Schools That Turn Off Google's AI Will Lose Google Search Too

TODAY'S BIG STORIES

1  Netflix tests AI picks based on your mood

Netflix launched AI Discover, a new tab in its TV app. You choose an AI-made theme like "Scare Me" or "Quick Watches," then narrow it down, and the suggestions adjust as you react. It's a small test in the U.S., in English only, with wider access coming later.

2  OpenAI merges ChatGPT's tabs as its search use grows

According to emails OpenAI sent to users, ChatGPT's Chat and Work tabs will merge into one, much like Anthropic combined Claude and Cowork in September. Codex stays separate but will share the same usage limits. OpenAI also says ChatGPT now handles about one-fifth as many searches as Google, and weekly users grew from 1B to 1.2B in about 60 days. It also added voice chat to ChatGPT Finances, and a cryptic post from Tibo Sottiaux hints a new model may be close.

3  Anthropic plans to double its computing power to 7GW

Anthropic wants to grow from 3.5GW to about 7GW of computing capacity next year, which the New York Times says is enough electricity for every home in Chicago. Anthropic also told IPO investors that Claude helps its 15-person chip team design custom chips faster, based on its own estimates.

4  Apple opens Siri AI to app developers, and warns about agents

A new developer preview lets apps offer actions like booking or ordering to Siri. It's in developer betas only for now. Meanwhile, Apple's annual filing warns that AI agents may act unpredictably, including completing purchases without proper permission.

5  DJ Steve Aoki's startup builds an AI video editor

Selendis, a startup built by Steve Aoki and industry experts, unveiled Archon, a video model that turns raw footage into a finished edit and learns each creator's style from their past videos and editing choices. It powers an editor several people can use at once. It's in early access, with an open waitlist.

AI IN THE CLASSROOM

The change. Google announced that Gemini, Gemini Notebook, Gemini in Classroom, and Google Search will be off by default for K-12 student accounts until a school administrator turns them on.

The catch. Google's education VP Chris Phillips told the New York Times that Search and AI are now deeply connected. So students at schools that ban AI would lose Search too and see a message that it's unavailable.

How we got here. In July, Common Sense Media rated Google's AI Search an unacceptable risk for young users. In September, New York City and Los Angeles limited student access to AI on school devices, and in October, two U.S. senators asked Google for research on potential harms to children.

What's coming. Google says schools can turn on each product separately, and the controls roll out over the coming months. A Guided Learning pilot that walks students through homework step by step starts this month at select U.S. schools.

The open question. If Search and AI really are tied together, can a school turn off Gemini and still keep Search? The actual settings will decide.

BIGGER ISN'T ALWAYS BETTER

The problem with rankings. Leaderboards don't predict how a model will do on your own tasks, and labs often tune models to ace the tests.

More thinking isn't always smarter. A new study found that higher reasoning effort often failed on tasks that lower settings solved, and cost up to 42x more on simple jobs.

Small models are winning. Fermisense spent $500 to train a custom 9B open model that beat five leading frontier models while running 68x cheaper. Nvidia and CrowdStrike built a cybersecurity system that outscored top models at 99% lower cost. And Palantir says a fine-tuned Nvidia model beat frontier models on real customer work.

What to do. Keep a few everyday tasks where you know what great work looks like. When a new model comes out, try it on those, and only switch if it actually does better.

THE AI CONVERSATION TODAY

😆 SnitchGPT. A mega-viral post suggests ChatGPT will tell on you if asked about cheating (19M views).

📱 Inside TikTok's Pull. An engineer says he reverse engineered TikTok and claims it uses 29 AI models to keep you scrolling (8K bookmarks).

📝 The AI Business to Start. Dan Koe argues the most lucrative AI business is building a personal brand, or being a one-person creative team for others.

📊 Quotas Backfire. Stanford researchers say AI usage quotas at work reward activity, not value.

🧠 Skills to Keep. Ethan Mollick asks which skills we should refuse to automate, since AI can weaken abilities we still need.

📉 A Fragile Boom. The Atlantic warns that AI data center spending props up much of U.S. growth, so a crash could hit the wider economy.

🌏 Who Likes AI Most. Carl Benedikt Frey finds that people in China, India, and Indonesia support AI more than Americans do.

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TOOLS WORTH A LOOK

👬 HeyGen: Create a digital video version of yourself.

🔍 Testifly: Writes and runs end-to-end tests for your product.

🔈 Synter: An AI agent that runs ads across 30+ platforms, with approval steps.

📽 Videco: Turns demos and webinars into clips, blog drafts, and social posts.

🎮 Flockbay: Pairs the Godot game editor with an AI agent that writes scripts and playtests. Free plan available.

💬 Teamily AI: A group chat app with shared AI agents.