By Barry Holtzclaw
Publication Date: 2026-11-08 04:53:00
Google was in full damage control this week, attempting to backtrack on a plan to force all Google Search users in schools around the world to use its Gemini AI software – which ignited a firestorm among educators, politicians and parents.
On Monday, a Google vice president told a New York Times reporter that changes in its search engine scheduled for early 2027 would mean that “schools that disable AI entirely will lose access to [Google] Search itself, not just get a non-AI version.”
When The Times story was published the next morning, Election Day, under the headline, “Google Will Turn Off Search for Schools That Reject A.I.,” the public backlash was swift and harsh.
Before ballots were counted across the country on Tuesday, when the Blue Tsunami took over the news cycle, the internet blew up in outrage to The New York Times Google report.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani didn’t hesitate to comment on social media, “No corporation should have the power to…
