Google says schools opting out of AI will lose search access

Google said Tuesday that its artificial intelligence products will be switched off by default for schools that use the tech company’s education software. School administrators will have to expressly enable the AI tools for K-12 student accounts to use. But schools that fully opt out of Google’s AI tools will also lose access to Google Search, company vice president of education Chris Phillips told The New York Times. Millions of students and teachers around the globe use Google Classroom.

These updates give schools more choice, not less, Google said in a social media post. Schools will be able to turn on Gemini, Gemini Notebook, and Search individually. But Google Search will still have AI features built in, including AI Mode and AI Overviews. The AI features for student accounts will be updated to provide step-by-step “guided learning” to coach students through problems instead of giving quick answers, the tech company said.

What’s been the response to Google’s update?

• Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, criticized Google for not allowing schools to access search without AI.

• The children’s advocacy group Fairplay accused Google of attempting to strong-arm schools into using its AI products.

• New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani made a similar accusation, stating that no corporation should be able to dictate how children are educated. New York City recently announced that it will ban generative AI tools for students starting in the 2026-27 school year.

• Lina Khan, who chaired the Federal Trade Commission from 2021 to 2025, claimed Google was exploiting its dominance as an internet search engine.

Dig deeper: Read Bekah Bernhardt’s report on how AI-authored books have flooded the publishing world.