Google turns AI off by default in schools, then walks back its warning that Search would go too

Off by default

On Nov. 3, Google published a post by Chris Phillips, its vice president and general manager of education. It says Gemini, Gemini Notebook, Gemini in Classroom and Google Search will be entirely off for K-12 student accounts until school administrators explicitly turn them on. According to TechCrunch, the change takes effect next year. Google said it will share specifics with schools in the coming months. Before the change, Gemini was on automatically for schools using Google Classroom.

The Search warning and the backlash

Phillips told The New York Times that Search and AI are “deeply integrated.” On that account, students at schools that restrict AI entirely would lose access to Search and instead see a message from their school. The remark, reported by TechCrunch, drew sharp criticism the same day. Sen. Bernie Sanders called the move extortion on X. Former FTC Chair Lina Khan wrote that Google was using its search monopoly to coerce schools into adopting AI. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Sen. Richard Blumenthal also objected.

Sen. Bernie Sanders@SenSanders

President Trump claimed that AI oligarchs could regulate themselves because they “love our country.”

Now, Google is threatening schools: if you stop your students from using AI, we will cut off your access to Google Search.

That’s not love. That’s extortion.

PAUSE AI NOW.

A clarification the same evening

That evening, Google posted a clarification from its official news account: Gemini, Gemini Notebook and Search will be off by default, and schools can turn on one, two or all of them individually. Google spokesman Davis Thompson told GovTech by email that schools can switch off the Gemini products and keep using Search, because “they are separate controls.” The blog post never said Search depended on AI; that claim came only in the remark to the newspaper.

News from Google@NewsFromGoogle

We want to clarify what we announced today about our education services. Today’s announcements give schools more choice, not less. Here’s what we announced:

- Gemini, Gemini Notebook, and Search will be OFF 🔴 by default. This is based on K-12 schools asking for more control over student use of AI services.

- Schools are in control: They can choose to turn ON 🟢 one, two, or all of these services individually.

- We are also updating Search for schools to make it better for learning. Specifically, AI Mode and AI Overviews will offer step-by-step guided learning through problems, so that students don’t get quick answers to schoolwork.

We know there’s concern about students using AI to shortcut schoolwork, and schools have told us they want control. That’s exactly why we are making these changes today to address the feedback we’ve heard from educators in recent months. And we’ll continue to engage deeply with educators to ensure we are giving schools more choice, more controls, and improved Search for learning.

Guided Learning and context

The same announcement made Guided Learning available worldwide in Google Classroom that day, with a pilot in select US schools this month for the version inside Search. Instead of handing over an answer, the tool walks students through a problem with open-ended questions and step-by-step breakdowns. The clarification post says AI Mode and AI Overviews in Search will work the same way for students. Google’s weight in education is large: NBC News cites a 2023 Schoolytics report finding that nearly two-thirds of assignments use a Google product. Criticism continued. Tracy Frey, Google’s former head of responsible AI, started a petition; AFT president Randi Weingarten said the company had put its business interests ahead of children’s education, and Fairplay’s Josh Golin said schools were being strong-armed into AI products.