Power of Zero: Online safety skills from day one

About this episode

Larry talks with Nicholas Carlisle about online safety skills for children and the impact of technology and AI on their development.

In this episode of Doing Tech Right, Larry talks with Nicholas Carlisle, CEO of Power of Zero, about childhood moving online and the rapid spread of AI as a transformative “general purpose technology.” Carlisle explains the origin of Power of Zero’s name and its focus on helping children use technology responsibly with “zero violence and zero bullying” from an early age. They discuss very young children’s screen exposure, World Health Organization guidance on limiting screen time for ages 2–5, and the importance of avoiding displacement of face time and physical play. The conversation also covers the harms of passive scrolling, online harassment—especially targeting young women. Carlisle outlines Power of Zero’s education-first approach, including its Superpowers Program teaching 12 character strengths for kindergarten through third grade. 00:00 Welcome to Doing Tech Right 00:29 Meet Nicholas Carlisle 01:04 Childhood Goes Online 02:03 AI as a Mega Shift 03:55 Why Power of Zero 05:24 Screens and Tiny Kids 08:04 Healthy Screen Balance 10:25 Passive vs Active Online 13:48 Harassment and Deepfakes 15:57 Education Over Regulation 17:37 Programs Around the World 19:10 Preparing Kids…

People in this episode

Host: Larry

Guest: Nicholas Carlisle

Topics covered

• online safety
• childhood technology use
• AI impact
• screen time guidance
• education
• bullying prevention

Keywords

• online safety
• children
• AI
• screen time
• bullying
• education
• Power of Zero

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Power of Zero, World Health Organization

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