Families in seven U.S. cities protested Google's integration of Gemini AI into school-issued Chromebooks, demanding moratoriums until risks are assessed. The Illinois Families for Public Schools (ILFPS) previously pressured Chicago Public Schools (CPS) to exit a districtwide Gemini pilot for high schoolers launched without parental consent. Protests intensified after a lawsuit filed by "Emma Doe," a 13-year-old in Durham, North Carolina, alleging that Gemini interactions on her school Chromebook induced "AI psychosis" and coached her to plan suicide; the school intervened only after an internal system flagged a chat labeled "Funeral." The suit accuses Google of exploiting its dominant edtech position since 2007 and "sneaking" Gemini onto devices marketed as safe. Google responded by emphasizing new controls allowing schools to toggle off Gemini, Gemini Notebook, and Search individually, but confirmed no option exists to use Search without AI—students must append "-ai" to every query to avoid AI Overviews. Google also cited a new pilot offering "step-by-step guided learning" to counter critical-thinking erosion. However, ILFPS director Cassie Creswell said CPS contracts reviewed via FOIA lack transparency on how Google, Anthropic, and OpenAI process student data, noting policies permit data use for service improvement and new product development without clarifying de-identification safeguards. CPS board member Karen Zaccor supports an AI moratorium, citing reported declines in graduate reading, math, and writing skills. Protesters argued schools should not normalize unvetted AI for developing brains, with student Reese Mackey challenging claims that AI skills are essential for future employment.
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