The Playbook: How Big Tech Embedded Itself in Classrooms

As AI companies pitch schools on the necessity of generative AI for future employment, New York Times education technology reporter Natasha Singer warns, as The Verge first reported, that this narrative mirrors a long-standing industry strategy. In her book *Coding Kids*, Singer details how tech companies spent 15 years positioning themselves as essential educational resources to build influence in classrooms.

Singer notes that industry giants previously embedded their own tools directly into school curricula. For example, Microsoft utilized Minecraft and Apple promoted Swift within Advanced Place Computer Science Principles courses. Google further solidified its presence through the widespread distribution of Chromebook laptops and the introduction of the Google Classroom app. Beyond direct corporate involvement, the industry backed nonprofit groups like Code.org. Founded by Hadi Partovi, the organization launched a celebrity-backed campaign featuring Mark Zuckerberg and Microsoft founder Bill Gates, which eventually led to the "Hour of Code" initiative.

While these efforts were framed as providing students with the skills needed for high-paying jobs, Singer suggests the result was the creation of a worker class trained specifically on proprietary software, making them likely future customers. The Verge reports that some recent graduates now feel let down as entry-level coding jobs diminish, and some schools are beginning to remove Google Chromebooks. Singer argues that while tech education has value, parents typically want children to become informed citizens rather than simply learning how to operate specific corporate technologies.