Hillary Clinton speaks at Common Sense Media summit focused on kids and technology

Common Sense Media, an advocacy group for children and families, kicked off its first annual conference on Monday, focused on children and technology. The event is being held in San Francisco.

SAN FRANCISCO - On Monday, Common Sense Media held its Summit on America's Kids and Families. This international national conference convened advocates, youth leaders, researchers, policymakers, and a wide variety other experts to look for solutions to the most pressing issues confronting kids and families.

It was star-studded and the message urgent. But, ultimately, it's up to the voters.

The basis of the meeting: a just released unique scientific, national poll of likely voters on the state of America's children and families. The results find:

Rising prices make it harder to afford things kids need. Kids, families and the economy are linked. Elected leaders are failing young people.

Large bi-partisan agreement over the need for government to support children and families. Children's mental health is in crisis and a top challenge.

Schools do not prepare kids for a stable economic future. Less than a majority think the future will be better.

AI (Artificial Intelligence) sign on an animated screen.(Photo by JOSEP LAGO/AFP via Getty Images)

The biggest loss to children, made worse by inflation and a perceived shaky economy, was and remains, the loss of the pandemic-era Child Tax Credit. The Child Tax credit slashed the number of children in poverty.

"Kind of everybody was astonished when, indeed, it did reduce child poverty in America almost by half and then it was allowed to lapse. It was not extended," said Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times Columnist Nicholas Kristol.

Former Senator and U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton has a theory about why kids get short shrift. "I used to say it's because children don't vote. They don't take lobbyist out for drinks. They don't have political power in and of themselves. They are totally dependent on the rest of us," said Clinton.

If applied properly, one thing most likely to improve education is Artificial Intelligence, with one of the creators of it saying why. "The dream, of course, is that students can have, learners can have personalized one-on-one training on anything they want to supplement their education," said Open AI CEO Sam Altman.

I think there's pretty good evidence that A.I. can provide tools to coach kids in reading, for example, or in math to help drill them and save money," said Kristof.

But will common folk have access to it? "Part of our mission is to make really helpful AI available for free. Make this tool safely ad responsibly and broadly available. Humans are tool users and we better teach people to use tools that are gonna be out in the world," said Altman.

The founder of Harlem's phenomenally successful Harlem Children's Zone, quoting his mentor, said this: "Children do not need weak advocates. If you don't have the stomach for this fight, get out of the fight. We need people who can stand up for the children in this country," said Geoffery Canada, founder of the Harlem Children's Zone.