Almost all young Brits use AI – more than half say it makes life better
Research for Safer Internet Day 2026 reveals 60% of teens worry about AI being used to make inappropriate pictures of them
Nearly all young people aged 8 to 17 (97%) are now using artificial intelligence (AI) tools with (58%) saying that AI makes their lives better, but 60% are concerned about someone using AI to make inappropriate pictures of them.
The research, carried out for Safer Internet Day (10th February 2026) by Nominet – the .UK registry and the UK Safer Internet Centre, polled 2000 young people (aged 8 to 17 years old) and 2000 parents and carers across the UK with questions about their attitude to the fast-evolving world of AI. This year, Safer Internet Day aims to start conversations about the safe and responsible use of AI, giving young people a voice in creating a safer environment for all online.
According to the research, 71% of young people say AI saves them a lot of time, while a growing number are using it for help and support, with 64% agreeing that AI is the best way to get advice quickly. Currently, 41% teens feel like people their age are relying heavily on AI for emotional support or help with emotional issues, while most one in seven (14%) say they use AI tools to discuss things they don’t feel they can talk to anyone else about.
Both young people and their parents identify issues related to the rapid growth of AI – with a third of parents and carers (33%) saying they are concerned about its impact on their children’s thinking and learning development. Nearly half of young people (49%) say that AI is making people their age less creative, while 35% say it has made them less creative personally.
When it comes to their studies, 73% of young people find AI useful and 54% said they use it to help with homework or studying. However, half (50%) of children say they’ve seen others their age using AI to do their school or homework for them. At the same time just 31% of parents believed their children were using AI to help with homework.
Will Gardner OBE, UK Safer Internet Centre Director, said:
“Young people wanted us to focus on the safe and responsible use of AI this year, because its adoption into our everyday lives is moving quickly. Our research shows how young people are excited by this incredible technology and are using it more than ever across many online services, but they still have concerns, questions and want to learn more to equip themselves to use AI safely and responsibly. Thousands of schools and other organisations are taking part in Safer Internet Day, and we hope this kickstarts conversations in classrooms and homes around the UK and helps young people be better supported when it comes to AI.”
Paul Fletcher, CEO, Nominet – who funded the research, added:
“This pace of change hasn’t been witnessed since the industrial revolution, so it’s essential we all get to grips with the possibilities and challenges that come with AI. It’s great that young people remain positive about the possibilities AI will bring them – but they are still concerned about the potential risks. No matter how quickly technology changes today’s normal, we should all take steps to ensure young people can benefit from AI – and parents don’t get left behind either.”
ENDS
About this research
This research was commissioned by Childnet (as part of the UK Safer Internet Centre) and Nominet and was carried out by Opinium in November 2025. Opinium conducted two surveys. One of them was of 2,018 children, aged 8-17, in the UK. The second survey was of 2,000 parents and carers of children, aged 8-17, in the UK. The data from both surveys has been weighted to be nationally representative.
Childnet also consulted its Digital Leaders, Digital Champions and its Youth Advisory Board, aged 8-18, in November and December 2025, and ran focus groups with young people in primary and secondary schools in May and June, 2025.
Media Contacts for Safer Internet Day 2026
To arrange interviews with Safer Internet Day spokespeople or to discuss data.
Will Guyatt, Nominet, 07799 334994, will.guyatt@nominet.uk
Sam Curtis, Nominet, 07919 664538, Samantha.curtis@nominet.uk
About Safer Internet Day
Safer Internet Day 2026 will take place on Tuesday, 10th February 2026, with celebrations and learning based around the theme ‘Smart tech, safe choices – Exploring the safe and responsible use of AI’.
Safer Internet Day is the UK’s biggest celebration of online safety. Each year, the UK Safer Internet Centre covers an online issue or theme that speaks about the things young people are seeing and experiencing online. Created in consultation with young people across the UK, this year, Safer Internet Day will be focusing on the safe and responsible use of AI.
Safer Internet Day is supported by thousands of organisations – including government departments, tech companies, charities, schools, police services, and more – with activities running across the country. This includes a Live Lesson from the BBC, which in 2025 reached hundreds of thousands of children.
The UK Safer Internet Centre has created a range of free resources, top tips, and quizzes for use with young people of all ages, to help educators and professionals – whether as part of a school, charity, youth group, police service, business, library or any group working with young people – to deliver engaging and interactive Safer Internet Day sessions.
To find out more about Safer Internet Day 2026 and how you can get involved, visit http://saferinternet.org.uk/
About Nominet
Nominet has run the UK’s national domain registry since 1996 – which is relied on by millions of individuals and businesses every day.
As a public benefit company, Nominet runs .UK for the greater good – working with its members to bring the benefits of the internet to all.
Nominet plays an essential role in operating the internet’s infrastructure, helping to run the Domain Name System that supports government services in the UK, including the NHS. It also helps some of the world’s biggest brands to have their own online home.
To find out more, visit https://nominet.uk/
About the UK Safer Internet Centre
The UK Safer Internet Centre (UKSIC), established in 2011, is a leading global partnership helping to make the internet a great and safe place for everyone. We provide support and services to children and young people, adults facing online harms, and professionals working with children.
Formed of three charities, Childnet, Internet Watch Foundation and SWGfL, we work together to identify threats and harms online and then create and deliver critical advice, resources, education and interventions that help keep children and young people, and adults, safe. We share our best practices across the UK and globally.
The UK Safer Internet Centre coordinates Safer Internet Day each year, reaching millions of young people, parents and carers, and educators across the UK, giving them the vital information and support they need to keep young people safe online.
Key Findings from this year’s Safer Internet Day report
The types of AI young people are using online
Over half (52%) of young people across all ages 8-17 say they are using AI more than they were 6 months ago and use it across a wide range of different apps and services. Voice assistants, such as Alexa or Siri and AI summaries in search engines, are the two types of AI tools most frequently used by young people, with over two thirds (69%) of young people using voice assistants at least once per week and over a third (39%), at least once a day.
Other AI tools are also used by a significant proportion of young people, including those as young as 8, daily. Around a fifth of young people use AI in social media or messaging apps (e.g. MyAI on Snap, Meta AI) or in stand-alone AI apps or services (e.g. ChatGPT) at least once per day.
The role of AI in young people’s lives
Almost half of young people (48%) say that AI is an important part of their everyday life, and 41% think AI can be a great source of emotional support. However, many young people (45%) are worried about people their age getting really close to AI, like it’s a friend, and 41% of teens feel like people their age rely heavily on AI for emotional support or help with personal issues. The research also found that 39% of under 13s feel like people their age use AI a lot when they feel sad or need help.
We found that over a quarter (27%) of young people have seen people their age using AI to get advice, instead of talking to their friends or family.
AI is also being used by young people to help with social interactions. Almost half (45%) of 8-17s said that AI is a good way to practice communicating with people their age (for example drafting tricky messages).
Young people are seeing the positive impact of AI, with 80% having seen AI used in positive ways and 58% thinking that AI makes their life better. They are optimistic about the future too, with 73% of young people feeling that knowing how to use AI will help them in their future careers.
When it comes to studying, 73% of young people find AI useful, and 54% use it to help with homework or studying. But 69% of over 13s also think that people their age rely heavily on AI for studying and homework and 50% of 8-17s have even seen people their age using AI to do their school or homework for them, 31% 8-17s say they have done this themselves.
Our research suggests that this heavy use of AI in studying can give rise to issues of trust between schools and pupils, with over half (53%) of young people worried that their school may think that they used AI for their work when they didn’t.
Interestingly, only around one third (31%) of parents and carers think their child has used AI to help with homework.
Young people’s concerns about AI
In terms of the misuse of AI, bullying and nudification are major worries for young people and their parents and carers. 60% of young people are worried about someone using AI to make inappropriate pictures of them and 65% of parents and carers are worried about this for their own children. This concern is real, given that 12% of teens have seen people their age using AI to make sexual images or videos of other people.
Less than half (46%) of 8–17-year-olds agree that AI is safe for children and young people to use, however 18% disagree. This research acts as an interesting gauge of the level of concern that young people have around AI technology. Notably, over a third (38%) think people under the age of 16 should not be allowed to use AI companions or chatbots.
The role of parents and carers
The research shows very clearly that parents and carers are playing a critical role as the primary source of advice and support for young people on AI. Families are willing to have important conversations: 74% of young people would talk to a parent or carer if they were worried about AI and 72% of parents and carers feel confident talking to their child about the safe and responsible use of AI.
Parents and carers need more support and resources too. Less than 1 in 5 (19%) have set rules or guidelines for how their child can use AI at home and only 13% know where to go for advice or support if they are worried about their child’s use of AI.
It is important that we equip young people and those who support them with the skills they need to navigate AI use safely and responsibly, and Safer Internet Day is a key opportunity to encourage key conversations about AI in homes and schools across the country.