous amounts of information. Social media platforms organise and personalise content. Generative AI tools can help create texts, images, presentations or other digital materials.
For young people, these technologies can offer valuable opportunities.
AI tools can support learning, creativity and collaboration. They can help users explore ideas, develop content, practise communication or work with people across geographical and cultural borders. These possibilities are particularly relevant in a world where digital skills increasingly influence education, work and participation.
The AIDA research phase reflects this broad understanding of digital competence. Its youth questionnaire explores not only AI tools, but also digital content creation, online collaboration, intercultural cooperation, civic engagement, accessibility and sustainable digital practices among young people aged 18–30. Questionario AIDA sulle compete…
But opportunities also come with responsibilities.
Opportunities and risks go hand in hand
AI can make some digital tasks faster and more accessible, but using a tool effectively does not necessarily mean understanding its output.
An AI-generated answer can appear convincing while containing mistakes. A recommendation can influence what information we encounter without us always noticing. Automated systems can reproduce biases present in the data or assumptions on which they are built.
This means that digital participation requires more than technical confidence. It requires the ability to question, verify and reflect.
AIDA’s research activities explicitly consider digital skills gaps, the challenges organisations face when implementing digital education and AI tools, and the support needed to strengthen digital and international cooperation capacities.
Critical thinking in an age of misinformation
One of the most important skills in an AI-supported digital environment is critical thinking.
When encountering information online, young people need to be able to ask:
- Who created this information?
- Where does it come from?
- Can the claim be verified through another reliable source?
- Is the content presenting facts, opinions or assumptions?
- Could an algorithm or AI system have influenced what I am seeing?
- What information might be missing?
- Could the content contain an error or a bias?
These questions are especially important as AI makes it increasingly easy to produce convincing digital content.
The AIDA youth survey therefore includes questions about young people’s familiarity with identifying fake news and misinformation, as well as their interest in developing critical thinking and fact-checking skills. Questionario AIDA sulle compete…
Critical thinking does not mean automatically distrusting technology. It means learning to use technology with awareness.
Bias: when technology is not neutral
AI systems are created by people and trained or developed using data. As a result, they can reflect assumptions, limitations or biases that exist within their development and data.
For young people, understanding this is an important part of digital literacy. An AI tool should not be treated as an unquestionable authority simply because its answer is presented confidently or efficiently.
Recognising possible bias means becoming an active user rather than a passive consumer. It means being willing to compare perspectives, look for missing voices and question results that seem incomplete or unfair.
This is particularly important for digital participation. Online spaces shape how people communicate, form opinions and engage with social issues. The ability to evaluate information critically is therefore connected not only to individual skills, but also to participation in democratic life.
Privacy is part of responsible AI use
Responsible use of AI also means thinking carefully about data and privacy.
When using an AI tool, it can be tempting to paste information into a prompt without considering where that information comes from or whether it should be shared. Personal details, private conversations, confidential documents and other sensitive information require particular care.
Being digitally aware means asking simple questions before using an AI tool:
What am I sharing? Why am I sharing it? Do I have the right to share it? Is this tool appropriate for this information?
Privacy should not be treated as a technical issue reserved for experts. It is part of everyday digital citizenship.
AIDA’s research and communication activities place privacy alongside misinformation, bias, inclusion and democratic participation as important dimensions of responsible digital engagement. Editorial Calendar AIDA
From using technology to participating actively
AI literacy is ultimately about more than knowing how to operate an AI tool.
It is about developing the confidence and critical awareness needed to make informed choices.
The AIDA project connects AI literacy with a wider understanding of digital citizenship: digital skills, inclusion, intercultural learning, civic participation and responsible technology use. The project’s partnership agreement identifies digital literacy, responsible AI use, inclusion, employability, intercultural dialogue, democratic participation and sustainability among its overall objectives. AIDA_Partner_Agreement_PiGreco_…
This approach matters because young people are not simply users of digital technologies. They are also creators, learners, workers, communicators and citizens.
Their ability to participate meaningfully in digital spaces depends on being able to understand the technologies that increasingly shape those spaces.
Building awareness together
AI literacy should therefore not be about teaching young people to accept or reject artificial intelligence. It should help them develop the skills to use AI thoughtfully, question its outputs, recognise its limitations and understand its social impact.
This requires opportunities for practical learning, critical reflection and dialogue. It also requires inclusive digital education that responds to different experiences, abilities, levels of confidence and access to technology.
AIDA’s research is designed to listen to young people and understand their digital skills, experiences, needs and interests, so that future online learning activities and virtual exchanges can respond more closely to those realities. Questionario AIDA sulle compete…
The goal is not simply to prepare young people for a future shaped by AI.
It is to give them the awareness and confidence to help shape that future themselves.
Because responsible digital participation starts with a simple principle: technology should be something we understand and use consciously—not something that makes decisions for us.
This article is part of the AIDA – Artificial Intelligence for Digital Awareness communication activities. The October editorial calendar places the article within a wider focus on AI in young people’s everyday digital lives, responsible AI use, privacy, critical thinking, digital inclusion and informed participation.