Berkeley school district to consider blocking Google search after tech giant’s AI ‘ultimatum’

Google has long been woven into the education of students in Berkeley and across California, with Google search, Chromebooks and Gmail quietly in the background of their daily lives. But that decades-long relationship between the search giant and education turned into the subject of a furor last week when Google announced that starting in January it plans to block K-12 students from using its search engine unless districts opt into the company’s AI-generated version of it. “If a school is not comfortable with that, and simply wants AI off, then they have the choice to not have Search on at all,” Chris Phillips, Google’s vice president and general manager of education, said during a virtual briefing on Nov. 2. Google’s announcement comes as districts across California debate restrictions on artificial intelligence and technology use in the classroom. The Berkeley school district has placed restrictions on generative AI, including blocking ChatGPT and Claude. Google’s decision could complicate such efforts, particularly because schools rely on the company’s digital workspace for daily lessons and its search engine for research and assignments. A spokesperson for Berkeley Unified called Google’s expansion of AI integration into its search engine “a growing challenge” in an unsigned statement sent Monday. “BUSD is evaluating alternative strategies and platforms to address this issue,” the spokesperson said. Lila Byock, founder of parent advocacy group Schools Beyond Screens, described Google’s decision as an act of “bullying.” She said in a statement that “educational value — not shareholder value — must determine” the technology that is used by students. “Google forced its AI products into classrooms and parents fought back,” Byock said. “Now Google is refusing to take no for an answer. The company’s hostile ultimatum is a desperate attempt to maintain its stranglehold on public education.” Google will block both its integrated AI tool and Google search for K-12 students unless a district decides to turn either feature on — with no option for a search engine without AI integration. The company said in a blog post last Tuesday that it will update its search function for schools by making its “Guided Learning” AI product the default. It “will offer step-by-step guided learning through problems, so that students don’t get quick answers to schoolwork,” the company said. The company also clarified in a post on X that schools can turn off its separate AI products, Gemini and Gemini Notebook, and use search, but AI Mode and AI Overview will remain integrated into Google search. “We know there’s concern about students using AI to shortcut schoolwork, and schools have told us they want control,” the post reads. “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.” Google’s AI ‘short-circuits’ learning About three-quarters of American teens and tweens use or interact with the AI summaries in search results, according to a recent report by Common Sense Media. In a series of 180 tests, Common Sense Media researchers found that Google’s AI Mode completed students’ homework assignments for them every time. The AI feature also invented fake answers to questions, returned different answers to the same questions and cited unreliable sources such as Reddit, Facebook and YouTube. But at the same time, Google search, Google Drive and other Google tools support student learning in a myriad of ways, said Yvette Renteria, chief program officer at Common Sense Media. “We know that students use Google search, and it helps with media literacy, understanding, evaluating, analyzing resources, which are so crucial to learning,” she said. “And so, to be able to not have that as an option seems like a missed opportunity. And then, to take it away altogether also seems like a missed opportunity.” Common Sense Media researchers have not reviewed Google’s Guided Learning mode. Many school districts will have to decide to opt into Google’s AI-integrated search or find a new search alternative in the middle of the school year. Schools may have to ‘degoogle’ For some parents who have been critics of technology use in school, Google’s so-called “ultimatum” may be the extra push to get schools to reconsider their reliance on tech. Districts should “reclaim their authority from corporate interests and divest from Google,” Byock, founder of Schools Beyond Screens, said. But “degoogling, ” or divesting from Google software, may be easier for individuals or smaller organizations than for school districts, said Rory Mir, director of community tech engagement at the Electronic Frontier Foundation, or EFF, a digital rights nonprofit. “The tricky thing with schools is that they enter into long contracts,” Mir said. “There’s a lot of training that goes into making sure educators know how to use these different tools, and the switch comes with real monetary costs as well as labor costs and disruption.” Renteria of Common Sense Media said that school districts with more robust technology departments are more likely to find work-arounds to Google search, but that’s “not the case across the board, and that really changes based on the staffing structure and the funding that school districts have.” Berkeley Unified School District utilizes Google Workspace for Education on Chromebooks that are available to students in all grades. These laptops come preloaded with Google Classroom, used for assigning tasks and learning materials, and turning in assignments, Google Drive and Documents, Google Chat, Read Along, an instructional tool for helping students learn to read, and many other programs, some of which require adult permission to access. Last year, the district formed an AI working group, but has not shared who is on it, the group’s mission or scope of work despite requests by parents for more transparency. Parents, meanwhile, have pushed BUSD to pass an AI policy that spells out the district’s position on the rapidly-changing technology and how it will be used in schools. Asked about potential changes to student access to generative AI, a Berkeley Unified spokesperson said “once more information is available, BUSD will assess the implications for our schools and determine appropriate next steps.” Mir, with EFF, said Google’s new policy should invoke among schools a “big discussion about Google’s role as a monopolist” with “undue power over” schools’ decisions. “Short of that, it’s important for Google to do the right thing and offer more control over these tools to administrators and users, so they can choose the experience that is right for their students and not get swept up into these suites where it’s all or nothing,” Mir said. “I’m hoping,” Mir said, “that folks funnel this outrage into reevaluating these contracts [with Google] and demanding a higher bar” for students. ​​​​ Berkeleyside is a media partner of EdSource , a nonprofit newsroom dedicated to providing analysis on key education issues across California. Berkeleyside’s Karina Ioffee contributed reporting to this story. Related stories 3 in 10 Berkeley High teachers let students spend free time on their screens, survey finds October 20, 2026 Oct. 20, 2026, 4:51 p.m. Berkeley schools to ban YouTube as parents decry impact of screens on kids September 10, 2026 Sept. 30, 2026, 10:52 a.m. How should AI be used in Berkeley schools? September 25, 2025 April 22, 2026, 12:00 p.m. " * " indicates required fields Send a note to the editors. * Have a comment on this story? See an error that needs correcting? Have a tip, question or suggestion? Drop us a line. Email * Name Phone Would you like to be anonymous? No Yes If you reply "no," we may publish your comment in a