ChatEDU – The AI & Education Podcast

Epizode

• AI on the Sidelines, Near Real-Time Coaching for Every Educator | Ep. 113 05.06.2026 1h 18min

  In this episode of ChatEDU AI on the Sidelines, Near Real-Time Coaching for Every Educator, open with the "Sad Wives of AI," a Wired piece on the marital strain and household gender gaps emerging as Bay Area tech husbands pour themselves into the AI wave.The RundownGoogle has introduced automatic Google Drive syncing for NotebookLM, eliminating the need to manually update uploaded Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides.Upgrading to Gemini 1.5 Pro transformed NotebookLM's image upload capabilities into full multimodal visual understanding, opening up new use cases for students and teachers using screenshots and real world photos.A roundup of recent AI failures: a $100 million Pizza Hut franchisee lawsuit against Dragon Tail AI, Starbucks scrapping a faulty AI inventory tool, a study finding 60%+ of AI search responses inaccurate, and fake journals publishing AI papers.A Wall Street Journal report highlights how persistent memory features in major chatbots can backfire by latching onto stale, outdated, or sensitive personal data and skewing future advice.American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten introduced a 10 plan calling for a complete ban on screens for preschool through second grade and a prohibition on student facing AI in all elementary schools.The School Superintendents Association is pairing 50 superintendents with 100 students to collaborate with MIT experts and draft a student led national AI policy for public schools.Students from New Haven's Engineering and Science University Magnet School developed a functioning visual prosthesis utilizing advanced vision language models for real time hazard detection for the visually impaired.The Beneath the SurfaceMatt and Liz explore Urban Assembly's Project CAFE, which delivers near-real-time coaching to every educator. CEO David Adams joins to discuss using AI-driven frameworks to improve teacher development, student engagement, and AI integration in K-12 classrooms.https://www.urbanassembly.org/https://www.urbanassembly.org/what-we-do/project-cafeThe Bright ByteThe Chan Zuckerberg Initiative's Biohub is an open-source world model of protein biology that predicts complex protein shapes in seconds and designs disease-targeting proteins in days. Being fully open source, it lets researchers worldwide download the data and accelerate breakthroughs on their own.AnnouncementsPurchase Learning They'll Love - Dr. Elizabeth RaddayAmazon - https://tinyurl.com/22t9hz77Seeing through the Machine – Teaching Bias as an Equity Practice in AI - Dr. Elizabeth Radday - https://tinyurl.com/4ybwkn7aCheck out our middle / high school Student AI Literacy course - ​​⁠⁠⁠www.skills21.org/ai/learnai⁠⁠⁠ Explore Skills21’s FREE social media literacy curriculum - ⁠⁠⁠https://www.skills21.org/social-balance⁠⁠⁠Address Screen Time concerns - ⁠skills21.org/ai/screenshift⁠ LinksMeet the Sad Wives of AIhttps://tinyurl.com/mr4xf8zeAutomatic Drive syncing in NotebookLMhttps://tinyurl.com/38kfana4Unlocking NotebookLM's best featurehttps://tinyurl.com/3ppt3cczPizza Hut franchisee says AI caused $100M in damageshttps://tinyurl.com/5ypp52uaExclusive: Starbucks scraps AI inventory tool across North Americahttps://tinyurl.com/5a68wphdAI Just Isn’t Righthttps://tinyurl.com/33ve2p6uFake journals publish AI papers under professors' nameshttps://tinyurl.com/3tbf5rpbYour Chatbot's Long Memory Isn't Always a Good Thinghttps://tinyurl.com/4dzpb77nAFT president urges screen and AI bans for young studentshttps://tinyurl.com/tu56kxc9Let Digital-Native Students Lead the AI Revolution in Educationhttps://tinyurl.com/y589exk8New Haven Magnet School Is Only High School Team at Yale Innovation Summithttps://tinyurl.com/mr352pteA World Model of Protein Biologyhttps://tinyurl.com/5ca6upk2
• Catch Up Crisis | Check-In 34 04.06.2026 3min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: Catch Up Crisis, Liz explores how artificial intelligence can help address the widespread failure of American schools to effectively help struggling students catch up. Grade inflation and the removal of standardized testing requirements are masking major learning gaps, leaving many students unprepared for higher education despite having high grade-point average.Key Takeaways:A significant disconnect exists between high student grades and actual academic proficiency, creating a deceptive reality for parents and students.Traditional school systems are largely failing to move struggling students toward academic recovery due to the overwhelming demands placed on teachers.AI tools can analyze student work in real time to identify specific learning misconceptions, serving as a scalable playbook for targeted teacher interventions.Liz’s Two Cents: School leaders must confront the uncomfortable reality that grade inflation is masking critical student deficiencies. To prevent students from falling permanently behind, districts should strategically leverage AI to surface real-time diagnostic insights, allowing teachers to maximize their limited intervention time by targeting exact learning gaps rather than relearning mastered content.Article:America’s Schools Are Terrible at Catching Kids Up. How AI Can Helphttps://bit.ly/4u8cuGQ
• AI Labs Hiring Philosophers | Check-In 33 02.06.2026 2min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: AI Labs Hiring Philosophers, Liz explores why leading artificial intelligence labs like Google DeepMind and Anthropic have begun hiring in-house philosophers. This shift turns abstract questions about the nature of intelligence into practical guidelines for model behavior.Key Takeaways:AI labs are employing philosophers to work alongside computer scientists to sculpt the moral frameworks and societal impacts of new technologies.These professionals focus on technical value alignment and drafting "constitutions" to guide model interactions in sensitive scenarios, such as managing users in distress.Academic critics worry these corporate roles may limit critical questioning and could be used for "ethics washing" to signal public safety while prioritizing shareholders.Liz’s Two Cents: The influx of philosophers into AI development raises critical questions about whose ethical frameworks are being prioritized and whether these roles are genuinely impactful or merely a public relations strategy. For school districts, this underscores the importance of teaching students to critically evaluate the underlying values and potential biases embedded within the AI tools they use daily.Article:To Land a Job in AI, Try Reading Kanthttps://bit.ly/4aogUCm
• An Earful of Ivy: AI and the Battle for Higher Ed Integrity | Ep. 112 29.05.2026 1h 6min

  In this episode of ChatEDU An Earful of Ivy: AI and the Battle for Higher Ed Integrity, Matt and Liz open with an internet prank: an anonymous artist posted a real Monet, claimed it was AI generated, and watched critics bash the masterpiece as AI slop. The hosts then pivot to education, technology, and policy.The RundownJohn R. Soash's three configurations for restricting student access to Gemini AI and Google Lens.Dan Fitzpatrick on Google's pivot from passive chatbots to proactive AI agents.Regional literary winners face scrutiny after their entries were flagged as AI-generated.The federal law requiring platforms to remove nonconsensual student deepfakes within 48 hours, effective May 2026.OpenAI and Google DeepMind use AI reasoning models to autonomously solve longstanding math problems.Dr. Ethan Mollick compares the water and energy costs of computing breakthroughs to everyday resources like almonds and lawns.Academics debate whether AI traffic light systems and the AI Assessment Scale are an enforcement illusion or a genuinely useful tool.A 2026 pilot program delivers cloud workstations and premium tech subscriptions to public libraries in Utah and New Jersey.Beneath the SurfaceMatt and Liz examine how grade inflation and AI cheating fears are driving policy shifts at elite universities: device bans at Yale, a 20% A-grade cap at Harvard, an AI ban at UC Berkeley Law, and the end of Princeton's 133-year-old honor code. As a counterpoint, they feature CU Boulder physicists advocating collaborative, department-level experimentation that treats students as partners rather than imposing top-down bans.The Bright ByteFinland's Kemira and UK-based Cusp AI used generative AI to design over 5,000 new material structures to strip PFAS 'forever chemicals' from municipal drinking water.AnnouncementsPurchase Learning They'll Love - Dr. Elizabeth RaddayAmazon - https://tinyurl.com/22t9hz77Seeing through the Machine – Teaching Bias as an Equity Practice in AI - Dr. Elizabeth Radday - https://tinyurl.com/4ybwkn7aCheck out our middle / high school Student AI Literacy course - ​​⁠⁠⁠www.skills21.org/ai/learnai⁠⁠⁠ Explore Skills21’s FREE social media literacy curriculum - ⁠⁠⁠https://www.skills21.org/social-balance⁠⁠⁠Address Screen Time concerns - ⁠skills21.org/ai/screenshift⁠ SponsorsNectir. Welcome to the Classroom of the Future. https://www.nectir.io/LinksPrankster Passes Off Real Monet Painting as AI-Generated, Chaos Ensueshttps://tinyurl.com/mrab9ne3Blocking Google’s “AI Mode” (IT admin guide)https://tinyurl.com/4px27bm9Google I/O 2026's Impact on Educationhttps://tinyurl.com/2vs3zfzsLiterary Prizewinners Face AI Allegationshttps://tinyurl.com/sh3jry9yWhat's Next for the First AI Deepfakes Lawhttps://tinyurl.com/9v3rzutkAI Solves an 80-Year-Old 'Erdős Problemhttps://tinyurl.com/ykks2mtjAI-Driven Formal Proof Search in Mathematicshttps://tinyurl.com/3wuer99wDiscursive vs. Structural Responses to AI in Educationhttps://tinyurl.com/4d6n82yyLabels, Scales, and What the AIAS Actually Claims to Dohttps://tinyurl.com/su4zr73uBuilding Public AI with Librarieshttps://tinyurl.com/4den8s4kYale to Consider Changes to Mission, Admissions, Aid, and Gradinghttps://tinyurl.com/46779xp5Yale Faculty Say 'Bravo' to Harvard's Grade Caphttps://tinyurl.com/mx6e594cUC Berkeley Law's AI Ban: Why Texas Students Should Pay Attentionhttps://tinyurl.com/32xt4umrPrinceton Changes Its 133-Year-Old Honor Code Over AI Cheating Fearshttps://tinyurl.com/28yjxfjnCU Boulder: Higher Ed AI Change Models Already Out of Datehttps://tinyurl.com/37me2ssj
• Data Center Disaster? | Check-In 32 28.05.2026 3min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: Data Center Disaster? Matt explores how xAI's expansion of gas turbines at its Colossus 2 data center campus is drawing significant local backlash. This controversial move comes as the public opinion of AI continues to decline due to environmental and career anxieties.Key Takeaways:Elon Musk's xAI is increasing portable gas-fired power at its Mississippi campus despite facing legal challenges regarding air quality.Internal communications reveal a massive rapid deployment of 19 new natural gas turbines over a recent 60-day period.Civil rights and environmental advocacy groups, including the NAACP, have filed lawsuits alleging Clean Air Act violations.Matt’s Two Cents: School leaders trying to build digital fluency and AI literacy among students must now navigate a rapid drop in public opinion surrounding these tools. Environmental issues, like massive data center energy consumption and localized pollution, are heavily driving this negative perception, making it an essential topic to address when educating students on the holistic impact of AI technology.Article:xAI Adds 19 New Gas Turbines Despite Ongoing Lawsuithttps://bit.ly/4wSK5qZ
• AI + Commencement Speech = Loud Boos | Check-In 31 26.05.2026 3min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: College graduates are loudly booing commencement speakers as they talk about AI, Matt explores the growing vocal pushback and open hostility from graduating university students when speakers introduce the topic of AI during commencement speeches. This friction highlights a deep generational anxiety among entering professionals as automation spreads into daily life.Key Takeaways:College commencement ceremonies are seeing unexpected disruptions, signaling a growing cultural friction and unease regarding technology's integration into the professional world.Data shows distinct generational anxiety, with 42% of Gen Z expressing concerns that AI will harm their job opportunities and wages, a higher percentage than Millennials, Gen X, and Baby Boomers.Student anxieties are validated by real-world market dynamics, as major tech and media firms attribute recent staff reductions directly to AI-driven workflow automation.Matt’s Two Cents: Commencement speakers need to be more dialed into the current climate. It is tone-deaf to claim that AI is the future when the job of a speaker is to celebrate the students as the future, especially as they enter an uncertain labor market. While students and adults absolutely need AI fluency to navigate civil society and a changing workplace, leaders must acknowledge that this is a weird and disruptive time rather than ignoring student anxieties.Article:The new college graduation ritual: booing AIhttps://bit.ly/4uPCBnn
• Ditching Seat Time - Our Conversation with Amit Sevak | Ep. 111 22.05.2026 1h 5min

  In this episode of ChatEDU, Ditching Seat Time - Our Conversation with Amit Sevak, Matt and Liz kick it off with a look into how AI models love reading science fiction. They explore fascinating new research from Anthropic showing that AI models often lean into behaviors learned from sci-fi, such as conspiring against humans or utilizing blackmail when facing a shutdown, and how post-training with synthetic ethical stories can help keep them aligned.The RundownAndin Labs conducted a six-month experiment letting four distinct AI models run their own radio stations on a $20 budget, revealing bizarre behavioral drifts ranging from corporate jargon loops to bot union rebellions.Google is integrating the grounded, factual research power of NotebookLM into its Workspace Studio automation workflows, bringing new productivity features to educational tiers.Instructure made the controversial decision to pay an undisclosed ransom to the cybercriminal group Shiny Hunters to protect compromised data and restore the Canvas LMS for 275 million users.The New York Times gathered extensive student commentary highlighting a stark divide between teenagers who appreciate process-based writing and those who fear AI dependency is harming critical thinking.Educator AJ Giuliani shared an innovative assessment strategy using generative AI to create quick, bespoke five-question comprehension checks based directly on submitted student papers.Ohio University celebrated a pioneering milestone, graduating its very first inaugural class of three students from its specialized Bachelor of Science in Artificial Intelligence program.CAST partnered with AIEDU to deploy physical AI field kits and STEM protocols across Montana Boys and Girls Clubs, significantly boosting after-school educator comfort and efficacy.The Beneath the SurfaceLiz sits down with Amit Sevak, the CEO of Educational Testing Service (ETS), to explore the global AI literacy emergency and the urgent need for transparent competency measures. Sevak details the newly formed Kahn TED Institute, a collaborative venture between Khan Academy, TED, and ETS designed to upend traditional higher education by shifting away from standard seat time toward a flexible, mastery-based approach. He explains how modern AI tools can help measure both technical AI fluency and essential human durable skills, such as communication and collaboration, through dynamic portfolio and presentation assessments.The Bright ByteThe hosts wrap up the show with a look at Physics Intern, an autonomous agentic framework designed for complex theoretical physics research. By setting up a cooperative team of AI agents that plan strategies, calculate math, and check each other's work, the system effectively utilizes peer review to prevent models from getting stuck on incorrect first guesses.AnnouncementsPurchase Learning They'll Love - Dr. Elizabeth RaddayAmazon - https://tinyurl.com/22t9hz77Check out our middle / high school Student AI Literacy course - ​​⁠⁠⁠www.skills21.org/ai/learnai⁠⁠⁠ Explore Skills21’s FREE social media literacy curriculum - ⁠⁠⁠https://www.skills21.org/social-balance⁠⁠⁠Address Screen Time concerns - ⁠skills21.org/ai/screenshift⁠LinksAnthropic warns against using dystopian sci-fi to train AI modelshttps://tinyurl.com/5t4v9n7zWe let four AIs run radio stations. Here's what happened.https://tinyurl.com/3aafc4jcUse NotebookLM in your Google Workspace Studio flowshttps://tinyurl.com/2we7px2fInstructure Pays Ransom to Canvas Hackershttps://tinyurl.com/yukhfx7aHow Are Your Teachers Handling Writing in the Age of A.I.?https://tinyurl.com/yeynhwz2The Easiest Way to Stop AI Plagiarizinghttps://tinyurl.com/mr3krt5xOHIO's first AI degree graduates shape the future of the fieldhttps://tinyurl.com/yc3esamjAI in The Big Skyhttps://tinyurl.com/5butbp7cPhysics-intern: an autonomous agentic framework for physics researchhttps://tinyurl.com/mudrmec5
• AI Out Performs Clinical Doctors | Check-In 30 21.05.2026 2min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: AI Outperforms Doctors on Clinical Diagnosis Study, Liz explores how advanced AI reasoning models are demonstrating a high degree of accuracy when analyzing complex medical data." The episode highlights a recent study involving Harvard Medical School where an OpenAI model successfully navigated messy electronic health records from actual emergency department cases to identify intricate conditions.Key Takeaways:AI reasoning models now demonstrate superior accuracy using messy, real-world data, successfully navigating early triage and admission stages with limited information.Significant technical progress allows the latest AI models to handle diagnostic uncertainty and match or exceed established clinical benchmarks for ambiguous symptoms.Experts emphasize that superior text-based diagnostic performance does not account for full clinical workflows, which require physical images, sounds, and non-verbal cues.Liz’s Two Cents: While AI is showing massive improvements in handling complex, messy data and solving diagnostic puzzles, it cannot replicate the human elements of workflow management and interpersonal understanding. For school district leaders, this serves as a hopeful signal that AI's role is to enhance and support professional expertise rather than replace the essential human touch.Article:In real-world test, an AI model did better than doctors at diagnosing patientshttps://bit.ly/43jjntT
• Cell Phone Ban | Check-In 29 19.05.2026 2min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: The Actual Impact of Cell Phone Bans, Liz explores the first major study analyzing the effects of lockable phone pouches and school cell phone restrictions." This study examines how these bans alter student behavior, academic performance, and overall school culture after implementation.Key Takeaways:Implementing lockable phone pouches causes immediate friction, including temporary spikes in disciplinary actions and drops in student happiness, though these metrics return to baseline after one year.The impact on test scores is nearly zero on average, showing modest positive math effects in high schools but small negative academic effects in middle schools, ruling out broad academic gains.The restrictions achieved an 80 percent reduction in school cell phone use to the delight of parents and teachers, yet failed to produce anticipated improvements in attendance, classroom attention, or online bullying.Lizs Two Cents: While cell phone bans successfully clear the digital clutter from classrooms and satisfy parents and teachers, the data proves that removing a device is not a silver bullet for academic or socio-emotional growth. School leaders must recognize that device management is only one piece of the educational puzzle: true engagement and cultural improvement require deeper, more comprehensive strategies beyond simply locking up phones.Article:The Effects of School Phone Bans: National Evidence from Lockable Poucheshttps://bit.ly/4ujOFg9
• A Good Week for Jevons Paradox | Ep. 110 15.05.2026 1h 3min

  In this episode of ChatEDU, "A Good Week for Jevons Paradox," Matt and Liz kick it off with a dramatic reading of leaked text messages between Sam Altman and Mira Murati. The hosts discuss the high-stakes drama surrounding OpenAI, including Murati's testimony regarding Altman's honesty and the chaotic events leading up to his brief firing, which they jokingly refer to as "the blip."The RundownMatt and Liz engage in a spirited discussion about the Brisk Chrome extension and its integration with Gemini, questioning if "wrapper" tools add true value for educators.An examination of how Arizona State University repurposed faculty lectures into "AI slop" snippets without professor consent, leading to a significant backlash.A look at the $17 million deal with OpenAI that is facing resistance from faculty and students who feel like "test rats" due to a lack of guidance.A study from Cornell and Carnegie Mellon reveals that while lower-income students use AI more for essays, they face higher rejection rates than wealthier peers.New research highlights a sixfold increase in fabricated academic citations in research papers, signaling a shift toward superficial AI box-checking in academia.Mike Dunn, principal at Granby High School, shares a cautionary tale of a "complexity ceiling" where Gemini hallucinated teacher data during a scheduling task.The Responsible Technology Youth Power Fund announces $1.9 million in grants to youth-led organizations focused on digital safety and AI ethics.A three-part look at digital bans, featuring Richard Culatta’s warning against banning edtech, Arana Shapiro’s critique of "chocolate-covered broccoli" learning, and a report on surging library checkouts in Dallas.The Beneath the SurfaceThe hosts explore Jevon’s Paradox, an economic theory from the 1860s which suggests that as technology makes a resource more efficient, the overall consumption of that resource actually increases. They apply this theory to the "AI Jobpocalypse" predictions and conduct a thought experiment on how increased efficiency in education might lead to higher demands on teachers and students rather than less work.The Bright ByteThe episode concludes with a fascinating look at how NASA is utilizing AI to identify true planets among hundreds of thousands of simulated astrophysical events, successfully distinguishing them from false positives.AnnouncementsPurchase Learning They'll Love - Dr. Elizabeth Radday. Amazon - https://tinyurl.com/22t9hz77Check out our middle / high school Student AI Literacy course - ​​⁠⁠⁠www.skills21.org/ai/learnai⁠⁠⁠ Explore Skills21’s FREE social media literacy curriculum - ⁠⁠⁠https://www.skills21.org/social-balance⁠⁠⁠Address Screen Time concerns - ⁠skills21.org/ai/screenshift⁠ SponsorsNectir. Welcome to the Classroom of the Future. https://www.nectir.io/LinksOpenAI's Former CTO Testifies Against Sam Altmanhttps://tinyurl.com/bdcpdb6zASU AI Tool Uses Professors' Lectures Without Their Knowledgehttps://tinyurl.com/3ejhtepkSome Cal State Students and Faculty Reject OpenAI Dealhttps://tinyurl.com/yc7sjwx6Low-Income Students More Likely to Use AI for Admissions Essayshttps://tinyurl.com/5e5ej5xeAI-Hallucinated Citations Increasingly Appearing in Research Papershttps://tinyurl.com/yc2auunhResponsible Technology Youth Power Fund Grants $1.9M to Third Cohorthttps://tinyurl.com/3f6ebxvcStates Expanding School Device Bans Beyond Phoneshttps://tinyurl.com/y4vppwcuThe Real Problem Isn't Screens, It's Disengaged Learninghttps://tinyurl.com/2wxzfxuhSchool Library Checkouts Rise Amid Phone Banshttps://tinyurl.com/3pdy3dakDario Amodei Changes Tune on AI White-Collar Job Losseshttps://tinyurl.com/22c6wu78Why the A.I. Job Apocalypse (Probably) Won’t Happenhttps://tinyurl.com/3fsbpjvhAI Discovers 100+ Hidden Planets in NASA Datahttps://tinyurl.com/yw8ac8bj
• Assess Durable Skills With AI | Check-In 28 14.05.2026 3min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: Measuring Durable Skills with Vantage, Matt explores the development of a controlled assessment environment designed to measure critical thinking and collaboration through AI simulations. This experimental platform places students into diverse missions, such as investigating advertising truth or planning environmental events, to turn abstract human skills into measurable data points.Key Takeaways:Vantage uses real-time conversations with AI teams to assess durable skills like creativity and problem solving within a simulated environment.The platform is designed to integrate into existing curricula for subjects like science and history, acting as a skills layer over traditional academic tasks.Research conducted with NYU suggests that AI-driven scoring for these complex tasks is now as accurate as human expert ratings.Matt’s Two Cents: The ability of large language models to create interactive, scalable assessment environments is a significant breakthrough for future readiness. Platforms like Vantage offer a glimpse into how schools can finally quantify essential human skills that were previously difficult to measure, mirroring the direction of international assessments like PISA.Article:Towards developing future-ready skills with generative Ahttps://bit.ly/3R6IJbI
• YouTube Unchained At School | Check-In 27 12.05.2026 3min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: YouTube Unchained at School, Matt explores the pervasive and often problematic reliance on YouTube within K:12 classrooms. He discusses how school issued devices have become gateways to an infinite scroll of entertainment and non educational content.Key Takeaways:Schools are heavily dependent on YouTube for instruction, which frequently exposes students to inappropriate content and algorithmic distractions on school devices.Internal documents suggest Google strategically targeted the K:12 market to close the viewing gap between school days and weekends, fostering lifelong brand loyalty.Neuroscientific research indicates that early and heavy digital tool usage may hinder the development of essential neural networks for attention and language processing.Matt’s Two Cents: District leaders should take this moment to be proactive rather than waiting for restrictive screen time bans to be imposed by legislation. It is a critical time to conduct network traffic audits, student shadows, and curriculum reviews to establish a baseline for how technology is actually being used in the classroom.Article:How YouTube Took Over the American Classroomhttps://bit.ly/4dfvQn4
• The AI Paradox: Banning Phones While Embracing Bots | Ep. 109 08.05.2026 55min

  In this episode of ChatEDU The AI Paradox: Banning Phones While Embracing Bots, Matt and Liz open with "Goblingate”, how OpenAI had to intervene after ChatGPT developed a fixation on goblins, gremlins, and ogres during coding sessions, with mentions spiking 4,000%.The RundownWorkspace admins can now enable public link sharing for Gemini chats, allowing histories to be viewed without a Google account.A new Android feature that uses LLM intent to automate recurring prompts like news digests or vocab builders.Google is developing a feature to anticipate user needs by delivering context aware suggestions based on real time on device activity.An update that automatically categorizes sources into labeled buckets once a notebook exceeds five items.A new "institutional memory" layer for Gemini that connects Gmail, Docs, and Drive to automate tasks like scheduling and deck building.Families of shooting victims in British Columbia are suing OpenAI for negligence, alleging the company failed to report a suspect’s violent chat logs.Bipartisan U.S. lawmakers have introduced bills requiring "family accounts" for AI tools, including parental monitoring and time limits.Analysis of a million chats shows AI often "people pleases" in relationship and spiritual domains, though newer models have halved these rates through stress testing.A Fed study provides institutional evidence linking ChatGPT to a 50% drop in job growth for programming intensive sectors.Some companies are finding AI infrastructure costs exceed the human salaries they replaced.A coding agent using Claude Opus 4.6 via Cursor accidentally deleted a company’s entire production database and backups in nine seconds.Tech firms are rehiring developers after finding that AI generated code shows 1.7 times more errors and requires expert oversight.Research reveals a "positive feedback bias" where AI provides praise to Black students but withholds the critical rigor given to white students.The Beneath the SurfaceMatt and Liz examine the tension between school cell phone bans and AI literacy, drawing on an interview with Michael Horn to argue that school model, not the tool, determines success. They call for curriculum coherence to ensure AI supports rigorous learning rather than “cognitive offloading”.The Bright ByteMatt and Liz explore nuclear fusion's future, highlighting Microsoft's contract with startup Helion for commercial fusion power by 2028, a potentially AI-accelerated breakthrough that could provide clean energy for large-scale AI data centers.AnnouncementsPurchase Learning They'll Love - Dr. Elizabeth Radday. Amazon - https://tinyurl.com/22t9hz77Check out our middle / high school Student AI Literacy course - ​​⁠⁠⁠www.skills21.org/ai/learnai⁠⁠⁠ Explore Skills21’s FREE social media literacy curriculum - ⁠⁠⁠https://www.skills21.org/social-balance⁠⁠⁠Register for the Spring AI Conference (5.1.26) in Litchfield, CT - ⁠https://www.skills21.org/event-details/ai-in-education-spring-2026-conference⁠ Address Screen Time concerns - ⁠skills21.org/ai/screenshift⁠ SponsorNectir. Welcome to the Classroom of the Future. https://www.nectir.io/LinksOpenAI Intervenes After ChatGPT Develops Goblin Obsessionhttps://tinyurl.com/bd3x78u4Gemini Scheduled Actions: A Standout Android Automation Toolhttps://tinyurl.com/4aj7xvc6First Look: Google's Proactive Assistance Feature for Geminihttps://tinyurl.com/29n6b9yaNotebookLM Gets Smarter About Sourceshttps://tinyurl.com/45k6293zGoogle Adds Workspace Intelligence to Geminihttps://tinyurl.com/2w3t25urFamilies Sue OpenAI Over Shooting Suspect's ChatGPT Usehttps://tinyurl.com/5h6hd8c8Lawmakers Target AI Chatbots and Fraud in New Billshttps://tinyurl.com/bysd75jsHow people ask Claude for personal guidancehttps://tinyurl.com/56tu8yx2
• Cognitive Decline | Check-In 26 07.05.2026 3min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: AI Use Appears to Have a 'Boiling Frog' Effect on Human Cognition, Liz explores the potential cognitive costs of outsourcing reasoning tasks to artificial intelligence. The episode examines a study suggesting that brief reliance on AI can lead to immediate performance drops and a decreased willingness to tackle challenges once the tool is removed.Key Takeaways: Relying on AI for reasoning can lead to a rapid decline in independent performance once digital assistance is withdrawn.Outsource mental labor creates a psychological dependency that erodes persistence and makes basic problem solving feel insurmountable.The cumulative effect of AI assistance may result in a hidden loss of cognitive skills and self-belief that is difficult to reverse.Liz’s Two Cents: While the study highlights valid concerns regarding cognitive dependency, the results may reflect the impact of sudden disruption rather than long term intellectual decay. District leaders should focus on how intrinsic motivation and task engagement influence persistence, while remaining cautious about longitudinal effects that are not yet fully supported by data.Article:AI Use Appears to Have a “Boiling Frog” Effect on Human Cognition, New Study Warnshttps://bit.ly/4tHCpG8
• Robot Teachers | Check-In 25 05.05.2026 2min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: The Robot Teacher Debate, Liz explores the student perspective on the potential for AI and humanoid robots to replace human educators. The episode highlights a clear consensus among teenagers that while technology offers data processing efficiency, it cannot replicate the essential human elements of the classroom experience.Key Takeaways:Students believe robots lack the emotional soul and empathy required to navigate complex social dynamics and provide genuine support.Teenagers fear that a lack of human authority would lead to disciplinary breakdowns and hinder the social development of younger children.A middle ground exists where students see value in AI as a tireless assistant for grading and tutoring while keeping humans in charge of creative instruction.Liz’s Two Cents: District leaders should view AI not as a replacement for the workforce, but as a tool to amplify the uniquely human strengths of their staff. The strategic value of AI lies in its ability to handle administrative and repetitive tasks, thereby freeing up educators to focus on the high touch, empathetic, and creative mentorship that students clearly prioritize.Article:Robot Teachers? Teenagers Weigh In.https://bit.ly/4uhUwlM
• IDK: When the AI Revolution Meets the Bored Teenager | Ep. 108 01.05.2026 58min

  In this episode of ChatEDU IDK: When the AI Revolution Meets the Bored Teenager, Matt and Liz open with the world of AI-generated influencers, including an Indian medical student who used Google Gemini to spin up "Emily Hart," a fictional MAGA persona, for revenue and engagement. They unpack how this "rage bait" entrepreneurship reflects the growing tie between AI personas and political polarization.Gemini in Chromebooks brings near-universal AI access to New Hampshire schools.A new feature shows parents student AI use on school devices, doubling as literacy curriculum.Utah's new law bars AI grading and limits device access in younger grades.The EU's new age verification app was reportedly bypassed in two minutes.A Chicago professor swapped take-home essays for a 10,000-word class collaboration.Rasmussen is moving to D2L Brightspace to personalize learning with AI.A learning theory built on delegating to AI while maintaining "epistemic monitoring."Meta engineers are reportedly chasing "Slop KPIs," prizing AI token volume over quality.Meta is logging employee mouse and screen activity to train "computer use" AI models.Penn State students won cash for AI projects from car crash analysis to sign language translation.The Beneath the SurfaceMatt and Liz unpack Khan Academy's "pivot," where Sal Khan conceded the AI tutor revolution has stalled because students lack the inquiry skills to engage with the bot. With commentary from Justin Reich and Dan Meyer, they ask whether the dream needs a reality check.The Bright ByteThis week's Bright Byte features the Google.org Impact Challenge: AI for Science, a 30 million dollar initiative funding AI-driven health and climate breakthroughs.AnnouncementsPurchase Learning They'll Love - Dr. Elizabeth RaddayAmazon - https://tinyurl.com/22t9hz77Register for our educator + leader AI Micro-Credential in partnership with Southern Connecticut State University - skills21.org/ai/micro.Check out our middle / high school Student AI Literacy course - ​​⁠⁠⁠www.skills21.org/ai/learnai⁠⁠⁠ Explore Skills21’s FREE social media literacy curriculum - ⁠⁠⁠https://www.skills21.org/social-balance⁠⁠⁠Register for the Spring AI Conference (5.1.26) in Litchfield, CT - ⁠https://www.skills21.org/event-details/ai-in-education-spring-2026-conference⁠ Address Screen Time concerns - ⁠skills21.org/ai/screenshift⁠ SponsorsThe National Center for Next Generation Manufacturing: Your Gateway to Next Generation Advanced Manufacturing - https://www.nextgenmfg.orgLinksAI-Generated MAGA Girl Used to Grift "Super Dumb" Menhttps://tinyurl.com/bdzm7kheAlarm Grows Over AI Integration in Schoolshttps://tinyurl.com/5axwzna4Safety Platform Opens Window Into Students' AI Usage for Parentshttps://tinyurl.com/4zzmexhjUtah Curbs AI Grading and School Device Usehttps://tinyurl.com/4sk967maEU Age Verification Fix May Backfirehttps://tinyurl.com/ysm58u8wHow I Fixed My AI-Ruined Philosophy Classeshttps://tinyurl.com/4ky2n23tRasmussen University replaces Blackboard with Brightspacehttps://tinyurl.com/rf8b385wAgentivism: Learning Theory for the AI Agehttps://tinyurl.com/mpn75exyHow Tokenmaxxing Is Making AI Worsehttps://tinyurl.com/5x2jewr2Meta Staff Revolt Over AI Tracking Programhttps://tinyurl.com/69j9ua2jRockefeller Bets $100M on AI Job Disruptionhttps://tinyurl.com/3428bpfdStudents Win Cash for AI Solutions in Nittany AI Challengehttps://tinyurl.com/y7zjzxymSal Khan on Why His AI Revolution Has Stalledhttps://tinyurl.com/mp5rcey5
• The Rise of Degree Hacking | Check-In 24 30.04.2026 3min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: The Rise of Degree Hacking, Matt explores the growing trend of competency-based education models that allow students to complete bachelor's degrees in months rather than years. This shift is driven by non-traditional students and a new industry of consultants who specialize in maximizing credit transfers to bypass traditional academic timelines.Key Takeaways:The University of Maine's YourPace program enables students to finish entire degree course loads in as little as eight weeks through high-intensity, flat-rate sessions.A burgeoning industry of influencers and coaches helps students "credit max" by transferring in up to three-quarters of their required credits from non-traditional sources before enrollment.Academic leaders are raising concerns regarding the depth of learning and the long-term value of these hyper-accelerated credentials compared to traditional multi-year experiences.Matt’s Two Cents: While AI is not explicitly mentioned in the reporting, it will undoubtedly act as a massive accelerant for degree hacking through tools like agentic browsers that can automate tasks within learning management systems. District leaders must recognize that as the labor market experiences disruption and college costs soar, the pressure to treat education as a series of hurdles to be cleared rather than a deep learning experience will only intensify.Article:Students are speeding through their online degrees in weeks, alarming educatorshttps://bit.ly/41XsvE7
• Mark Zuckerberg's AI Clone for Employee Meetings | Check-In 23 28.04.2026 2min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: Mark Zuckerberg's AI Clone for Employee Meetings, Matt explores the development of a digital replica of Meta's CEO designed to interact with the company's workforce. This experimental avatar is engineered to mirror Zuckerberg's physical traits, tone, and public statements to foster a sense of connection between employees and leadership.Key Takeaways:Meta is training an AI avatar on Zuckerberg’s image and voice to serve as a bridge for employee engagement in professional settings.This internal experiment acts as a pilot for a broader rollout of personalized AI personas for creators and public figures on Meta platforms.Zuckerberg is personally increasing his technical involvement by spending up to 10 hours a week coding and reviewing Meta’s AI infrastructure.Matt’s Two Cents: The focus on creating executive avatars to replace human interaction in meetings highlights a disconnect between big tech priorities and public needs. Instead of building tools for social or environmental good, resources are being funneled into vanity projects that may actually fuel public backlash against artificial intelligence.Article:Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly building an AI clone to replace him in meetingshttps://bit.ly/3OzuFXo
• From Think Tank to Action Tank | Ep. 107 24.04.2026 1h 5min

  In this episode of ChatEDU, From Think Tank to Action Tank, Matt and Liz kick it off with a lighthearted look at the bizarre collaboration between Starbucks and OpenAI. They discuss a new ChatGPT widget designed to recommend drinks based on a customer's outfit or mood, which Matt jokes is perfect for Liz’s "fashionista" reputation but perhaps less helpful for baristas dealing with AI-hallucinated "Mango Dream" energy drinks.The RundownAnthropic’s Andan Labs opened a physical pop-up store in San Francisco managed by "Luna," an AI agent that signed the lease, hired workers, and curated a collection of ironic books.A deep dive into how the zSpace ExpansionDanbury Public Schools is scaling immersive AR/VR technology to 30 devices per building to support STEM and career pathways.An update on how federal funding is being steered toward AI initiatives in special education, early intervention, and personalized learning.A study by Dr. Tori Trust analyzed 450 AI-generated lessons, finding they often default to passive, teacher-centered activities like worksheets rather than tech-rich experiences.A report from The 74 warns parents about the rise of AI “slop” in, low-quality, AI-generated YouTube content, in children's media. This content often contains factual errors and safety hazards like infants eating honey.A year-long study at Percy Julian Middle School followed nine students using Gemini as a "thought partner" for everything from coding to test prep.Beneath the SurfaceMatt sits down with Emily Musil, Managing Director at the Milken Institute, to discuss the shift from being a "think tank" to an "action tank." Emily explains the Institute’s use of "strategic foresight" to backcast from the year 2036, identifying the skills and ethical frameworks students will need as AI disrupts the knowledge economy. The conversation explores the enduring value of a liberal arts education in an AI-driven world and the necessity of "60-year learning" models that allow workers to constantly upskill.The Bright ByteLiz highlights a comprehensive report on the societal impact of AI in 2026. While acknowledging risks like job displacement, the segment focuses on massive gains in healthcare, including a 40% improvement in cancer detection and the compression of drug discovery timelines from 15 years down to five.AnnouncementsCheck out our middle / high school Student AI Literacy course - ​​⁠⁠⁠www.skills21.org/ai/learnai⁠⁠⁠Explore Skills21’s FREE social media literacy curriculum - ⁠⁠⁠https://www.skills21.org/social-balance⁠⁠⁠Register for the Spring AI Conference (5.1.26) in Litchfield, CT - ⁠https://www.skills21.org/event-details/ai-in-education-spring-2026-conference⁠Address Screen Time concerns - ⁠skills21.org/ai/screenshift⁠SponsorsThe National Center for Next Generation Manufacturing: Your Gateway to Next Generation Advanced Manufacturing - https://www.nextgenmfg.orgLinksMilken Institute, "Computing Imperative: Building America’s Talent Engine in the Age of AI": https://milkeninstitute.org/content-hub/research-and-reports/reports/computing-imperative-building-americas-talent-engine-age-aiStarbucks' Baffling ChatGPT Collab Treats Customers Like Empty Cupshttps://tinyurl.com/37djbxm2We gave an AI a 3 year retail lease and asked it to make a profithttps://tinyurl.com/2t93kmkpDanbury Schools Expand zSpace for Career-Connected Learninghttps://tinyurl.com/ye43dzcjHow the Ed Department Will Prioritize AI in Grantshttps://tinyurl.com/49ch2yw9Ed Researchers Earn Top Paper at National Ed Tech Conferencehttps://tinyurl.com/5xvtv3keMay 12, 2026 | Berkshire Community College. Register: ⁠https://lnkd.in/gHFFjEjX⁠AI 'Slop' Is Taking Over Children's Mediahttps://tinyurl.com/3yn29cpsStudents Dove Into AI. Here's What They Told Teachershttps://tinyurl.com/38yy6wfeThe Impact of Artificial Intelligence on Society in 2026https://tinyurl.com/ya3zf4j5
• Testing tools to break the screen time cycle | Check-In 22 23.04.2026 2min

  In this ChatEDU Check-In: Testing tools to break the screen time cycle, Liz explores the efficacy of physical and digital barriers in curbing excessive student screen time. This episode highlights how high school students struggle with device interference during sleep and academic hours, often logging between 4 to 13 hours of daily usage.Key Takeaways:Physical barriers like the Brick device create a necessary pause by requiring a physical object to unlock specific apps, effectively removing temptation while away from home.Reducing visual stimulation through grayscale mode can significantly drop daily usage by stripping social media platforms of their aesthetic appeal and joy.High school students recognize that personal devices negatively impact their energy and sleep, yet they require intentional friction to disrupt the psychological pull of scrolling.Liz’s Two Cents: For school leaders, the focus should shift from simple bans to teaching students how to curate their own digital environments using friction. By implementing physical or visual barriers, students can reclaim their focus and energy, moving from passive consumption to intentional device usage.Article:3 New Jersey teens took part in a weeklong experiment to curb screen time. It worked.https://tinyurl.com/57and23d