What are we raising children for?

I was recently tasked at work to design a curriculum preparing young children for the age of AI.

For two weeks, I thought deeply about this. I started reading books by people who have used AI extensively and written honestly about what it did for (and to) them. I enrolled in a course by Anthropic Academy to understand what it means to be AI-fluent; the practical skills of interacting with AI effectively, efficiently, ethically and safely.

I followed people on LinkedIn and Instagram sharing their experiences, fears, excitement and frustrations about how AI has changed things. And I built my own vibe-coded apps. (Both almost ready to ship, but held back only because I am well aware of the risks of putting something irresponsibly into the world before it is ready.)

I find it all genuinely and incredibly fascinating. But throughout all of it, I find myself returning to the same question.

Before a child ever interacts with an AI, what should they first have? What needs to be already inside them?

I know it won't be technical skills. It won't be digital literacy, or coding, or knowing which AI tool to use. It will, and should be, what makes them human. Deeply and irreducibly human.

I have started building a framework around this and will be posting about it as it develops.

The question I keep starting from is this: What does it mean to be human in a world where machines can do what humans were educated to do?