Unacceptable Risk - What Educators and Parents Need to Know | Ep. 132

Common Sense Media says ChatGPT for teens and six additional tools are labeled “Unacceptable Risk” and what to do about it. 

First Up

Matt and Liz open on Bezzy, a satirical plush data center from the Adopt a Data Center project. Squeeze its belly and it screams with audio recorded from a real data center in a Virginia backyard.

• Adopt This Data Center Plushie and Hear Its Piercing Scream: https://tinyurl.com/5n8wsxyd 

The Rundown

TinkAI

• TinkAI Mirror: How Much Do You Push Back When You Chat with AI?: https://tinyurl.com/4a429ehd 

OpenAI Watermarking

• OpenAI will start watermarking ChatGPT's text in the EU: https://tinyurl.com/yvf38wje 

• Your Next Great Read Might Be Certified 'Organic': https://tinyurl.com/4e2ua27p 

• ChatEDU Ep. 131, on Anthropic's watermarking: https://tinyurl.com/3husmshv 

Higher Ed Desk

• Cambridge University opposes Turnitin AI training plans: https://tinyurl.com/m7wenszu  

• New Research: AI Answers Decide Which Schools Prospects Choose as Consideration Sets Continue to Shrink: https://tinyurl.com/2f36x2xx 

• Academics must resist LinkedIn's enshittification: https://tinyurl.com/28tjkahj 

Math to Biohub

• Weeks after claiming AI cracked 90-yr-old maths puzzle, OpenAI drops the mother lode on mathematicians: https://tinyurl.com/23fzwx65 

• The Economist on the mass production of mathematics: https://tinyurl.com/4pkma84r  

• U.S. government, Google join Zuckerberg-backed Biohub in $1.8 billion push for AI biology data: https://tinyurl.com/9sfzay5x 

"Gen Alpha Can't Read"

• Trends & Tips: "Gen Alpha Can't Read": https://tinyurl.com/4bu5kz2e 

• We're Entering the New Dark Ages, by James Marriott (book): https://tinyurl.com/yrxvmwbu 

• We're Entering the New Dark Ages (Interesting Times, YouTube): https://tinyurl.com/3w2t7cuy 

Proactive Adaptations

• AI Spurs College Board Redesign of 2 AP Courses: https://tinyurl.com/2ba2yxv9 

• GDC 2026 State of the Game Industry Report: https://tinyurl.com/yc8cm8wb 

• How I changed teaching after AI managed to do all my homework assignments: https://tinyurl.com/5dpshrhk 

• AI in Education Newsletter (Sid's Research Community): https://tinyurl.com/3nep4bth 

Beneath the Surface

Matt and Liz discuss AI movies, forged cartoon signatures, a teen stranded via AI hiking advice, and Claude reporting a cold case. They review Common Sense Media's risk ratings versus Khanmigo, offering four action items for families and schools.

• "Not safe for kids": advocacy group urges OpenAI to keep teens off ChatGPT: https://tinyurl.com/mrxv6mm7 

• Common Sense Media AI risk assessments: https://tinyurl.com/ym5b9yva 

• ChatGPT is adding real cartoonists' signatures to fake New Yorker cartoons: https://tinyurl.com/54zx9vx7 

• Teen Left Stranded on a Cliff After Letting AI Plan Hike: https://tinyurl.com/4f27p225 

• Investigating unintended model actions in our evaluations and internal use: https://tinyurl.com/432sw647 

• Matt and Liz go to the movies with AI and it’s not pretty

Bright Byte

Anthropic reports 68,000 Ghanaian teachers use curriculum-aligned Claude tools via PlayLab and the Ministry of Education. Future deployments include Brazil, Nigeria, Rwanda, and India; outcome data remains unavailable.

• Anthropic says Claude lesson-planning tools are reaching 68,000 teachers in Ghana: https://tinyurl.com/3jh9mupu 

Announcements

• Register for SCSU’s Emerging Technology Forum: https://tinyurl.com/ab9ycu78

• Register for our Winter Microcredential and upcoming AI events: https://tinyurl.com/43jwkwyp

• Purchase Learning They'll Love - Dr. Elizabeth Radday on Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/22t9hz77

• Check out our middle / high school Student AI Literacy course: www.skills21.org/ai/learnai

• Address Screen Time concerns: skills21.org/ai/screenshift

• Read From Panic to Proof: A Data-Driven Approach to Screen Time (ASCD Educational Leadership): https://tinyurl.com/4pwdu68

Sponsor

The National Center for Next Generation Manufacturing: Bridging Education and Industry to Build Tomorrow’s Technical Workforce- https://www.nextgenmfg.org