A scoping review of children’s play with GenAI toys in the early years

Many toys embedded with Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) make claims about their social and educational benefits for young children. However, there are also wide concerns about possible risks of GenAI toys, especially with many now marketed towards children aged five and under. Based on the developmental importance of the early years, we conducted a scoping literature review to comprehensively understand the existing evidence on GenAI toys designed for this age group. Searches of four data-bases (PsycInfo, ERIC, IEEE Xplore, and Web of Science) returned 346 results. After screening for eligibility, we included 7 research studies on GenAI toys designed for children aged five and under. Our analysis showed the main areas of focus for these studies were: (1) AI literacy and education, (2) toy design and development, and (3) user experience. We found little to no evidence on the impacts of GenAI toys on young children’s education, development, mental health, or privacy, demonstrating the need for urgent research in this rapidly developing area. We recommend rapid and collaborative research, bringing together experts across disciplinary boundaries, to comprehensively understand the implications of GenAI toys for young children.