AI and Safety

How Byte, the AI tutor, works, what it can’t do, and how we keep it safe.

Byte is an AI, not a person. The lessons are written and checked by people. The optional "Ask Byte" chat is answered by an AI model (Claude, made by Anthropic) and the app always labels it as AI.

What's written by people, and what's made by AI

Lessons, games, quizzes and explanations: written by people and fixed in the app. The same for every child.
Ask Byte answers: written by AI in the moment. They can be wrong, so the app teaches kids to check facts ("Brain ON").
Natural voice: computer-generated speech reading the text aloud.

Safety measures

Ask Byte is off until a parent turns it on, and each child can be switched off separately.
Every answer is labelled "Byte · AI", and the chat always reminds children that Byte is an AI that can make mistakes.
Byte is instructed to use kid-friendly language for the child's age band and to avoid scary, violent, adult or dangerous topics, pointing children to a trusted grown-up instead.
If a child seems upset or unsafe, Byte tells them to talk to a parent, teacher or another trusted adult right away. Byte is not a counsellor, friend or emergency service.
Byte never asks for personal information and reminds children not to share it. The app also stops children from sending things that look like an email address, phone number, home address, password or card number.
For homework, Byte gives hints and guiding questions instead of finished answers, so children keep thinking for themselves.
The AI provider runs its own safety systems, and answers it refuses are replaced by a gentle message.
Daily limits keep sessions short, and the app suggests a break every 20 minutes.
Games never use chance or purchases: points come only from right answers, and live races use made-up names with no chat.
No companionship features: Byte doesn't pretend to have feelings, doesn't encourage children to keep chatting, and doesn't send messages on its own.

Report a problem with a lesson

Every lesson card, game and quiz question has a 🚩 button. Anyone can report something that is wrong, confusing or not OK for kids. We review reports every week and fix or remove the content.

Report an answer

Every answer from Byte has a Report button (🚩). A report sends us that one question and answer so we can review it and improve the safety rules. Reports are kept 90 days. You can also email hello@ponderoo.app.

If a child is in danger

Ponderoo can't help in an emergency. Call your local emergency number. In the US you can call or text 988 (Suicide & Crisis Lifeline). In Denmark, children can call BørneTelefonen on 116 111. In Spain, the ANAR helpline for children is 900 20 20 10.