Google is to revamp its most popular products with children in mind as it works to make the web even more "fun and safe" for a new generation of technology-savvy under-12s.
Pavni Diwanji, vice-president of engineering responsible for leading the new initiative, said there is a "push" to adapt products such as the search engine to a younger market. Saying children already have technology in schools and at home, she said the company's approach would be "simply to see to it that the tech is used in a better way".
In an interview with USA Today, she suggested products including YouTube and Chrome would be re-examined to see how they would be a better fit for children.
She said the project was inspired in part by "the big motivator inside the company [that] everyone is having kids", as well as her own daughter, who was surprised when she Googled "trains" and found a timetable rather than her favourite Thomas the Tank Engine.
She said: "We want to lay the foundation right, and then make sure every single part of Google is great for kids. They are the future, so why not give them the tools to let them create it?"
The company will now work to develop child-centric products in a designated Kids' Studio at its California headquarters, where the offspring of employees are encouraged to test out new ideas.
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