Adapted by:
Javier Pastor
Senior WriterComputer scientist turned tech journalist. I've written about almost everything related to technology, but I specialize in hardware, operating systems and cryptocurrencies. I like writing about tech so much that I do it both for Xataka and Incognitosis, my personal blog.
Karen Alfaro
WriterCommunications professional with a decade of experience as a copywriter, proofreader, and editor. As a travel and science journalist, I've collaborated with several print and digital outlets around the world. I'm passionate about culture, music, food, history, and innovative technologies.
We’d all love to have had a teacher like Mr. Keating, played by Robin Williams in Dead Poets Society. He made his students climb on their desks to see things from a distinct perspective and taught them that the most critical lesson in life is summed up in the words carpe diem (seize the day). Very few teachers come close to that ideal, but all of them—good or bad—face the same future as other professions: replacement by an AI system.
A 24/7 teacher. Several AI companies argue that the human teacher is a bottleneck. They serve many students, have limited knowledge, and are only available for so long. These companies claim that AI systems offer a remarkable alternative: personalized teachers who are available 24/7, have infinite patience, and access all the knowledge in the world. However, this message reduces teachers from guides, mentors, and catalysts for curiosity to mere transmitters of information.
Continuous assessment. Student assessment is another pillar of the education system and one of the most time-consuming tasks for teachers. AI promises to grade efficiently, at scale, and immediately freeing teachers for other tasks. But human assessment involves more than correcting errors. Teachers evaluate effort, reasoning, creativity, originality, and context. Biases in AI threaten these assessments and promote a model based on correct answers over reflective thinking.
My school is OpenAI. Until now, schools and universities have ensured coherent, high-quality curricula. AI companies, however, aim to become “guardians of knowledge,” deciding what students learn and how. This shift could create a fragmented education system shaped by market interests, undermining education’s role as a social foundation.
There’s a threat to the humanities. AI systems also make memorization irrelevant—AI can already answer all known questions—and emphasizes skills like “prompt engineering” (knowing how to ask AI questions) and technical subjects in STEM. That shift threatens the humanities and critical thinking. Subjects like philosophy, art, and social skills—difficult to quantify—may be left behind. The goal becomes less about education and more about training tech industry workers.
Goodbye to social investment. Companies backing this model have a clear objective: to scale and make money. AI systems in education offer cost-cutting through less physical infrastructure, fewer teachers, and a scalable business model. However, they pose a real threat to one of society’s cornerstones.
Gates believes in the future of AI teachers. Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates embraced the idea early. ChatGPT had only been out five months when he said that AI will reach the point where it can be “as good a tutor as any human ever could.” He also said the technology should be a “leveler” for society. “Having access to a tutor is too expensive for most students—especially having that tutor adapt and remember everything that you’ve done and look across your entire body of work,” Gates added.
OpenAI and Khan Academy share the same vision. Last year, audiences were surprised by the presentation of GPT-4o, which showed the model’s ability to communicate directly with users. In one of OpenAI’s demos, presented in collaboration with Khan Academy, Sal Khan, the group’s founder, watched his son receive a geometry lesson from the model. The interaction worked flawlessly, pointing to a future filled with AI teachers on tablets, mobile phones, and computers. Khan is certainly biased, but it’s worth watching his TED Talk, How AI Could Save (Not Destroy) Education.
Schools have turned into daycare centers. Luis von Ahn, the founder of the popular language learning app Duolingo, has leaned into AI systems for some time. A few days ago, he appeared on the No Priors podcast and said that although some excellent teachers exist, “there aren’t many.” He said education will change radically because “it’s just a lot more scalable to teach with AI than with teachers.” Still, he added, that doesn’t mean teachers will disappear. “You still need people to take care of the students.” He added, “I also don’t think schools are going to go away because you still need childcare.”
Image | Taylor Flowe (Unsplash)
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