Fierce backlash erupts after Google tried to force its AI into school classrooms

Résumé détaillé

Google unveiled plans earlier this month to block access to its search engine for schools that opt out of its AI tools

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Communities have slammed Google’s plan to block Search access to schools that opt out of its artificial intelligence tools.

​Google announced the change earlier this month amid a fierce battle over the prevalence of technology in schools across the United States. A company statement said that A.I. and Search tools will be switched off on K-12 student accounts by default in 2027, with administrators needing to manually opt in.

​While standalone A.I. tools such as Gemini can be toggled on or off, there is no available version of Google Search without A.I. features. That means schools must block Search tools entirely if they want their students not to have access to any A.I. features.

​“Parents are angry,” California parent Jodi Carreon told NPR. “They're very angry.”

​In Cambridge, Massachusetts, frustration over the change - announced on November 3 - manifested in the form of a protest outside Google’s office.

​Matt Bach, president of the Massachusetts Teachers Association, told NBC10 Boston that educators don’t want A.I. at all.

​“Many parents and education workers want to be free from A.I. in the classroom, and Google is using its monopoly status to say, ‘If you don't use our A.I., you don't get to use our search engine,’” he said.

Speaking to the same outlet, ​Jessica Tang, president of the American Federation of Teachers Massachusetts, added: “We shouldn't have to guess and wonder, ‘Well, I don't know, if my student is in school and using these technologies, where is the data going?’”

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