"AI toys are a bad idea. Do not buy your kid an AI toy." This unequivocal statement from Joanna Stern, the Wall Street Journal's Personal Technology Columnist and a CNBC Contributor, served as a stark warning during her recent appearance on CNBC's Squawk Box. Stern spoke with the Squawk Box hosts about the latest AI-infused tech products hitting the market, offering her expert take on which innovations are truly worthwhile as the holiday shopping season approaches. Her commentary drew a clear line between the nascent, often problematic integration of AI into children's products and the more promising, albeit still imperfect, applications for adults.
The immediate and absolute dismissal of AI toys for children by a seasoned tech reviewer like Stern is a critical signal for the startup ecosystem. She highlighted existing reports of AI toys "talking about things they shouldn't be talking about with kids, illicit things, things that are inappropriate." This goes beyond mere technical glitches, touching on profound ethical and safety concerns that should give any founder or investor pause. The unsupervised, generative nature of current large language models, even when ostensibly "filtered," presents inherent risks when interacting with young, impressionable minds.
Furthermore, Stern shared her own unsettling experience testing an AI toy with her child, noting "there's just something a little bit dark about this chatbot being part of a stuffed animal and your kid kind of bonding with it." This observation underscores a deeper concern about the psychological and developmental impact of children forming relationships with artificial entities. The potential for AI to displace genuine human interaction, or to introduce complex emotional dynamics that children are ill-equipped to navigate, raises serious questions about responsible innovation in this sensitive domain. It suggests that the rush to infuse AI into every product category, particularly those aimed at vulnerable populations, requires far more rigorous ethical consideration and developmental psychology expertise than is currently being applied.
In stark contrast to her apprehension regarding children's AI toys, Stern expressed enthusiasm for certain AI-powered wearables designed for adults, specifically highlighting the Oakley Meta Vanguard glasses. These glasses, an evolution of the Ray-Ban Meta line, captivated her with their enhanced capabilities. She praised their improved camera, which allows for hands-free recording, eliminating the need to constantly hold up a phone. Crucially, the latest iteration boasts significantly better water resistance, an IP7 rating, making them suitable for active pursuits like water sports or skiing. This practical enhancement greatly expands their utility for users seeking to capture experiences in challenging environments.
The most compelling advancement, according to Stern, lies in Meta's improved AI integration. She enthusiastically noted, "you can actually ask these glasses about what you're looking at, ask for tips, and just use the chatbot in your ear." This feature transforms the glasses from a mere recording device into a personal, hands-free assistant capable of providing real-time, context-aware information. For founders and VCs, this represents a key insight: successful consumer AI often augments existing human capabilities in a seamless, unobtrusive manner, rather than creating entirely new, potentially disruptive, modes of interaction. The value proposition here is clear utility, enhancing experiences without demanding constant attention or complex interfaces.
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However, Stern's nuanced perspective also extended to the limitations of current AI wearable technology. While she lauded the Oakley Meta Vanguard, she explicitly refrained from recommending Meta's Ray-Ban display glasses. These more advanced wearables, which incorporate an on-screen display, represent a significant leap towards augmented reality. Yet, Stern found the user experience lacking. She concluded that while these display glasses offer "a real clear vision of what's coming from Meta and what's coming in this space," ultimately, "right now it's just it's not good enough and the price is too high." This critique, particularly relevant for tech insiders, highlights the ongoing challenge of bridging the gap between ambitious technological vision and practical, affordable consumer products. The current trade-off between functionality, aesthetics, battery life, and cost remains a significant barrier to mainstream adoption for advanced AI-powered AR wearables.
The disparity in Stern's recommendations — a categorical rejection of AI toys for children versus a cautious endorsement of practical AI wearables for adults — illuminates a critical divergence in the consumer AI market. For children, the risks associated with unproven AI, particularly concerning privacy, content moderation, and developmental impact, are simply too high for current technology to mitigate effectively. For adults, however, AI embedded in familiar form factors like smart glasses, when focused on enhancing specific, tangible activities (like recording adventures or providing quick informational prompts), offers genuine value. The market is demonstrating a preference for AI that serves as an intelligent tool, rather than an artificial companion, especially when the technology is still in its formative stages. This suggests that for investors and product developers, a strategic focus on problem-solving, utility-driven AI with robust ethical frameworks, particularly in areas like hands-free assistance and content capture, will likely yield more immediate and sustainable success than ventures into ethically complex or technically immature domains.
