At the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, 150 children saw their own books published for the first time, in the largest such launch that youth publishing platform Learner Circle has held to date.
The children wrote and developed the stories themselves; AI was used only in the background production and publishing process, not in the writing or ideas. Ninety-five per cent of the children published at this event are based in the UAE. The launch is part of a global tour that also takes in the Chennai, Singapore, Frankfurt, and Sharjah book fairs. “We are preparing the next generation to be ready to handle an AI-dominated world,” said Shankar G, co-founder of Learner Circle, speaking on the sidelines of the event.
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Why writing, now
“We want children to be creative thinkers. Creative thinking will become the most wanted skill in the future,” Shankar said, warning that this it is exactly what risks being lost as AI tools take over more everyday tasks. The platform is not opposed to AI itself. “You should know how to use AI,” Shankar said, noting that Learner Circle uses AI in its own production and publishing processes to cut manual effort, while insisting the ideas behind each child’s story must stay their own.
That balance, between using AI and thinking independently of it, shaped this year’s Writathon, a separate global writing competition that drew 2,500 entries from across the UAE, with no rules on grammar or structure, ahead of the Abu Dhabi launch. “We want them to be bold enough to voice out their ideas,” Shankar said. Among the winners: Sameer Salman, 15, of Diyafah International School, first place for Fractured Realities; Faizan Shaikh, 16, of Royal Academy Ajman, second for A Psychologist’s Journey; and Renu Renjith, 15, of Indian School, Bousher, third for Echoes of a Heart that Stayed.
From idea to published book
Learner Circle runs pathways from five-day workshops to three and six-month mentorship programmes covering ideation, writing, editing and publishing, a process the platform says is designed to keep the thinking human even where AI speeds up the production side. Since 2021, it says it has worked with about 20,000 children worldwide, more than 1,000 of whom have published books. Published authors, regardless of whether they placed in a competition, are later invited to represent their work at international fairs.
Anuradha V., co-founder and COO of Learner Circle, said the Abu Dhabi launch was allowing the platform “to connect with the local community on a much deeper level,” adding that its interactive “Spin-a-Tale” activity was “proving that every child has a wonderful story to tell when given a supportive, judgment-free space.”
The Abu Dhabi showcase runs until September 18, with Learner Circle confirming its next stop at the Sharjah International Book Fair in November. “Reading and writing has to be promoted more to compete in this AI-dominated world,” Shankar said. “We would encourage more schools to participate
Source: Khaleej Times