Google Lets Schools Skip Gemini, But Not AI Search

Google is giving schools more say over the AI features in its products, but the control is narrower than the announcement suggests. Administrators can keep Google Search for their students while turning off Gemini, the company's chatbot. What they cannot do is switch off AI search itself.

That distinction matters. Gemini is a separate tool that students open and chat with. AI search features change what appears at the top of the results page every time someone types a query. For a school that wants to limit generative AI in the classroom, opting out of the chatbot does little if AI summaries still appear on every search.

The framing is the main complaint. Google presents the arrangement as flexibility, yet the options it offers keep AI front and center. A school that wants a search engine with no AI layer does not get that path, so administrators who worry about accuracy, distraction or student privacy have limited room to act on those concerns.

The move fits a wider pattern. Google has been building Gemini and AI summaries into more of its products, and it has generally offered administrator toggles rather than full opt-outs. Whether the company adds finer controls will likely depend on how much pressure schools and districts put on it.

For now, schools weighing the change should read the admin settings closely. Keeping Search while dropping Gemini is a real option, but it is not the same as keeping AI out of the search experience.