Artificial intelligence is moving quickly from something we hear about in the news to something many of us encounter in everyday life.
AI can now appear when we search for information, communicate online, manage finances, use health technologies, interact with customer services or use smart devices at home.
As these technologies become more common, Europe is focusing increasingly on an important question: do people have the knowledge and skills to use AI confidently, critically and safely?
This is the idea behind AI literacy.
And it matters for every generation.
AI literacy now has a formal place within the EU AI Act, Europe's regulatory framework for artificial intelligence.
Article 4 of the Act requires organisations that provide or deploy AI systems to take measures to support the AI literacy of staff and others using AI systems on their behalf. These provisions have applied since 2 February 2025, with supervision and enforcement arrangements taking effect in August 2026.
Importantly, AI literacy is not simply about knowing which buttons to press.
European Commission guidance points towards understanding questions such as:
What is AI? How does it work? What opportunities does it offer? What are the risks? How should we interpret what an AI system produces?
The AI Act requirements themselves mainly concern organisations, providers and deployers of AI. They do not mean that every European citizen is legally required to undertake AI training.
But the wider message is clear: the ability to understand and critically engage with AI is becoming an increasingly important part of life in Europe.
The growth of AI is taking place against an existing digital divide.
The EU's Digital Decade target is for at least 80% of people to have basic digital skills by 2030.
In 2025, only 60% of people aged 16–74 had reached that level.
The difference between generations is even more striking.
Among people aged 65–74, only 33% had at least basic digital skills. Among people in the 16–24 and 25–34 age groups, the figure was around 75%.
This matters when we talk about AI.
If someone already finds online services, privacy settings or new digital tools difficult to navigate, introducing AI can create another layer of uncertainty.
What information can I safely share with a chatbot?
Can an AI-generated answer be wrong?
How do I know whether an image or message is genuine?
Could AI help me communicate with family?
Can I use it to understand health information?
What happens to the information I type into an AI tool?
These are practical AI literacy questions, and increasingly they are questions for ordinary citizens, not only technology professionals.
One of the risks in conversations about AI is making the technology sound more complicated than it needs to be.
For most people, AI literacy does not require coding or a detailed understanding of machine learning.
It can begin with much simpler skills:
The European Commission itself stresses that there is no single approach to AI literacy. Learning should take account of people's previous knowledge, experience, education and the context in which they are using AI.
For adult education, this is an important principle.
People need learning that starts from where they are.
This is exactly the challenge that AI for Seniors (AI4S) is responding to.
Co-funded through Erasmus+, AI4S works across Sweden, Ireland, Denmark and Spain to help older adults use AI with greater confidence in everyday life.
The project focuses on practical situations rather than technology for technology's sake.
Its five AI learning modules explore:
These are areas where digital technologies can have a direct impact on independence, safety and participation in everyday life.
AI4S also recognises that accessible learning depends on the people delivering it.
The project's Adult Educator Deployer Toolkit provides methods and tools to help educators teach AI, while its Inter-Generational Digital Toolkit supports younger people in helping older adults develop their digital and AI skills.
Project materials are designed around practical, senior-friendly learning, using approaches such as plain language, clear visuals and accessible formats.
The AI Act provides an important policy backdrop, but the case for AI literacy goes much further than compliance.
For an older person, understanding AI could mean being more confident when using online services.
It could mean recognising a suspicious AI-generated message.
It could mean understanding the limitations of a chatbot before relying on its health or financial information.
It could mean using technology to communicate with family or manage everyday tasks.
And sometimes it could simply mean having enough knowledge to say: I understand what this technology does, and I choose whether I want to use it.
That sense of choice is important.
Digital inclusion should not mean forcing everyone to use every new technology. It should mean giving people the knowledge and support they need to make informed decisions.
Europe has set ambitious targets for digital skills and is developing one of the world's most comprehensive frameworks for responsible AI.
But successful digital transformation cannot be measured only by how advanced the technology becomes.
It also has to be measured by who is able to participate.
As AI becomes a normal part of daily life, older adults need to be included in AI education from the beginning.
That means accessible resources, patient teaching, practical examples and opportunities to learn without assuming previous technical knowledge.
This is the role projects such as AI for Seniors can play: turning a broad European ambition for AI literacy into practical learning that people can use in their own lives.
AI literacy is becoming a basic part of digital participation. It should not have an age limit.