About the Episode
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About the Episode:
Parent Survey Finds Half of Gen Alpha Students Using AI
Gen AI and Gen Alpha: The impacts of growing up in an innovation cycle
Children’s Mental Models of Generative Visual and Text Based AI Models
Mallory sits down with one of the youngest AI creators to grace the show—eight-year-old Cora Budd, a third grader at Division Street Elementary. Together, they explore how Gen Alpha is already using AI not just for learning, but for bold, imaginative storytelling. From building entire fictional universes to designing merch and comics, Cora shows how her generation is blending creativity and technology in remarkable ways. This episode offers a glimpse into the future of AI in education, through the lens of a curious, confident third grader.
Key Takeaways
- Gen Alpha is using AI for more than homework—it's fueling imagination.
Kids like Cora use AI tools to build entire fictional worlds, design characters, and create stories and quizzes, pushing the limits of what’s possible. - AI is a creative companion, not a crutch.
Cora uses AI as a springboard for ideas, then adds her own twists—whether that’s sketching AI-generated images by hand or editing storylines herself. - Visual AI tools empower kids to explore the impossible.
From rainbow pizzas to dog proms, Cora taps into visual AI to ask for things that don’t exist—and embraces the “AI oopsies” with humor and curiosity. - Young users are already thinking critically about AI.
Cora routinely fact-checks AI-generated content, understands its limits, and advocates for fairness and accuracy in what it creates. - The next generation wants AI to feel friendly—but not replace teachers.
Cora describes AI as a personal companion, helpful during free time, but believes real human teachers are still essential in the classroom.
Episode Summary
How is Gen Alpha using AI to create—and not just consume?
According to recent research, nearly half of kids aged 7–14 are already using AI tools, and they’re not waiting for adults to figure it out first. In this episode, Mallory interviews her frequent collaborator and imaginative powerhouse, Cora Budd, who has spent the last two years co-creating a fictional universe powered by AI. From stories to quizzes, to even imagined Blossom-themed merchandise, Cora and her AI partner are building a vibrant world filled with dogs, dances, and a healthy dose of popcorn mishaps.
Cora’s Blossom universe—centered around Mallory’s dog Blossom—is a multi-species, multi-media world. AI helps them generate cartoons, create party-themed quizzes, and even develop merchandise ideas like beach sets and party supplies. Cora uses AI intuitively, often blending it with her own hand-drawn art and written stories. She’s not just consuming AI outputs—she’s revising them, remixing them, and making them her own.
What’s even more impressive is the seamless way Cora uses AI at school. While some tools are off-limits (like voice-based AI, which “freaks out the teacher”), she regularly taps into AI during free time to extend her creative work. Whether it's building comics or writing parts of the Blossom book, Cora’s use of AI in education is playful, productive, and self-directed.
What are kids learning about AI while they're learning with it?
AI isn’t just a tool for Cora—it’s a teacher, a teammate, and sometimes, a puzzle. She recognizes that it makes mistakes (her term: “AI oopsies”) and talks openly about when to laugh it off versus when to redo an output. For example, when ChatGPT gave a rainbow sneakers and rabbit ears, she giggled. But when it wrote mean-spirited dialogue between characters, she knew to delete it and rewrite.
When it comes to information-based tasks, she’s even more critical. Cora always double-checks AI’s research using Microsoft Edge and will ask the AI to cross-check itself if something seems off. She knows her stuff—especially when it comes to Greek mythology—and won’t hesitate to call out when AI gets Athena’s story wrong. Her approach is proof that Gen Alpha isn’t blindly trusting AI—they’re interrogating it.
This kind of instinctive critical thinking is rarely taught but deeply important. Cora treats AI as a “Polly Pocket”-style assistant—fun, portable, and helpful, but not infallible. And while she admits she was scared to use it at first, her confidence has grown over time. Today, she describes AI as “a personal companion,” one she feels comfortable using at school or home to spark ideas and build out her creative projects.
Should we be learning from how kids use AI?
Absolutely. What Cora brings to this conversation is more than just a cute story—it’s a roadmap for how educators, parents, and higher ed professionals should be thinking about AI integration. She’s modeling the future of responsible AI use: blending creativity, caution, and curiosity.
Cora sees herself as the one in charge when working with AI. She gives it instructions, evaluates its performance, and chooses when to accept or reject its outputs. Even more telling, she’s co-building stories with AI, like the subplot of Blossom’s prom rivalry with a dormmate named Edith. These aren't random outputs—Cora’s guiding the direction and revising the content, proving that young users can be discerning editors, not just passive recipients.
She also reflects on how AI has changed her over time. From nervous curiosity to confident creator, Cora’s journey mirrors what many educators hope to instill in their students: thoughtful engagement with technology. And importantly, she still values the human side of learning. “I wouldn’t want an AI teacher,” she says plainly. Real teachers matter. Real relationships matter. AI can help—but it can’t replace that.
Connect With Our Host:
Mallory Willsea
https://www.linkedin.com/in/mallorywillsea/
https://twitter.com/mallorywillsea
About The Enrollify Podcast Network: The Higher Ed Pulse is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you’ll like other Enrollify shows too!
Some of our favorites include Generation AI and Confessions of a Higher Education Social Media Manager.
Enrollify is produced by Element451 — the next-generation AI student engagement platform helping institutions create meaningful and personalized interactions with students. Learn more at element451.com.
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