How Children Use Smart Speakers In the Home

In our ongoing series on the findings from NPR and Edison Research's "Smart Audio Report," some of the most interesting data concerns how kids are using smart-speaker technology.

Across households, smart speakers are changing family tech use and how family members interact with one another. NPR surveyed over 900 smart-speaker owners, and of those with respondents with children, the report found that 73 percent let kids use the technology.

The report also found that 41 percent of early mainstream users (those who bought a smart speaker in the past year) with children talk to their smart speaker during meal times, compared to only 17 percent of first adopters (who've owned a smart speaker for a year or more). This speaks to some evolving usage trends as families get used to this new tech interface in the house and embedded in their daily lives.

As for how children are using these voice-activated digital assistants, 55 percent of parents said their kids ask the speaker to play music, 44 percent said kids ask their speaker questions, and 40 percent command their speaker to tell a joke. Some other kid uses include playing a game (28 percent) and helping kids with their homework (25 percent), along with reading short stories and audiobooks and connecting with people both inside and outside the home.

For more on this topic, check out our smart-speaker demographic breakdown and our look at data on usage trends from the Smart Audio Report. Check back on Monday as the series concludes with a focus on how smart-speaker use is reducing screen time spent on other devices.

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