An AI assistant for working parents

Updated 16 September 2026. Written by the team behind Anna.

Start with the point where work and home collide

The difficult part of a working parent's week is often the handover between two plans. A school email arrives during a meeting. A pickup time changes after the work calendar is full. A form needs a reply before you have had time to read the attachment. An AI assistant can help organise information that is already arriving, but it needs the sources and the household context you choose to connect. Start with one recurring problem rather than trying to automate the whole week. School dates, consent deadlines, and pickup arrangements make a useful first set because you can check them against the original notices.

Separate the information from the decision

Anna follows connected sources and helps turn family information into tasks and calendar events. That makes the request easier to find, but it does not make every decision for you. A calendar overlap might need a partner's agreement, a conversation with work, or a different transport plan. Ask for the information you need, then make the decision with the people involved. If an event is proposed, check its details. Saved approval rules can allow matching events to be added automatically, so also check what rules you have chosen. Neither automatic capture nor a clean-looking calendar is a guarantee that every detail is correct.

Give the next step a time

A form due Friday is easy to postpone if Friday is the only date attached to it. Decide when you will review it and ask Anna for a reminder at that time. The due date alone does not create a reminder. Keep the submission deadline separate from the school event the form relates to. If you are waiting for your partner's answer, make that visible too. This keeps the task from sitting on a list that looks organised while the practical work remains undefined. A useful plan says what needs doing next, who will do it, and when they intend to look at it.

Prepare messages without losing review

Anna can draft emails and send them from supported connected mailboxes after you approve the message. Use that for a school reply, a question about an appointment, or a request for a missing detail. Read the actual draft before approving it. Check the recipient, the child’s name, the date, and any attachment. A message being prepared is not the same as it being sent, and being sent is not proof the other person has agreed. If a change affects today's childcare, use your normal direct channel to confirm the arrangement rather than depending on an unanswered message.

Share the plan, not another invisible job

Adding a partner is useful when it makes ownership clearer. It should not mean one person now has to maintain the assistant for everybody else. Agree which calendar entries are commitments, which tasks are waiting for review, and which handovers need a direct confirmation. Check that your partner can reach the intended household view. A shared task list does not establish a private boundary between adults, and a visible event does not mean somebody has volunteered for it. The shared family calendar guide covers event details, subscriptions, and the difference between access and responsibility.

Use the morning brief as a check, not a verdict

A morning brief can put connected appointments and tasks beside each other before the day gets crowded. Check the chosen brief time and timezone in Settings. Delivery depends on your configured channels and available information, so the absence of a brief is not proof that the day is clear. Use the summary to spot the one item that needs a decision, then check its source if it is important. If you need a nudge before leaving work for pickup, request a separate timed reminder rather than assuming the brief will provide it.

Try the assistant against an ordinary week

During the trial, pick a few tasks you would otherwise handle yourself. Include an email with an attachment, a changed date, and a request that needs approval. Compare the results with the originals. Notice where Anna saved repeated searching and where you still needed to clarify something. Avoid judging only by how polished a response sounds. The useful test is whether the family can find and act on the right information with less repeated work. You do not need to connect everything at once or move every family process into a new tool to learn whether it fits.

What Anna does not do

Anna does not make outbound phone calls, complete purchases, or guarantee that every connected message is understood. You approve supported outgoing messages and finish purchases yourself. She cannot confirm that another adult has accepted a pickup simply because the task appears in a shared view. Keep urgent or high-consequence coordination direct. For the school-specific steps, read emails into calendar events and school emails and forms. For other kinds of family tool, use the family-assistant guide.

Questions before you start

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