Don't Build AI Without Us - A Youth Manifesto

A Youth Manifesto for AI That Creates Opportunity by EY Foundation's Youth Voice Forum

12 August 2026, London, UK

Artificial intelligence is increasingly shaping how young people learn, work, find information, apply for opportunities and think about their futures. That creates enormous possibilities. AI and emerging technologies could make learning more accessible, help people navigate education and careers, open up access to information and support, and create new routes into employment.

But technology does not create fairer opportunities automatically. Who gets access to it? Who understands how to use it? Whose experiences inform how it is designed? What happens when it gets something wrong? And, perhaps most importantly, are the people whose lives will be affected by these technologies involved in shaping them?

These are some of the questions at the heart of the AI and Social Mobility Challenge Prize, delivered by EY Foundation and Social Tech Trust, in partnership with the Social Mobility Commission, and supported by Microsoft, HSF Kramer, EY, Fieldfisher and LinkedIn.

The Challenge Prize is supporting ventures using AI and emerging technologies to improve access to education, skills, employment and opportunity for young people from lower socio-economic backgrounds. As part of the programme, we also wanted to make sure that young people's perspectives were not separate from the conversation about innovation, but part of it. 

What do young people want from AI? 

EY Foundation's Youth Voice Forum brings together young people to share their experiences and perspectives and influence work that affects young people's futures. As part of the Challenge Prize, Youth Voice Forum members were invited to consider a simple question: What do young people want from AI and emerging technologies that aim to improve opportunity? 

Members shared their views on the principles they thought should guide AI, the issues that matter most to them, and the questions they believe people building technology should be able to answer. Their contributions have been brought together in Don't Build AI Without Us: A Youth Manifesto for AI That Creates Opportunity. 

The manifesto is not intended to be another technical framework for AI. It is a perspective from young people who are already experiencing the effects of these technologies and will live with the decisions being made about them today. Its message is clear: if technology is being designed to create opportunities for young people, young people should have a meaningful role in shaping it. 

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The Manifesto 

Why this manifesto exists 

Artificial intelligence is already shaping how young people learn, work, apply for opportunities and understand the world. Yet young people are too often treated as users of technology rather than partners in deciding how it should work. 

This manifesto brings together our views on the AI we want: technology that expands opportunity, respects people and is designed with those who will live with its consequences. 

It is a challenge for founders, funders, and decision-makers to build AI with young people, not simply for them.

Our principles 

We believe AI must create opportunity, not deepen inequality. AI should help people discover, access and succeed in education, employment, and everyday life. If your product only works for people who already have money, confidence, strong digital skills, or professional networks, it reinforces the very barriers it claims to solve. Opportunity should not depend on privilege.

We want AI to be accessible, understandable, and usable by everyone. Access means more than making a tool available. People need affordable technology, inclusive design, clear guidance and the skills to use AI safely and confidently, including support that reflects disability, neurodivergence and different backgrounds. If these things are not considered, then it may not be truly accessible.

We believe bias must be identified, challenged, and reduced, not simply acknowledged. AI can reproduce unfairness hidden in data, systems, and past decisions. Builders must test who benefits, who may be excluded, and whether the product treats people differently because of their identity, circumstances, or lack of privilege. It is not enough to simply say bias exists.

We want technology to support people, not replace them. AI should reduce repetitive work, make systems easier to use, and create more space for learning, creativity, and human judgement. Efficiency must not come at the cost of livelihoods, meaningful work, or the human support people still need.

We believe young people must help shape AI from the beginning. Young people should not be invited only after a product has been built. We should be involved in defining the problem, testing the product, identifying harms and deciding what good outcomes look like. Our feedback must be able to change the final design.

We want privacy, safety, and honesty to come before speed and profit. People should know what data is collected, how it is used, and who can access it. Strong safeguards are especially important for younger and vulnerable users. AI should acknowledge uncertainty and mistakes rather than presenting unreliable information with confidence.

We believe AI should strengthen learning, creativity, and critical thinking. It should broaden perspectives, help people understand difficult ideas and improve how tasks are completed without doing all the thinking for them. Young people need guidance on ethical use so that AI becomes a tool for growth rather than dependence.

We want people to understand and challenge important AI decisions. When AI affects recruitment, education, finance or access to services, people should be told when it is being used, how the decision was reached, and what they can do if it is wrong. No one should be trapped by a decision they cannot question.

If you are building AI for young people, protect human connection and choice. Do not force AI into every part of life or blur the line between a tool and a person. Avoid language or features that encourage unhealthy emotional dependence. People should be able to choose human support and interaction where it matters.

We believe impact should be measured by people's lives, not only by growth or efficiency. Founders must be able to show, with evidence, whether their technology has genuinely improved access, fairness, confidence, and opportunity. They should also consider the wider social and environmental costs of building and running AI, rather than passing those costs on to others.

Five questions every founder designing AI solutions for young people should be able to answer:

1. What are the risks if our AI gets something wrong, who is most likely to carry those risks, and what have we done to reduce them? 

2. Can someone without existing privilege genuinely access, understand and use this product? 

3. Can users understand how AI is being used and question or challenge important outputs or decisions that affect their opportunities? 

4. How have young people helped shape this product, and what changed because of their involvement? 

5. How will we know this technology has genuinely improved opportunities rather than simply increased efficiency or profit? 

The future we want 

We are hopeful about what AI can become. We want a future where technology opens doors instead of quietly closing them; where people work alongside AI without losing their voice, judgement or humanity; and where opportunity is shaped by talent and effort rather than access to privilege. 

That future will not appear automatically. It must be built deliberately, honestly and with young people at the table. 

Do not build the future around us. Build it with us. 

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Through the AI and Social Mobility Challenge Prize, these questions will continue to be part of the conversation with ventures developing new technologies for education, skills and employment.