There’s no single agreed definition of “AI” which is part of why this question comes up so often. It covers a huge range of technology, from simple things that have existed for years, like autocorrect and photo sorting on your phone, right through to the newer chat-style tools like ChatGPT and Claude.

Because “AI” is a good selling point right now, companies are increasingly labelling their products as AI, whether or not anything about them has actually changed. So when you see the word “AI” on something, two different things could be going on. Sometimes it genuinely is AI, just not new AI. The feature has existed for years, and the company has only recently started drawing attention to it. Other times, the AI label gets added with much less behind it, more marketing than substance.

For parents, the practical takeaway is this: don’t assume “AI” on the box means something new, or something to worry about. Camera software that recognises faces in photos and email tools that filter spam have been doing their jobs for years. A smart thermostat that “learns” your routine is a fairly basic pattern-matching feature, not the same category of technology as a chatbot your child might have a conversation with. If a product’s AI claim matters to you, and often it won’t, it’s worth asking what the AI actually does, rather than taking the label at face value.