Phones, apps, and AI have become constant companions for our children and for us as parents and caregivers. They suggest what we and our children should do, what to watch, and how to respond. Children, in particular, are more prone to following screens for guidance and comfort, learning habits and shaping emotions based on what machines predict, not from the people around them. In a busy and highly distracted generation, parents and adults unconsciously delegate the work of parenting to gadgets, as they themselves get pulled into the same systems – losing hours to notifications and recommendations, missing crucial moments of noticing their struggling child, connecting with family, or even making thoughtful decisions about their own lives.

Our children grow up dependent on devices for guidance and comfort. They struggle to manage emotions, make solid and well-thought out choices, and understand others deeply. Families pass these patterns down without realizing it. This is not a subtle change. It’s a change that shapes how we connect, how the next generation grows, and what will become of humanity in the next decade.

The stakes are real. When machines replace human care and guidance, we risk raising a generation defined by algorithms instead of human judgment, empathy, and wisdom; generation of digital zombies. Understanding these forces is urgent so that children can grow with humans at the center of their development and so that families can reclaim the guidance that technology has quietly taken away.