Google to disable Search in schools that reject its AI tools

Google plans to disable Search for K-12 student accounts at schools that do not enable its AI features. In an education update shared Tuesday, the company said access to Gemini, Gemini Notebook, Gemini in Classroom, and Google Search “will be entirely off” unless administrators explicitly turn them on.

Administrators cannot switch off Gemini-powered features while keeping Search available. Chris Phillips, Google’s vice president of education, told The New York Times that Search and AI are “deeply integrated.” He said students at schools that disable Google’s AI features will see a message from their school saying Search is unavailable. Google did not immediately respond to The Verge’s request for comment.

The decision follows Google’s earlier move to turn on its Gemini assistant by default in Google Classroom, an app used by more than 150 million teachers and students globally. Google has since stopped enabling AI features by default in schools.

Google is also adding its Guided Learning feature to AI Overviews in Search. The company says the feature is meant to help students work through problems. It will begin testing it in select US schools this month.