THE CRUNCH
Google is facing criticism after announcing that schools using its K-12 software will not be able to use Search unless they opt in to AI tools. Chris Phillips, Google's vice president for education, told The New York Times that "Search and AI are deeply integrated", so students at schools that do not opt in to tools like Gemini "will not have access to search" and will see a message saying it is unavailable.
The reaction was quick and political. Senator Bernie Sanders called the plan "extortion" on X, while Senator Richard Blumenthal said Google seemed "more concerned with forcing Gemini into schools than enabling students to succeed". Lina Khan, the former Federal Trade Commission chair, called the move anticompetitive, noting that multiple courts have already found Google liable for violating antitrust laws.
Educators' concern centres on AI overviews in Search, which they worry could stop students working out answers themselves. For the millions of pupils required to use Chromebooks and Google education tools, switching to a different search engine is not a simple fix.
Google has pushed back on the criticism. In a post on X, the company said Gemini, Gemini Notebook and Search would all be off by default, based on K-12 schools asking for more control, and that schools could enable each individually. It also says it is developing a "Guided Learning" tool for student accounts, which would walk students through solving a problem, such as prompting them to revisit the rules for dividing exponents, rather than simply giving the answer.