Google Tells Schools: Ban AI, Lose Search

By Tom Whitfield

Google has told K-12 schools that ban AI they will lose access to Google Search itself, The New York Times reports. Schools that want AI features switched off in Google's education products must opt in administratively to keep them on — and because AI is now so deeply embedded in the search experience, Google has determined that disabling AI means disabling search too.

Morgan Polikoff, an education professor at the University of Southern California, told the Times the policy feels like a way "to force AI on us all." Former FTC chair Lina Khan went further, saying that by giving schools an ultimatum between permitting AI or losing the world's largest search engine, "Google is making clear it will punish those who don't fall in line."

The stakes are enormous for Big Tech. Publishers and ad tech companies already know the weight Google can throw around; schools are learning it now. Major platforms have untold billions invested in making the next generation habitual AI users. The takeaway: Google is using search dominance to make AI opt-out effectively impossible for schools.

What is Reddit doing in response?

Less than a week after announcing its shift to login-only viewing, Reddit has begun testing ad placements on its own search pages, the company said in a blog post on Tuesday. The search ad algorithm will prioritize contextual relevance. "A search for 'espresso station' could surface ads for espresso machines, coffee beans, or mugs," the blog post reads.

The move follows a sharp drop in traffic. On its Q3 earnings call last week, Reddit admitted search traffic fell precipitously in October because Google is sending fewer users its way — a byproduct of the growing prominence of Google's AI Overviews. That decline comes despite Google relying on Reddit content for AI scraping and training.

Reddit's ad business, meanwhile, keeps climbing. The company topped a $3 billion ad revenue run rate for the first time this year. The login requirement could push more users toward Reddit's internal search engine instead of typing "espresso station reddit" into Google. There may even be a silver lining for Reddit's notoriously anti-ad user base: if marketers can buy search inventory directly, they may spend less time astroturfing and spamming subreddit content. In plain words, Reddit is building a search ad business to offset the Google traffic it is losing.

How did Versant's first year start?

Versant Media Group, the portfolio of networks Comcast spun off in January, reported third-quarter earnings on Tuesday. Revenue fell 4% year over year to $1.59 billion, which the company attributed to general declines in the pay TV industry.

The brighter spots: platform revenue — from nonlinear sources such as direct-to-consumer and streaming — rose 10% year over year. Distribution deals closed last quarter secured 75% of network subscribers under contract going into 2028. Versant also completed its acquisition of Full Swing, adding to a golf portfolio inherited from Comcast that includes Golf Channel and GolfNow. As TV publishers compete on live sports, Versant wants golf as its differentiator.

What else moved this week?

• Apple adjusted App Store policies to restrict dating apps and AI companions to users 18 and up (TechCrunch).
• Shopify app extensions have used subtle checkout page redirects to trick people into handing over payment and personal info (Adweek).
• Publishers say Meta is holding them "hostage" with a planned terms-of-service change that would opt any site posting on the platform into AI scraping (Digiday).
• Netflix is launching an interface called AI Discover for more targeted content recommendations (The Hollywood Reporter).
• Disney plans to eliminate thousands of jobs, setting managers a 20% reduction goal — its fourth round of layoffs this year (Bloomberg).

The common thread across the week: platforms are tightening control — over AI exposure, search traffic and content terms — and marketers, schools and publishers are absorbing the cost.