FreshTheCat wrote:

They really should've added some sort of parental controls before the update… now if they actually make an opt-out button, it's gonna be really complicated to actually enforce it on kids…
Also, back on topic. Before they actually release the CLA, they definitely should add parental controls (specifically on <13s and any student account) because i seriously doubt that a teacher would want a student just creating a complicated 3D engine using AI when the lesson is on making a simple cookie clicker… or just blatantly cheating.

Sasha_Banks272 wrote:

Join the Studio: https://scratch.mit.edu/studios/51279727

I'm sure we've all heard the news of Scratch implementing a generative AI buddy for Scratch. This may seem useful and I agree that it's a cool concept. But this is a website for children to learn, not AI to help them. We have the Help with Scripts forum for a reason, and even backpacking scripts exists.

But not just that, If children rely too heavily on AI for generating ideas, they may not develop the skills to independently brainstorm and problem-solve. The immediate solutions offered by AI can short-circuit the essential learning process of trial and error, which is key to cultivating creativity and resilience, which is what Scratch's main goal is.. fueling imagination.

Furthermore, Creativity often stems from emotional experiences, imagination, and personal expression. AI-generated content will lack this emotional depth, potentially removing the personal connection that's integral to a child's creative growth. And we don't want that, do we?

But basically my point is that by adding AI, you're destroying the creative vision of Scratch that solely depends on a child's imagination and the trial and error factor that makes projects good.

Sasha's Updated Views

After reading some of what you guys said, I decided to add a few more things. This will be updated overtime.

1.) I do use AI pretty much almost everyday, but AI on Scratch seems very out of place and takes away from the one key charm of Scratch, that being human made-projects, human moderation, human users, etc. An AI, even in the place of just “helping” users is highly out of place.

2.) Some users said that you can just use ChatGPT if you really need help, but I disagree. As I stated in my original post, we have human resources on Scratch to help you out such as the Help with Scripts forum and tutorials. There is no need for AI to spill over into places that were always predominantly human-made.

3.) AI is expensive, and notice how Scratch Membership conveniently rolled around when the Scratch Foundation announced that they were going to be making an AI for Scratch? Just sayin'

4.) This isn't a view on AI related but it's just something I need to address. Please refrain from using AI in this post because you're going to start a flame war and that's just unnecessary and defeats the purpose of this topic. And if someone does use AI, please do not ridicule them for it, you just look like a jerk.

5.) Some AI training models have been under fire for being trained on either copyrighted material or material that it's creator didn't consent to using. How will we know if the people developing this AI for Scratch aren't using usermade projects without their consent? It's unethical regardless of whose the actual owner.

6.) AI can tend to be incorrect or hallucinate. And some AI's, like ChatGPT, really only tell you what you want to hear. And then some AI's like Gemini are really boring and have no personality and tend to just give up and redirect you to Google searches, which sucks.

7.) Kids might not understand AI boundaries because they can’t always tell the difference between facts, bots making stuff up, real people giving help, and so on. They trust the computer because “it must be right.” The AI could accidentally teach bad coding habits, misinformation, or encourage dependency. None of that matches Scratch’s mission.

8.) Scratch is supposed to be a safe sandbox, not a tech experiment. Kids come here to learn coding basics, not be beta testers for a foundation’s new AI project. Scratch Team using Scratch kids as guinea pigs for a trendy AI rollout feels morally shaky. If they wanna play with AI, cool — but don’t use children as the testing ground.

9.) Even if the Scratch Team swears “AI won’t be behind a paywall,” let’s be fr. Services cost money. AI costs SERIOUS money. Membership suddenly appearing at the SAME time isn’t a coincidence. Eventually, features get split: “Basic users get slow AI”, “Members get advanced AI help”, “Members get more AI tokens”, “Members get better project analysis”, “Members get priority moderation”… It creates a two-class system on a platform designed for kids learning to code.

cacacacabonbom wrote:

I, Nathanael Mihai (known as cacacacabonbom on Scratch), hereby declare my boycott of Scratch until February half term.

Scratch has always been a place where children and beginners can learn coding through creativity, imagination, and play. By introducing AI, the Scratch Team risks changing that safe environment into something less appropriate for underage and inexperienced users.

AI tools can overshadow the joy of learning by doing, replacing curiosity with automation. They may expose young users to ideas and technologies they are not ready to handle responsibly. Scratch should remain a community built on human creativity, not machine-generated shortcuts.

This boycott is not just about me — it is a stand for protecting the values that made Scratch special: fun, safety, and genuine learning. I urge others who care about these principles to reflect on whether AI belongs in a platform designed for children.

Signed,
Nathanael Mihai

The21stNumber wrote:

cacacacabonbom wrote:

I, Nathanael Mihai (known as cacacacabonbom on Scratch), hereby declare my boycott of Scratch until February half term.

Scratch has always been a place where children and beginners can learn coding through creativity, imagination, and play. By introducing AI, the Scratch Team risks changing that safe environment into something less appropriate for underage and inexperienced users.

AI tools can overshadow the joy of learning by doing, replacing curiosity with automation. They may expose young users to ideas and technologies they are not ready to handle responsibly. Scratch should remain a community built on human creativity, not machine-generated shortcuts.

This boycott is not just about me — it is a stand for protecting the values that made Scratch special: fun, safety, and genuine learning. I urge others who care about these principles to reflect on whether AI belongs in a platform designed for children.

Signed,
Nathanael Mihai

I think you're on the wrong discussion.

unicorseblueyfunny21 wrote:

Has anybody heard/seen the chatGPT thing with Strawberry, and a guy asked ChatGPT how many r's were in the word strawberry and it said 4, and the guy tried convincing ChatGPT that there were three. See for your self:::

STRAWBERRY

ThePlayer9 wrote:

unicorseblueyfunny21 wrote:

Has anybody heard/seen the chatGPT thing with Strawberry, and a guy asked ChatGPT how many r's were in the word strawberry and it said 4, and the guy tried convincing ChatGPT that there were three. See for your self:::

STRAWBERRY

Yeah AI have many flaws and like tweaking when asked to find a seahorse emoji

ThePlayer9 wrote:

unicorseblueyfunny21 wrote:

Has anybody heard/seen the chatGPT thing with Strawberry, and a guy asked ChatGPT how many r's were in the word strawberry and it said 4, and the guy tried convincing ChatGPT that there were three. See for your self:::

STRAWBERRY

Yeah AI have many flaws and like tweaking when asked to find a seahorse emoji

8xa wrote:

Also, let's not forget how bad AI is for the world. High energy usage, environmental racism, carbon emissions, data centres, water usage, etc…
Scratch supposedly cares about the planet as they have celebrated Earth Day anually by making studios which include statements such as:

Earth Day is an annual global celebration…
(source)

If the Scratch Team thinks that humans have the power to protect the planet then they should be doing their bit to contribute. And that should involve not using a tool that damages the environment in various ways.
If they can't remove AI fully from future plans, the Scratch Team should at least in some way prove that in some way they are able to use AI without damaging the enviroment.

knowitall1237 wrote:

DUDE… it's been a FEW DAYS since I last checked this wdym theres 92 PAGES now?!?!?!?!!

cacacacabonbom wrote:

Sasha_Banks272 wrote:

Join the Studio: https://scratch.mit.edu/studios/51279727

I'm sure we've all heard the news of Scratch implementing a generative AI buddy for Scratch. This may seem useful and I agree that it's a cool concept. But this is a website for children to learn, not AI to help them. We have the Help with Scripts forum for a reason, and even backpacking scripts exists.

But not just that, If children rely too heavily on AI for generating ideas, they may not develop the skills to independently brainstorm and problem-solve. The immediate solutions offered by AI can short-circuit the essential learning process of trial and error, which is key to cultivating creativity and resilience, which is what Scratch's main goal is.. fueling imagination.

Furthermore, Creativity often stems from emotional experiences, imagination, and personal expression. AI-generated content will lack this emotional depth, potentially removing the personal connection that's integral to a child's creative growth. And we don't want that, do we?

But basically my point is that by adding AI, you're destroying the creative vision of Scratch that solely depends on a child's imagination and the trial and error factor that makes projects good.

Sasha's Updated Views

After reading some of what you guys said, I decided to add a few more things. This will be updated overtime.

1.) I do use AI pretty much almost everyday, but AI on Scratch seems very out of place and takes away from the one key charm of Scratch, that being human made-projects, human moderation, human users, etc. An AI, even in the place of just “helping” users is highly out of place.

2.) Some users said that you can just use ChatGPT if you really need help, but I disagree. As I stated in my original post, we have human resources on Scratch to help you out such as the Help with Scripts forum and tutorials. There is no need for AI to spill over into places that were always predominantly human-made.

3.) AI is expensive, and notice how Scratch Membership conveniently rolled around when the Scratch Foundation announced that they were going to be making an AI for Scratch? Just sayin'

4.) This isn't a view on AI related but it's just something I need to address. Please refrain from using AI in this post because you're going to start a flame war and that's just unnecessary and defeats the purpose of this topic. And if someone does use AI, please do not ridicule them for it, you just look like a jerk.

5.) Some AI training models have been under fire for being trained on either copyrighted material or material that it's creator didn't consent to using. How will we know if the people developing this AI for Scratch aren't using usermade projects without their consent? It's unethical regardless of whose the actual owner.

6.) AI can tend to be incorrect or hallucinate. And some AI's, like ChatGPT, really only tell you what you want to hear. And then some AI's like Gemini are really boring and have no personality and tend to just give up and redirect you to Google searches, which sucks.

7.) Kids might not understand AI boundaries because they can’t always tell the difference between facts, bots making stuff up, real people giving help, and so on. They trust the computer because “it must be right.” The AI could accidentally teach bad coding habits, misinformation, or encourage dependency. None of that matches Scratch’s mission.

8.) Scratch is supposed to be a safe sandbox, not a tech experiment. Kids come here to learn coding basics, not be beta testers for a foundation’s new AI project. Scratch Team using Scratch kids as guinea pigs for a trendy AI rollout feels morally shaky. If they wanna play with AI, cool — but don’t use children as the testing ground.

9.) Even if the Scratch Team swears “AI won’t be behind a paywall,” let’s be fr. Services cost money. AI costs SERIOUS money. Membership suddenly appearing at the SAME time isn’t a coincidence. Eventually, features get split: “Basic users get slow AI”, “Members get advanced AI help”, “Members get more AI tokens”, “Members get better project analysis”, “Members get priority moderation”… It creates a two-class system on a platform designed for kids learning to code.

I, Nathanael Mihai (known as cacacacabonbom on Scratch), hereby declare my boycott of Scratch until February half term.

Scratch has always been a place where children and beginners can learn coding through creativity, imagination, and play. By introducing AI, the Scratch Team risks changing that safe environment into something less appropriate for underage and inexperienced users.

AI tools can overshadow the joy of learning by doing, replacing curiosity with automation. They may expose young users to ideas and technologies they are not ready to handle responsibly. Scratch should remain a community built on human creativity, not machine-generated shortcuts.

This boycott is not just about me — it is a stand for protecting the values that made Scratch special: fun, safety, and genuine learning. I urge others who care about these principles to reflect on whether AI belongs in a platform designed for children.

Signed,
Nathanael Mihai

Remove ai

unicorseblueyfunny21 wrote:

Has anybody heard/seen the chatGPT thing with Strawberry, and a guy asked ChatGPT how many r's were in the word strawberry and it said 4, and the guy tried convincing ChatGPT that there were three. See for your self:::

STRAWBERRY

move (10) steps

change x by (10)

set x to ((x position) + (10))

go to x: ((x position) + (10)) y: (y position)

Za-Chary wrote:

I sort of answered this above, but something else worth saying is that learning on your own can (sometimes) only go so far. Too much trial-and-error can lead someone to give up, and therefore never get that good feeling of learning on your own. It would be nice to have many ways to help Scratchers on this trial-and-error journey. An AI buddy can help with that.

<[AI] = [Bad]>

A_very_real_human wrote:

BOYCOTT SCRATCH FROM FEBUARY 1st TO FEBUARY 7th! NOBODY USE SCRATCH NO COMMENTING, NO REMIXING, NO MAKING PROJECTS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!

when green flag clicked
stop [ all]