Google says its Search service, Gemini chatbot and Gemini Notebook will be switched off by default in schools, which can choose whether to enable them. The announcement followed political criticism and a New York Times report that Google would turn off Search for schools that reject AI entirely.
Search and AI in schools
Google said schools would decide whether to enable the services. Its statement did not explicitly address the claim that access to Search requires the use of AI. Chris Phillips, Google’s vice president for education, told The New York Times that Search and AI are deeply integrated.
Guided Learning is coming to Classroom
Google also announced Guided Learning, a product that brings AI to Classroom. It is updating Search for schools, too: the company says AI Mode and AI Overviews will guide students through problems step by step rather than quickly providing answers to schoolwork.
Politicians criticized potential Search restrictions
US politicians criticized Google after the New York Times report. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani accused the company of trying to use its monopoly power to push AI into public schools. Senator Bernie Sanders said Google was threatening schools and called its approach extortion.
Former Federal Trade Commission Chair Lina Khan said Google’s school AI policy illustrated the danger of an unregulated monopolist controlling an essential service.
Nonprofit Common Sense Media recently rated Google’s AI Overviews an unacceptable risk. US Senators Richard Blumenthal and Josh Hawley launched an inquiry the previous month into Google’s push for AI in classrooms.
