OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft Back Bill to Fund ‘AI Literacy’ in Schools

A new, bipartisan bill introduced by Democratic Senator of California Adam Schiff and endorsed by the biggest AI developers in the world—including OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft—would change the K-12 curriculum to shoehorn in “AI literacy,” something that young people and teachers alike already hate in schools. The Literacy in Future Technologies Artificial Intelligence, or LIFT AI Act, would empower the new director of the National Science Foundation (NSF) to make grant awards “on a merit-reviewed, competitive basis to institutions of higher education or nonprofit organizations (or a consortium thereof) to support research activities to develop educational curricula, instructional material, teacher professional development, and evaluation methods for AI literacy at the K–12 level,” the bill says . 💡 Are you a teacher, student, or parent with a tip about AI in your school? I would love to hear from you. Using a non-work device, you can message me securely on Signal at sam.404. Otherwise, send me an email at sam@404media.co. It defines AI literacy as using AI; specifically, “having the age-appropriate knowledge and ability to use artificial intelligence effectively, to critically interpret outputs, to solve problems in an AI-enabled world, and to mitigate potential risks.” The bill is endorsed by the American Federation of Teachers, Google, OpenAI, Information Technology Industry Council, Software & Information Industry Association, Microsoft, and HP Inc. “With the growing adoption of artificial intelligence across industries, it’s crucial that our young people and workforce are equipped to succeed in this evolving landscape,” Schiff said in a press release . “President Trump’s National Policy Framework for Artificial Intelligence made it clear that we must support American education and the development of an AI-ready workforce,” South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds wrote in the press release. The NSF has been without a director for a year after its former director resigned amid the Trump administration’s mass-slashing of grants and jobs at the foundation. Last week, President Donald Trump fired all 22 members of the National Science Board (NSB), which oversees the NSF, without explanation. Jim O’Neill, Trump’s nominee to direct the NSF next , is a financier with no research background who formerly worked for Peter Thiel. The grant would support “AI literacy evaluation tools and resources for educators assessing proficiency in AI literacy,” according to the bill. It would also fund “professional development courses and experiences in AI literacy,” and the development of “hands-on learning tools to assist in developing and improving AI literacy.” Most importantly for real-world implications, it would fund changing the existing curriculum “to incorporate AI literacy where appropriate, including responsible use of AI in learning.” Young people increasingly hate AI , and children already struggle with AI-enabled harassment that traumatizes them and disrupts their learning. And studies show kids are offloading learning onto AI models , undermining their education and social development. Last year, the American Federation of Teachers announced a $23 million partnership with Microsoft, OpenAI and Anthropic to build an “AI training hub for educators” to show teachers how to do things like build lesson plans with AI. In January, the AFT announced it was leaving X because it was “sickened” by the non-consensual sexual abuse material created using xAI’s Grok image generator. Six months ago, Schiff co-signed a letter urging Trump to take steps to protect consumers from energy costs incurred by data center development. “Since his second inauguration, President Trump has cozied up to Meta, Google, Oracle, OpenAI, and other Big Tech companies, fast-tracking and pushing for the buildout of power-hungry data centers across the country,” the letter said. Now, Schiff has “cozied up” to the world’s biggest AI tech companies. About the author Sam Cole is writing from the far reaches of the internet, about sexuality, the adult industry, online culture, and AI. She's the author of How Sex Changed the Internet and the Internet Changed Sex. More from Samantha Cole