How many children use AI tools like ChatGPT?

Dubit asked parents in seven countries which AI tools their child uses. Parents could pick several, and 44.7% picked ChatGPT. Across 1 to 18 year olds, 32.5% use Gemini and 33.0% use no AI tool at all. Dubit's Trends survey covered the US, UK, Brazil, Germany, India, Japan and South Korea, on a weighted base of 9,646, and was reported in August 2026.¹ For 1 to 3 year olds, some reported use likely reflects a parent using AI on the child's behalf.

ChatGPT use runs from 7.6% of UK 1 to 3 year olds to 87% of Indian 16 to 18 year olds.

At what age do children start using AI?

In Dubit's survey, US parents report AI use from the youngest band, 1 to 3, and more of it in each band up to 10 to 12. Non-use is 67% at 1 to 3, 55% at 4 to 6, 41% at 7 to 9 and 29% at 10 to 12.² It then levels out at about 17 to 18% across both teen bands. Some of the use reported for 1 to 3 year olds likely reflects a parent using AI on the child's behalf or in their presence.

In the US, ChatGPT use rises almost in step with age, and Gemini follows a similar curve. US ChatGPT use rises from 18% at 1 to 3 to a peak of 62% at 13 to 15, then eases to 58% at 16 to 18.² Gemini starts at 16% in the youngest band, rises to 45% and eases to 43% at the oldest. The 13 to 15 band is also where US teens pick up secondary tools: 15% use Grammarly and 11% use Perplexity.

The UK follows the same pattern from a higher level of non-use. In Dubit's survey, UK non-use is 82% at 1 to 3, then 76% at 4 to 6, 66% at 7 to 9 and 56% at 10 to 12.³ It holds at 31% for both teen bands. UK ChatGPT use rises from 7.6% at 1 to 3 to 50% at 13 to 15 and 58% at 16 to 18.³

Which countries' children use AI the most?

Of Germany, India, Japan, South Korea, the UK and the US, India and South Korea have the fewest young people using no AI tool in Dubit's survey. Non-use is 16% in South Korea and 17% in India, against 36% in Germany, 37% in the US, 41% in Japan and 56% in the UK.¹ Brazil is not in that comparison. Across all ages, 1 to 18, 54% of young people in Brazil use ChatGPT and 48% use Gemini.

Among 16 to 18 year olds, ChatGPT reaches 87% in India, 82% in Brazil, 77% in South Korea and 75% in Germany. It reaches 58% in both the US and UK, and 50% in Japan. Non-use in that age band is 1% in India, 5% in Brazil and 8% in both South Korea and Germany. It is 17% in the US, 20% in Japan and 31% in the UK.

Across all ages, 1 to 18, 61% of young people in India use ChatGPT and 57% use Gemini. In South Korea the figures are 60% and 37%. Gemini reaches 78% of Indian 16 to 18 year olds. In the UK it peaks at 17%, among 13 to 15 year olds.

Exposure also starts earlier in South Korea and India than in the UK. Among 1 to 3 year olds, 34% in South Korea and 42% in India use no AI tool, against 82% in the UK.¹ At that age, some reported use likely reflects a parent using AI on the child's behalf or in their presence.

Which AI tools do children actually use?

ChatGPT first and Gemini second. Across the seven countries, 44.7% of 1 to 18 year olds use ChatGPT and 32.5% use Gemini. Google's AI mode and the AI overviews in Google search sit in the next tier, at between 10 and 28% of young people in almost every market.¹

The US breakdown by the child's gender gives the order of the most-used tools.² ChatGPT is used by 40.9% of boys and 42.9% of girls, and Gemini by 33.6% and 32.9%. Google AI mode reaches 16.5% of boys and 20.3% of girls, Google search AI overviews 15.7% and 17.3%, and Microsoft 365 Copilot 13.9% and 12.5%. Below them sit Grammarly (9.9% and 11.8%), Perplexity (7% and 6.1%), Grok (6.2% and 5.5%) and Claude (4.4% and 4.3%).

Do parents trust AI with their children's education?

US parents are split, and UK parents lean against it. Asked whether they would trust AI tools for their child's educational content, 42.1% of US parents answered positively and 36.1% negatively. In the UK, 25.2% were positive and 55.3% negative.⁴

The rest gave neutral or mixed answers: 16.7% neutral and 5.1% mixed in the US, 14.7% and 4.8% in the UK. In the US, parents of girls were less negative than parents of boys, at 33.6% against 38.5%. Positive answers were close, at 43.2% and 41%.⁵

Footnotes

1. Dubit Trends survey, reported 6 August 2026. Parents answered for a child aged 1 to 18 in the US, UK, Brazil, Germany, India, Japan and South Korea. Ages were grouped as 1 to 3, 4 to 6, 7 to 9, 10 to 12, 13 to 15 and 16 to 18. Total weighted base 9,646. Each country and age band had a base of between 135 and 429; the smallest is South Korea's 1 to 3 year olds, at n=135. Parents could pick several tools, so totals exceed 100%. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

2. Dubit Trends survey, reported 6 August 2026. US only, weighted base 2,413. Respondents could pick several tools, so totals exceed 100%. Bases for each age band in each country ranged from 135 to 429. ↩ ↩² ↩³

3. Dubit Trends survey, reported 6 August 2026. UK only, weighted base 1,211. Respondents could pick several tools. Bases for each age band in each country ranged from 135 to 429. ↩ ↩²

4. Dubit Trends survey, reported 6 August 2026. Question: "Would you trust AI tools for your child's educational content?" Answers classed by sentiment as positive, neutral, mixed or negative. US weighted base 492. ↩

5. Dubit Trends survey, reported 6 August 2026. US only, by the child's gender, weighted base 328. ↩