How AI is Changing the Future for Gen Z Kids (Middle+)

Unlock the secrets of artificial intelligence with Eashan Kosaraju, a rising junior at Solon High School and the dynamic host of the All Things AI podcast. Discover how Eashan transitioned from a math enthusiast to a computer science aficionado, inspired by the support of exceptional teachers and engaging coursework like AP Chemistry and AP Computer Science. This episode sheds light on how early educational experiences can spark a lifelong passion for technology and AI.

In this episode:

• Real-World AI Applications: Navigate the practical uses of AI, drawing fascinating parallels between the early internet era and today's AI landscape.
• Impactful Interviews: Hear about Eashan's memorable conversation with Mohan Gulati of thinkrr.ai, who excels at making complex AI topics accessible.
• Cybersecurity Challenges: Explore pressing issues like phishing and voice recognition scams, and understand the necessity for regulation.
• Tech Trivia Game: Test your AI knowledge with our exciting trivia segment.

In the final segment, we delve into the ethical considerations and societal impacts of AI, focusing on its influence on jobs and education. Eashan introduces revolutionary tools like Khan Academy's Khanmego, and we discuss the mission of Encode Justice, a youth-powered movement advocating for responsible AI. The episode concludes with a heartfelt message about the importance of privacy, transparency, and human-centered AI, particularly during political elections. Don’t miss out on this enriching conversation that underscores the significance of understanding AI's potential and challenges. Check out more resources with Eashan via Empower with AI, including his mini-lectures.

Resources from AiDigiTales, an AI for Kids edutainment company:

• Website

Chapters

• 0:01 High School Student Talks AI
• 7:59 Exploring AI Impact and Education
• 14:59 Exploring AI Impact and Ethics
• 22:09 Exploring AI Applications in Various Fields

Transcript

Amber Ivey: 0:01

Hi everyone. Welcome back to the AI for Kids podcast. Today we have a fantastic guest, someone who literally knows everything about AI and he is under the age of 18. So please welcome Ishan Koseradji, host of the All Things AI podcast and a responsible AI advocate. Ishan, can you tell us a little bit about yourself and why you started the All Things AI podcast? Tell us a little bit about yourself and why you started the All Things AI podcast For sure.

Eashan Kosaraju: 0:25

I'm a rising junior at Solon High School in Ohio and really my whole mission with AI is to educate everyone else about this technology, because one thing I'm noticing is that prevalence that AI is having in society is growing day by day.

Eashan Kosaraju: 0:40

day, you're going to notice that something new is coming out, and with that amount of technology, I think we need to have a proper regulation, the proper mindset on how to use that technology and also just understanding it in general, because, aside from understanding the dangers that AI has, I think it's also important to note that there's so many diverse ways that it's being used that can really accelerate the way that people are working, for example, even in like a professional situation, for example, and so, with that being said, I started All Things AI really to publicize the amount of information that there is in this field.

Eashan Kosaraju: 1:12

That was mainly the driving factor, and I continue to upload episodes every one to two weeks because, like so many developments being made, a couple months back, one of the main focuses was Biden's executive order on AI, but now that's shifted out. One topic that was recently discussed, for example, is OpenAI and Ilya Stubetskar, who many consider a voice for responsible AI, but now that he's left the company discussing what the implications of things like that are and really that's what we like to look into at the All Things AI podcast.

Amber Ivey: 1:42

That is so cool and I just love how you dig into all these different topics and bring on experts across the field. Like I always, am excited to see a new face on your podcast. But before we go too deep into your podcast, I want to take you way back Well, not too way back for you, because you're younger. So what was your favorite subject before high school? Did you always think that you would want to talk about things like technology and AI? Before high school, did you always think that you would want to talk about things like technology and AI.

Eashan Kosaraju: 2:06

Yeah, I always enjoyed math from the start, part of why I got into computer science in high school and dove really deep into the subject. But what's really interesting is there's always a right answer there. So the drive to really find that was really what I found, I guess, rewarding back in middle school and even at my elementary years.

Amber Ivey: 2:23

I'm glad you brought that up, because that's the one reason I like math as well, because there actually is an answer. A lot of other subjects is a little like gray, but math is the one thing. That's very clear what it is. What about in high school? What's your favorite subject now?

Eashan Kosaraju: 2:37

I'm really torn between two, and both of them are classes that I took this year. I had fabulous teachers in almost all of my classes, but in these two, specifically AP Chemistry, which really looks into things like acids, bases, everything. The periodic table explores basically everything in chemistry People noted to be one of the most challenging classes that students can take in high school. A lot of people say it is the most challenging, I think, with the way that my teacher was able to explain the concepts, as well as the fact that he prepared us really well for the end of year exam. It really didn't feel like a challenge Every morning.

Eashan Kosaraju: 3:09

That was my first period class, but it was also something that I looked forward to.

Eashan Kosaraju: 3:13

I never was like, oh my God, I have to go to this class, and that's one thing that I really loved about it.

Eashan Kosaraju: 3:18

My other favorite class, understandably, was AP Computer Science A, which taught me the coding language of Java. I knew Python even before I took this class for about two years. But one thing that I noticed was that in AP Computer Science, one of the biggest ideas is that you need critical thinking, so you're trying to apply code to solve problems. It can be something really easy, like printing out a pattern that looks like a triangle with letters, for example, or maybe making a money counter or something like that that works digitally, but it's really translating your ideas that you have in your head to writing that code. That made that class so interesting and once again I had a phenomenal teacher in that class who prepped us really well for the end of course exam and he really made class fun by telling us things like stories, anecdotes, and really it brought out the fact that computer science was something I'm really passionate about and something that I'm going to keep exploring in the next few years of high school and throughout college.

Amber Ivey: 4:11

Yeah, you definitely put a smile on my face. They hear you talking about AP or advanced placement, which for some people, they may not know what that means. What does it mean in the simple terms?

Eashan Kosaraju: 4:20

So basically, at college there's like introductory classes. There'll be general chemistry, for example, and classes that you have to take. So some of those classes you can actually finish them in high school by taking them through the college board's advanced placement program. They are challenging and they're much more challenging than regular classes, and I found that myself. But one thing that I noticed in these classes was that when you get a great teacher, I think that it can be just as good as learning it in college. So there's an end of the year exam, just called the AP exam. If you do well enough on it when you go off to college, you might be able to get credit for it and that means that you take less classes in college. There's so many benefits to that, like spending less time in class and exploring the subjects that you like more, but it can also help you save thousands of dollars in college. So I think those are really some of the perks of taking AP classes in high school.

Amber Ivey: 5:05

That is such a good point because a lot of kids sometimes enter high school and then they just learn about AP, advanced placement or dual credit courses, which is very similar, where you can take a course that counts for college credit, and they can save so much money. And they don't think about taking those courses early on, because when I was your age, I think I had 14 credits going into my freshman year of college because I took those classes in high school as early as I could and took as many as we offered. So that's a very good point. I want to ask you one more fun question before we dive back into talking about all things AI. If you could have one superpower, what would it be and why?

Eashan Kosaraju: 5:39

Yeah, I'd say teleportation right now. The reason I'd say that is, I think it's something that a lot of people would say, but my specific reasoning behind teleportation is that right now there's so much going on around the country Like you can go to DC and see Congress regulating technology in itself and really congressional sessions going and being able to listen to something like that is just truly impactful and it's really empowering to start off with. But go to the other side of the country, on the West Coast in San Francisco, and you'll see Silicon Valley and literally the most revolutionizing technology, the most powerful, whether that's through open AI or companies like Google. And so I think right now I'm in summer break. I'm stuck here in Ohio. Cleveland's a great place, but if I could choose a place to spend my summer, it would be in either DC or down in San Francisco, because that's really where my heart is at and the passion that I have for technology and I'm sure you will have an internship and you will be here in no time, for sure.

Amber Ivey: 6:35

We definitely welcome you in the DC or DMV area, for sure. So let's talk about all things AI. You started this podcast to increase AI literacy among high school students. Can you tell us why you think it's important for students to learn about AI?

Eashan Kosaraju: 6:47

Yeah, so I'll point out a recent study actually that I was looking at just today. I think the number was that it was 36% of Gen Z found that, looking on the future, ai has the biggest threat to their jobs and that's what they're most worried about when it comes to AI. I think that's particularly important because even people nowadays that are just entering the workforce, or people that are in their mid-30s, 40s and 50s, are still worrying that AI is going to take their jobs. So I get that it's scary to think about what this technology might look like 30, 40 years down the line when people are in the middle of their careers, but for Gen Z, that's like five, 10 years down the line, and that's what seems scary about it, in a sense, and so I think, with that being said, having AI as a skill and knowing what's out there in that field is really what can push you ahead.

Eashan Kosaraju: 7:34

One person on my podcast, for example, said I don't think AI is ever going to take your job, but you're someone that has the skill of AI. It's going to push you forward. You're definitely not going to lose your job in that case. I think that's one thing that really resonates with the entire goal of the podcast in itself, because I want to educate everyone about AI and because I think knowing that knowledge is exactly what's going to allow you to explore the field further. So let's say we talk about some interesting technology on the podcast. Trying it out yourself and seeing the capability that it has is really what's going to show you how diverse this field is and how you can even use AI in your own daily lives.

Amber Ivey: 8:11

You hit on so many nuggets. I also recognize the podcaster in you, so you're doing an amazing job in this interview for one. And you're right. I agree 100%. I don't think we're going to get to AGI anytime soon, which is like the AI that can think and things like that. But I do think you're right. If you are using these technologies, trying it out, you'll be better off than a person who's not Just like people. During when the internet first came out in my day and age, that was like the biggest thing that was coming out and people were scared of it. The same way, the folks who used it are still around. A lot of the companies that didn't. They no longer exist, so you don't want to be a company that doesn't exist, so I really appreciate that. One thing you said is that you heard that from a guest, but if you also had a lot of amazing guests on your podcast, can you tell me about one of your favorite interviews and why it was so special? And it doesn't need to be mine, I'm okay with that.

Eashan Kosaraju: 8:57

I think it was the guest that said this that I found most impactful. His name is Mohan Gulati, and right now he's running his own company somewhere in Canada called Thinker AI. It's an AI service that optimizes your workflow. It's supposed to save you time and also many of the tedious things that companies have. He's trying to save them time with that by finding them an AI solution, but he's also creating AI courses for business leaders, for example. So he himself is working to not only use AI but also use it to help other people through courses.

Eashan Kosaraju: 9:28

The reason I found his interview one of the most impactful for myself is that he explains things in such a simple way. In a lot of the interviews it almost seems like a loop, for example, and for the viewers who aren't necessarily well-versed in AI, you could get lost in that. But I think what he did so well is that he was able to be on point the whole time. He can explain from step to step to step, and that made it so clear. And then, even when I was asking follow-up questions, for example, it was really easy to connect with the points that he was making. So it seemed like a genuine interview as opposed to something where I was just looking at questions, for example.

Amber Ivey: 10:09

That's amazing and, like I said to you a few minutes ago, I think you're also doing the same thing. So I just really appreciate how I've seen even your skills develop from when I first joined on your podcast I'm even seeing some of that and when I've watched your growth through it. That's amazing work and it's a credit to you for, like you said, when you do something over and over again, you're just going to get better at it. So back to being a part of AI. Folks can do that better Public speaking, speaking more you get better. So thank you for calling both of those things out and everyone check out that podcast. I'll make sure to drop it in the show notes. Thank you, so share one surprising thing you've learned about AI from doing your podcast and talking to all these interesting people.

Eashan Kosaraju: 10:40

There's a lot of things that I'll find surprising, but I think one thing that was really impactful, that I found surprising was that AI doesn't necessarily have to be something that people are scared of. So the recent report by the Stanford HII Index and the person that told me about this was actually the research manager of Institute for Human Centered Artificial Intelligence but, yeah, he told me that he was specifically looking at Tesla, for example, and automated driving services and one thing that was really surprising in our discussion that came up was that AI can lead to many cybersecurity challenges Phishing, for example, when you're telling people certain things like, oh hey, this is a great opportunity that's out there, but it really it's some. Ai that's just a scammer at the end. Ai that's just a scammer at the end. And I think that's one thing that I find really surprising, because the prevalence of those scammers themselves that are trying to use AI technology for some malicious practices is just growing day by day, and that's one area that I think should certainly be regulated as we go on into the future.

Amber Ivey: 11:36

I definitely agree. I don't know if I talked to you about this, but my voice is trained in the AI and now they have voice recognition in other areas. People have been using voice recognition to like pretend like they're kidnapping people and things like that, and also like attacking through their phishing attacks, like you were saying, to be able to get someone to click on something or think it's someone like that. Threat is really high and I agree, regulation should definitely happen there for sure. So are you ready to play a quick game? Yeah, it's called Tech Trivia and trivia, and I'll ask you a few questions about AI or technology and you have to try to answer as quickly as you can. Are you ready? Yeah, and kids at home make sure you're also listening and trying to play along. Okay, which president had the first executive order on AI?

Eashan Kosaraju: 12:17

President Biden.

Amber Ivey: 12:19

Yes, and the crazy part is you mentioned it earlier so I was like he'll get that one, he'll be fine. Okay, question number two name at least two different coding languages that kids can use.

Eashan Kosaraju: 12:31

Okay, scratch, and second one's hard. We can go with Python.

Amber Ivey: 12:39

Okay, python, they could definitely use that. I was thinking scratch and codeorg, just because they focus on kids. But good answer either way. Last question what does the acronym LLM stand for?

Eashan Kosaraju: 12:53

Large language model.

Amber Ivey: 12:55

Very good job. See, they weren't too hard. And what is a large language model really quickly for in a way that a kid can understand.

Eashan Kosaraju: 13:02

Sure. So the way that these large language models are trained is you might give a million data samples. That's what companies like OpenAI do. You'll throw just general text out there, like articles from the New York Times, for example, from the Washington Post, and you'll give it to this model that reads through them, understands what's going on, and it really understands the English language in and of itself and the way that it works. In addition to learning the language, it also learned a lot of general knowledge, and that's exactly why, if you use ChatGPT, for example, and GPT-4, when you ask it a question, you might be wondering why is it giving you an answer? That's because, behind the scenes, it's read millions and millions of articles and newspapers and seen pictures and things like that, so it knows exactly what it's thinking. It's like a human, for example, that's read the news forever and it gives the same type of answers.

Amber Ivey: 13:50

Very good explanation. I really appreciate that. So some of the kids will be playing with those things or using other different technologies. Back to studies. I was just reading a study earlier today that basically said that AI adoption for mostly teens, so 14 and older, has went up substantially. So I guess at the beginning, when ChatGPT came out, it was like 11%. Now it's around 30 something percent and people are predicting it to be 80% by the end of the year. When they speak of AI, they're talking about large language models, so it'll be interesting how kids continue to adopt and use large language models as well as other AI. But a lot of folks don't know how to do this or where to start. I know you actually have introductory AI classes that you offer online. What do you teach and how do you get students to listen and hear? What are some of your techniques?

Eashan Kosaraju: 14:35

So the materials that we have out right now for Empower with AI that's what it's called are basically just introductory AI content. So you're talking about things like LLMs, generative AI, just AI in general, machine learning, deep learning these are all just, I guess, terms. So there's a quizlet out there, for example, that I created, where students can go in and really see what these terms themselves mean and give themselves more knowledge about AI. Aside from that, I'm working on uploading lectures. So there's a first introductory lecture that's out there, okay, and that one basically just explores AI and why it's of significance.

Eashan Kosaraju: 15:08

Goldman Sachs report found that AI could impact 350 million jobs by the year 2050 or somewhere around that number, and it's scary to think about a lot of people in the job sector and Gen Z specifically, because that number is going to keep growing and by 2050. So that's another factor, and so I think that was something that was really notable. But another area that we explore is how exactly is AI being used in society? There's things like autonomous vehicles, there's chatbots, I mean, there's even deepfakes out there. That's not something that's good, but there's one diagram that if anyone visits the website, they can view in the first lecture. It's literally like a hundred different ways that you can use AI and that it's already being used out in the public. And that's the first lecture.

Eashan Kosaraju: 15:52

The second one really focuses around why Gen Z should care about AI. So why is it important and what issues is Gen Z facing from this technology and what can it learn? And then, from then onwards, I really hope to look more into exploring these LLMs, for example. I know that one big issue with using LLMs in school is that it is academic dishonesty in the majority of places, which is why school districts like, for example, the New York City School District and the Los Angeles Unified School District both have taken action to ban any usage of AI. But I think there's going to be educational tools that come out in the near future and there's probably some that are out here already, and these educational tools can really help students learn. For example, khanmego is one tool that Khan Academy is promoting that uses AI and it really teaches students. So I think exploring tools like that that can also benefit students' education is something that I hope to do in future lectures and explore.

Amber Ivey: 16:43

I can't wait to continue to follow you in your lectures and for folks who are listening, we'll definitely link those in the show notes. You're also involved in something called Encode Justice. It's a youth-powered movement for human-centered AI. Can you explain what Encode Justice does and also just explain for human-centered AI? Can you explain what Encode Justice does and also just explain what human-centered means?

Eashan Kosaraju: 17:00

Yeah. So first I'll just explain what human-centered means. When you have AI technology, it can be used for a large variety of purposes, and that's the theme that's been recurring, I guess, in this podcast interview. It can be bad and it can be good. So human-centered means all the technology that you develop is there to really benefit humans. It shouldn't be there to harm them.

Eashan Kosaraju: 17:19

And encode justice really uses the words to encode injustice as a motto. You're trying to encode justice into the technology itself. You want to build safety and trustworthiness in AI technology. What that means is, when someone is using that technology, they should know that it isn't going to put them in danger. They should know that the data they're providing these models with is going to be safe. It's not going to go out into the hands of someone that can use it to hack them, for example, and that's the whole goal of Encode Justice. Some of the work that we do, for example, revolves around publishing legislative memos. That's one thing that the Encode Justice chapter organization was doing recently, where each state so there's Ohio, there's New York, California and there's many chapters that Encode Justice has Each chapter looked into the AI legislation that its own state was passing.

Eashan Kosaraju: 18:06

For example, in Ohio there's this bill called IT-17, and it aims to safeguard privacy. Basically, one thing here is that, apart from safeguarding privacy, it also works to assure that when AI technology is being used, it's disclosed. So let's say something is generated by AI. You have to say that it is generated by AI, and that's particularly important when we come on to election season, because there's been videos of President Biden surfacing where in New Hampshire, in the primary elections, he was saying if people voted in the primaries, they couldn't vote in the presidential election.

Eashan Kosaraju: 18:37

Now, obviously that's something that's false, but I mean it's scary that AI technology can make his voice seem that realistic. And although this time it might have been something that was quite obvious, in the future it could be something that really people don't know what's right or wrong and what's true. So in bad occasion AI can become really harmful, and so it's preventing the usage of things like that. That bill, IT-17, follows on. And coming back to ENCODE Justice, really a lot of work that ENCODE Justice revolves around is looking at these bills, but also giving policy recommendations to congressional legislators based on some of the mishaps that have been happening.

Amber Ivey: 19:11

Thank you for going into detail on what you all do at Encode Justice. I do want you to break down one term you use, which was legislative memos. Can you break down both legislative and the memos to explain to folks who may not have ever heard those words before?

Eashan Kosaraju: 19:25

Yeah, there's three branches of the government there's executive, judicial and legislative. The legislative branch is Congress, so you have the House and the Senate, and they pass a lot of bills that pertain to the American people. A bill could be something that says, hey, butter shouldn't be used in kids' school launches, or things like that. I know that's what Ohio itself saw recently, actually, which is why I use it as an example, and it could be as simple as that, and that's what legislative is. It's something that pertains back to the work that Congress is doing. Now, memo is it's kind of like a piece of information that you have. It details things that are happening. It's a piece of information that focuses around what Congress can do and what state legislators can do to make AI safer.

Amber Ivey: 20:05

Thank you so much. I wanna share more about some of the things you've done about your life, and we do it in a way that's called two truths and a dream. What you're gonna do is you're going to tell us two facts about your life and one dream you had as a little kid, and myself and the audience are going to try to figure out which one is a dream. Try not to use your bio as much as possible so I can participate. Are you ready?

Eashan Kosaraju: 20:27

Okay, I spent the first eight days of my life in the ICU and it was a lot of the medical technology and emerging technology back in 2008 when I was born. That actually really helped me when I was a little baby. The second thing is my favorite food is pizza and I eat it on a really frequent basis, and then I actually do a lot of medical research at multiple health care institutions right now.

Amber Ivey: 20:51

Interesting. Okay, so the first is in an ICU for eight days and medical technology really helped your life when you were a small kid entering the world as a human. The second one is you like pizza and you eat it way too often. And the third is you're doing medical research with folks. This is hard because I believe all three. The piece of, when you kind of lit up about at first I thought that was going to be a throwaway, so I was like maybe he threw that in there to trick me, but maybe he actually does like pizza. And then the medical piece, because you have so many people you interview, I actually could believe that that's something you're interested in. Plus, you said earlier about the medical technology piece coming up. So, kids, hopefully you're at home also doing some critical thinking. I'm going to guess the dream is pizza. The dream is pizza. Ah, well done, thank you for doing that. But before we go, do you have any advice for kids who want to learn more about AI and get involved in technology?

Eashan Kosaraju: 21:44

Yeah, I'll say this. I think watching podcasts like the one that you have, and even the All Things AI podcast, is a great way to start. A lot of these episodes, like the one we started with, really break AI down to the grain that it is. I look at knowledge like a tree, so if you're someone that's interested in AI, learn the foundations first, whether that be through listening to something like podcasts, exploring flashcards out there or just reading news articles. Once you learn that, I think, look at the different branches of AI. There's science and technology, there's space, there's government finance. There's so many ways that you can use the technology. So once you learn the basics of it, learn how it can be applied in many different ways. So read articles, watch podcast episodes and just check out any free resources that are available on the internet. They're of great help.

Amber Ivey: 22:30

Thank you so much for joining us today, , and thank you for all the listeners who are tuning in. Don't forget to subscribe to the A-African Kids.