The first batch of Gen Beta parents is here. And they’re kind of stressed

Say hello to Gen Beta, the babies who opened their eyes in 2025 and instantly became the AI generation. These children will never know winding cassette tapes, dial-up network or the emotional damage caused by Cocomelon. They are arriving in a world where bedtime stories can be customised in three clicks and where their parents are already debating whether air purifiers count as members of the family.

Unlike us, they will grow up chatting with AI like it is a slightly overeager cousin while their millennial and Gen Z parents hover nearby trying to curate the entire experience like Michelin inspectors of childhood.

This is the generation being raised with anxiety about screens, anxiety about the climate, anxiety about plastic toys, and a surprising amount of hope. Unlike parents before, these folks are banning overstimulating cartoons, creating their own personalised stories, enforcing screen boundaries, and reinventing birthday parties so they do not end in landfills. Here is how the first batch of Gen Beta parents are shaping the future, one tiny human at a time.

Anahita N Dhondy, 35, Delhi

Gen Beta: Avram, 1-year-old

“I do not want to make AI the devil, because it is going to be part of our lives and will take over some aspects of it. The only thing I can really do is raise him to be a good human being who is respectful and grounded, the way my parents did with us even as technology kept changing. Right now I keep him away from phones as much as possible, but he still sees me work on the phone, and it is impossible to separate the two completely. So, I focus on exposure instead. He spends time with his grandparents, with my in-laws at the crèche, he comes with me to the kitchen when I have meetings, and all of these interactions help him adjust to different situations. 

Here, in Delhi, the AQI is so bad that I cannot take him to parks or gardens, which makes me feel terrible, because his lungs are still developing. But I try to follow routines, keep screen time controlled, and still be the person he can call first for anything. I want structure, but I also want to be more of a friend than our parents were to us. I am figuring it out as I go, doing my best, just like every generation before me.”

Lavanya Anand, 34, Gurgaon

Gen Beta: Anaira, 9 and a half months old

“Even though I say my child shouldn’t depend on screens, we totally depend on them. Any quick question I have, I ChatGPT for solutions: whether it’s recipes, toys, or activities for her age. So yes, we rely on it, and this generation will too. But they should know what to depend on it for—practical things, not emotional or mental well-being. That’s what we need to teach them. I want to make her socially independent, part of daily conversations and rituals, like we grew up seeing our parents do. Kids today rarely talk to real people, so I want her to talk to us, not just screens.”

Katyayni Gupta, 35, Delhi

Gen Beta: Zohraan, 4-months-old

“My poor baby is stuck between four rooms with air purifiers because he’s too young to be outside right now. We’re grateful we can think about travelling during these months, but not everyone has that choice, and it’s sad that kids can’t step out or breathe fresh air anymore. Delhi winters used to be the highlight—a time for picnics and outdoor time—but now everyone is indoors. From next year, we might try travelling during these months, but even that depends on school. Otherwise, it’s just purifiers and humidifiers.”

Jyoti Kumari, 43, Pune

Gen Beta: Shiv and Shaurya, 10-month-old twins

“As a mother of two boys, I’m very conscious about raising respectful, kind children who grow up to be real allies. We’ve all dealt with the red flags and the toxic, gaslighting boys of our generation, so I want my sons to see equality at home. Both my partner and I travel for work, and those honest conversations start here—what they watch and learn at home is what they’ll take outside. Growing up in Delhi, I’ve seen how toxicity often starts at home through what mothers, sisters, and families normalise, and I’m determined not to repeat that.

Right now, my focus is on raising readers. They’re only eight months old, but I read to them every morning and night because I want them to get used to books. We don’t look at our phones around them so they don’t think that’s their source of information. It’s a habit I picked up from my dad, who always read his newspaper and handed me the Sunday magazine.”

Rachana, 34, Hyderabad

Gen Beta: Raahi, 3 and a half months old

“I really want to avoid screen time, especially during feeding. As Raahi grows up and starts recognising bright colours, I don’t want her to associate feeding with something addictive like screens. Later, we’ll have proper, limited screen time at home. I also hope schools don’t push tablets so early—I’d prefer one that’s more rooted and balanced. Even with cartoons, I want to avoid loud, overstimulating content like Chhota Bheem or Cocomelon. I’d rather show her the simpler, low-stimulating cartoons we grew up with, even if I have to save it on a drive.”

Raj Kunkolienkar, 31, Goa

Gen Beta: Rama and Turiya, 3-month-olds

“Given how AI is now progressing, we’d probably be able to make our own cartoon series. I think more parents will end up creating personalised content for their kids. When we were growing up, people would come home selling customised Mowgli storybooks with your name in them—so that desire has always existed. Now it’s just becoming more accessible. You can already go on tools like Storybook and make your own children’s book for free. Soon, AI will animate it, add voices, put your family in it, even set it in your village or your mother tongue. Whether you want to talk about conservation, animals or your own values, I’m that parents will soon be able to spin up cartoons and stories tailored exactly to what they want their kids to learn.”

Sanna Daya Hasan, 33, Mumbai

Gen Beta: Imaan, 9-months-old

“With Gen Beta growing up in a world where everything feels so disposable, I really want to keep birthdays more sustainable for Imaan. I prefer activity-based return gifts because most plastic toys just end up in a cupboard and eventually a landfill. Their attention spans are already so compromised. Unless a toy has purpose or multiple uses, it’s wasted. So, for my daughter, I’d rather give things like Lego bricks, Magna-Tiles, craft kits, and science experiments. They last longer, they’re reused, and they actually teach them something. It feels like the least we can do in a time where parents are so conscious about climate and waste.”

Rujuta Vaidya, 35, Mumbai

Gen Beta: Lila Noor, 3-months-old

“For us, it is more important that our child is a nice, empathetic person who is considerate of the environment. We really do not have expectations beyond that. Millennials grew up with so much pressure to do well or accomplish some unfulfilled dream of their parents; I don’t wish that on her. I hope she experiences the world I am surrounded by now in some way. We are lucky to call so many creative, intelligent people our friends. I hope she has good taste. I even hope she never uses Comic Sans unless it is ironically used.

Honestly, it took me a very long time to even decide to have a kid, because every child generates so much diaper waste! Adding even one more soul to the world feels like pressure. It’s normal for new parents to want to buy cute stuff for their kid, most of which they barely need. We’ve tried to utilise many pre-loved items in the nursery. I get very annoyed about the way we treat the environment. Once you have a baby you really start looking at the world a little differently. So I hope we are better guardians of the space we occupy on the planet and I hope she is too in the future.”