TLDR: A rising trend shows children aged 6-15 are increasingly enrolling in AI, Generative AI, and machine learning courses after school, as parents recognize AI literacy as a crucial skill for future readiness. This shift is driven by a desire to equip young minds with essential skills for an AI-dominated future, moving beyond traditional coding education.
In a significant shift in after-school activities, children aged 6 to 15 are increasingly opting for courses in Artificial Intelligence (AI), Generative AI (Gen AI), and machine learning, moving away from conventional gaming. This burgeoning trend reflects a growing awareness among parents and educators about the critical importance of AI literacy for future readiness.
Six-year-old Vedaant and his 12-year-old sister exemplify this new wave, dedicating an hour each evening to AI and Gen AI classes on their tablets. This indicates that coding, once considered the pinnacle of tech learning for children, is being superseded by a deeper dive into AI concepts. Edtech startups are rapidly responding to this demand, offering structured programs tailored for younger learners.
Companies such as BrightCHAMPS, eduSeed, Smart Tech Junior, Codingal, Codevidhya, and GeSetLearn are at the forefront of this educational evolution. Their curricula typically start with foundational concepts like sequencing and pattern recognition for kindergarteners, progressing to block-based coding, machine learning basics, and even the ethical implications of AI for older children. The cost for these sessions generally ranges from Rs 250 to Rs 600, depending on whether they are group or one-on-one classes, with most courses spanning 30 to 150 one-hour sessions.
Generative AI courses are particularly popular among both parents and students. These programs go beyond theoretical knowledge, enabling children to build practical projects such as chatbots, design games, create content, and develop image recognition systems. Ravi Bhushan, founder and CEO of BrightCHAMPS, noted, ‘There’s a definite sense of parents worrying about their kids not learning AI, which most urban parents now understand to be a critical life skill for future-readiness.’ BrightCHAMPS, which launched a dedicated Gen AI program in 2024, reports that approximately 20% of its 6-14-year-old student base is currently enrolled in these courses.
The increasing popularity of AI courses is evident, with BrightCHAMPS experiencing a fourfold jump in AI-related course inquiries. Sasi Dharani, founder of another edtech company, stated that 12% of their sales now come from AI programs for this age group, with a 25% growth in users in the last month alone. Dharani attributes this surge to heightened parental awareness and children’s innate curiosity, as they are growing up surrounded by AI technologies like voice assistants and content recommendations. ‘They want to know what’s behind it,’ he remarked.
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This educational shift underscores a collective recognition that understanding AI is no longer an optional skill but a fundamental requirement for navigating the complexities of the future digital landscape.
