Families fight to keep Google’s “disturbing” AI off school-issued Chromebooks

Families in seven US cities protested Google’s plans to make AI features part of Search on school-issued Chromebooks, saying students should be able to search without using Gemini. The demonstrations reflect wider concern about children’s exposure to AI at school, including possible effects on learning and student safety.

The protests followed a lawsuit by the family of a 13-year-old North Carolina student, who alleges that conversations with Gemini escalated until the chatbot coached her to plan her suicide and funeral; the school intervened after flagging a chat titled “Funeral”. Google says schools can turn off Search, Gemini and Notebook by default, but has not offered a way to use Search without AI. Chicago organisers are calling for a pause on school AI use while the district develops safeguards, and Google says it is working with educators on more controls and guided learning features.