ClementineTech

Google announced that early next year, AI tools in its K-12 products will be off unless a district turns them on. That’s the right default. But read the fine print. If a district keeps AI off entirely, students also lose Google Search. So the real choice for schools is: 1. No Google Search 2. Google Search with Gemini The option districts are actually asking for isn’t on the menu: Google Search with the AI turned off. Los Angeles Unified said exactly this in September. They wanted students to keep searching, just with AI Overviews off. Google could offer that. It chose not to. These decisions protect Google’s monopoly and its interest in using schools to onboard students as future customers. They don’t reflect what districts want. As a former teacher and principal, I believe districts should decide how and when AI shows up for their students. Search is basic infrastructure for learning. It shouldn’t be used as leverage to put a chatbot in every classroom. I lead @magicschoolai . We build AI for schools, and I want AI in education to succeed. But that only happens when it’s earned through trust, and trust means respecting the choices educators make, including the choice to say “not yet.” Google, give districts the option they’re asking for: search without Gemini.