Google faces backlash for plan that would turn off Search for schools that restrict AI
Google was met with swift backlash on Tuesday after it announced that schools using Google’s K-12 software will not be able to use Search unless they opt in to using AI tools.
Chris Phillips, vice president for education at Google, told The New York Times that “Search and AI are deeply integrated,” so if a student’s school doesn’t opt in to using AI tools like Gemini, then students “will not have access to search, and they’ll see a message from their school that indicates it’s not available.”
Even as Google made this announcement on a busy Election Day, several left-leaning politicians took time to speak up about their concerns.
Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) accused Google in an X post of “extortion,” writing that “Google is threatening schools: if you stop your students from using AI, we will cut off your access to Google Search.” Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) said on...
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