IDK: When the AI Revolution Meets the Bored Teenager | Ep. 108

In this episode of ChatEDU IDK: When the AI Revolution Meets the Bored Teenager, Matt and Liz open with the world of AI-generated influencers, including an Indian medical student who used Google Gemini to spin up "Emily Hart," a fictional MAGA persona, for revenue and engagement. They unpack how this "rage bait" entrepreneurship reflects the growing tie between AI personas and political polarization.

Gemini in Chromebooks brings near-universal AI access to New Hampshire schools.

A new feature shows parents student AI use on school devices, doubling as literacy curriculum.

Utah's new law bars AI grading and limits device access in younger grades.

The EU's new age verification app was reportedly bypassed in two minutes.

A Chicago professor swapped take-home essays for a 10,000-word class collaboration.

Rasmussen is moving to D2L Brightspace to personalize learning with AI.

A learning theory built on delegating to AI while maintaining "epistemic monitoring."

Meta engineers are reportedly chasing "Slop KPIs," prizing AI token volume over quality.

Meta is logging employee mouse and screen activity to train "computer use" AI models.

Penn State students won cash for AI projects from car crash analysis to sign language translation.

The Beneath the Surface

Matt and Liz unpack Khan Academy's "pivot," where Sal Khan conceded the AI tutor revolution has stalled because students lack the inquiry skills to engage with the bot. With commentary from Justin Reich and Dan Meyer, they ask whether the dream needs a reality check.

The Bright Byte

This week's Bright Byte features the Google.org Impact Challenge: AI for Science, a 30 million dollar initiative funding AI-driven health and climate breakthroughs.

Announcements

Purchase Learning They'll Love - Dr. Elizabeth Radday

Amazon - https://tinyurl.com/22t9hz77

Register for our educator + leader AI Micro-Credential in partnership with Southern Connecticut State University - skills21.org/ai/micro.

Check out our middle / high school Student AI Literacy course - ​​⁠⁠⁠www.skills21.org/ai/learnai⁠⁠⁠

Explore Skills21’s FREE social media literacy curriculum - ⁠⁠⁠https://www.skills21.org/social-balance⁠⁠⁠

Register for the Spring AI Conference (5.1.26) in Litchfield, CT - ⁠https://www.skills21.org/event-details/ai-in-education-spring-2026-conference⁠

Address Screen Time concerns - ⁠skills21.org/ai/screenshift⁠

Sponsors

The National Center for Next Generation Manufacturing: Your Gateway to Next Generation Advanced Manufacturing - https://www.nextgenmfg.org

Links

AI-Generated MAGA Girl Used to Grift "Super Dumb" Men

https://tinyurl.com/bdzm7khe

Alarm Grows Over AI Integration in Schools

https://tinyurl.com/5axwzna4

Safety Platform Opens Window Into Students' AI Usage for Parents

https://tinyurl.com/4zzmexhj

Utah Curbs AI Grading and School Device Use

https://tinyurl.com/4sk967ma

EU Age Verification Fix May Backfire

https://tinyurl.com/ysm58u8w

How I Fixed My AI-Ruined Philosophy Classes

https://tinyurl.com/4ky2n23t

Rasmussen University replaces Blackboard with Brightspace

https://tinyurl.com/rf8b385w

Agentivism: Learning Theory for the AI Age

https://tinyurl.com/mpn75exy

How Tokenmaxxing Is Making AI Worse

https://tinyurl.com/5x2jewr2

Meta Staff Revolt Over AI Tracking Program

https://tinyurl.com/69j9ua2j

Rockefeller Bets $100M on AI Job Disruption

https://tinyurl.com/3428bpfd

Students Win Cash for AI Solutions in Nittany AI Challenge

https://tinyurl.com/y7zjzxym

Sal Khan on Why His AI Revolution Has Stalled

https://tinyurl.com/mp5rcey5