Important Dates

Workshop Date: Monday, April 13-17, 2026 - Half-Day.

Location: Barcelona,  Centre de Convencions Internacional de Barcelona, in Spain.

Participant submissions due: (on or before)  February 27, 2026

Participants notified of acceptance: (on or before) March 14, 2026

C3AI: 2nd Workshop on Child-centered Interaction and Trust in Conversational AI (CHI 2026)

Where Do Trust, Design, and Evaluation Meet in Child–AI Interaction?

The second edition of the C3AI workshop focuses on understanding how trust, doubt, and critical engagement emerge in children’s interactions with AI. As children increasingly use conversational AI systems not originally designed for them, it becomes urgent to ensure interactions are ethical, transparent, developmentally appropriate, and supportive of children’s agency. This workshop examines the human factors—cognitive, emotional, social, and cultural—that shape how children interpret AI behaviour, navigate uncertainty, and develop expectations about what AI can and cannot do.

By shifting from hypothetical scenarios to real, naturalistic child–AI interactions, this edition takes a deeper look at developmental trajectories of trust. Participants will analyze age-diverse transcripts and personas to uncover how children express confidence, hesitation, critique, or curiosity across different ages and contexts. The workshop also aims to co-design developmentally sensitive evaluation metrics that can inform future child-centred, responsible AI design.

This workshop invites a diverse community of researchers, practitioners, educators, designers, and policymakers to explore topics including:

• Reviewing, adapting, or extending human-centred AI frameworks for children

• Understanding developmental differences in children’s mental models of AI

• Tailoring transparency and explainability to children’s cognitive needs

• Participatory and co-evaluation methods involving children as active contributors

• Cultural and contextual influences on children’s trust and doubt

• Developing indicators and metrics for trust, critique, transparency, and usability

• Designing AI systems that support awareness of limitations and foster healthy skepticism

• Ethical, rights-based approaches to child–AI interaction (e.g., UNCRC-aligned frameworks)

During the workshop, participants will work hands-on with organizer-provided transcripts and personas—ethically approved, age-diverse materials drawn from real studies—as well as participant-contributed cases, when time allows. Together, we will explore emotional and cognitive aspects such as agency, adaptability, misunderstanding, mutual awareness, and the evolving nature of trust. These analyses will help identify cultural and social patterns that shape children’s experiences with AI and will contribute to prototype evaluation tools aimed at supporting safer, more transparent, and developmentally aware AI systems for young users.

How to Participate

We invite you to submit a short memo or extended abstract about a project you are working on, a question you are struggling with, or an idea you would like to discuss around child–AI interaction and human-centred AI for children. Alternatively, you can submit a concise position paper that may be considered for publication.

You can choose one of the following submission types:

Submission Types

• Short papers (2–3 pages, ACM Standard Template)Present insights, empirical findings, methods, or reflections on child–AI interaction and the topics listed in the Call for Participation.

• Abstracts (300–500 words)Summarise an idea, early-stage project, or key question you would like to explore in the workshop.

• Design examples (600–800 words): Describe design concepts, prototypes, interaction scenarios, or tools related to child–AI interaction.

• Case studies

  • Abstract (300–500 words), plus

  • Supporting visuals (e.g., images or video). Case study submissions may be used as material in group activities during the workshop, subject to time constraints.

Submissions will be managed via EasyChair, and up to 30 participants will be selected based on the quality, relevance, and diversity of their submissions. Accepted submissions will be featured on the workshop website. At least one author per accepted submission must register for both the workshop and the main conference and attend the workshop in person.

Submission site: https://easychair.org/cfp/2ndC3AI

Whether you are developing AI tools that support creative expression, building platforms for inclusive learning, or studying how AI shapes children’s development, we warmly welcome your contribution.

Join us in shaping a future where AI helps children think critically, stay curious, and grow as confident, thoughtful technology users.