EARLY ADAPTERS: Robots aren’t likely to replace teachers anytime soon. But artificial intelligence is getting a cautious rollout in some California classrooms despite initial hostility. School leaders are increasingly embracing AI tools in an early sign that the rapidly evolving technology could transform education in significant ways. A district in the Inland Empire is testing what the superintendent calls an “Alexa for the classroom.†Los Angeles Unified has rolled out its own AI-powered virtual assistant. Silicon Valley-based Khan Academy is aggressively testing an AI tutor nationwide — after its founder had early reservations about mixing the tech with classroom learning. “Months ago, I was very skeptical,†founder Sal Khan said of generative AI. “But when we saw that you can actually get it to quite effectively take on personas of a tutor or a teaching assistant, or even simulate Socratic dialogue, we were like, ‘OK, this is different.’†The education technology nonprofit’s device, Khanmigo, is being piloted by more than 8,000 teachers and students this fall as school districts, administrators and teachers embrace technology that ignited a plagiarism panic last school year. Khanmigo and similar virtual tutors have allowed students to ask questions of devices and receive responses instantaneously while teachers work with other students, advocates of the tech say. Some media reports questioned whether virtual assistants might too often feed answers to students and essentially do their work for them. But Khan argues the devices are now “ready for primetime with a couple caveats,†including the need to warn students that chatbots, like professors, make mistakes. “Generative AI, the internet, Google, social media, YouTube can be incredibly useful as long as you have proper distribution of the proper content. And I would argue most kids don’t,†Khan told POLITICO, arguing that problems with misinformation, political polarization and even wrong answers to math equations that have been produced by some chatbots are at least as prevalent on search engines that students use. A similar product from education technology startup Merlyn Mind — which draws from a tailored set of information rather than the internet-wide OpenAI that ChatGPT uses — is also being used in classrooms nationally. One test site is Val Verde Unified School District in the Inland Empire, where Superintendent Michael McCormick is enthusiastic about the results. “You have to think of it like Alexa for the classroom,†said McCormick, comparing the product to the AI-powered Amazon device. “We've seen in the pilot process some real positive use cases of second language learners and special education students being able to speak into the Merlyn Mind device and have it supply answers to the questions that kids are asking.†Los Angeles Unified, the nation’s second-largest district, began the year piloting a chatbot it’s calling “Ed†in 100 schools, with plans to expand use to every school in the district before the school year’s end. Superintendent Alberto Carvalho at a school year kickoff event touted the product as a round-the-clock assistant that can remind students to complete homework and allow parents to check on their child’s attendance records. “That voice that speaks to you early in the morning, late in the evening, wakes you up, nudges you, reminds you of your attendance, your homework,†Carvalho said. HAPPY MONDAY AFTERNOON! Welcome to California Playbook PM, a POLITICO newsletter that serves as an afternoon temperature check of California politics and a look at what our policy reporters are watching. Got tips or suggestions? Shoot an email to [email protected] or send a shout on Twitter. DMs are open! | 
