Google faced the ire of educators and parents earlier this week when it announced a new AI policy for K-12 schools. Google said it developed its new approach to give schools more control, but early reports also suggested that Google would block access to search for schools that did not want to use AI. Google didn’t see the backlash coming, but now that it’s here, the search giant is clarifying what exactly its new policy means and what’s changing.
The gist of the new policy, according to Google’s blog post, is that schools using Google apps will have to opt-in to its AI products in the future. Since the company considers search as part of its AI portfolio (Gemini, Gemini Notebook, Gemini in Classroom, and Search), schools must activate it specifically for logged-in student accounts.
When Google revealed its new policy, the company’s vice president of education spoke exclusively to The New York Times, which interpreted the situation as Google “turning off search” if schools reject AI. This has a dire vibe, but it’s probably not the most accurate way to describe how Google’s AI education system will work. Google’s approach may not be entirely altruistic, but it technically gives schools more choice and control than they have now. Rather Google Turning off search will leave schools make that decision based on your internal AI policies.
The company clarified in a tweet that it will allow schools to disable Gemini apps while leaving search on for students. If you don’t want any AI, you can leave it all out. Basically, Google is giving schools that want to completely block AI the ability to go all the way, even eliminating searching for student accounts.
A Google spokesperson tells Ars that the company has not made any changes to the new policy it announced this week. However, the vagueness of Google’s blog post and public statements don’t fully explain what it plans to do. There are still reasons to dislike Google’s approach, but here’s how the company explains the process for schools:
