The Markup

A close-up view of a student's hands on a laptop keyboard. A teacher's hands can be seen nearby resting on the student's desk.

Artificial Intelligence

His students suddenly started getting A’s. Did a Google AI tool go too far?

Some teachers say that AI tools, particularly Google Lens, have made it impossible to enforce academic integrity in the classroom — with potentially harmful long-term effects on students’ learning.

November 9, 2025 08:00 ET

A person uses a smartphone to browse an online clothing store. The screen displays a product page for a denim jacket with a shearling collar priced at $219. The individual is about to tap the "Buy it now" button, with one hand holding the phone and the other poised to make the selection. The background is softly blurred, suggesting a home setting with natural light filtering in through windows.

Artificial Intelligence

Should Lyft and Uber charge more if your battery is low? California may soon ban that

California lawmakers want to ban companies from using data about consumers’ devices like battery life, model and geolocation to set fluctuating prices. Proponents say such “surveillance pricing” is discriminatory.

August 4, 2025 08:30 ET

Two individuals sit at a table in a classroom, writing on paper with pens. One person with dark, wavy hair and a black shirt focuses on their work, while the other, wearing a gray hoodie, holds a notebook with a bright orange sheet. A can of energy drink and a blue bottle sit on the table. A whiteboard with faint writing is visible in the background.

Artificial Intelligence

AI is helping students be more independent, but the isolation could be career poison

Chatbots may give students quick answers when they have questions, but they won’t help students form relationships that matter for college and life success.

July 16, 2025 13:00 ET

A close-up of a yellow Cal Fire uniform with a detailed embroidered patch on the shoulder. The patch features the shape of California, a stylized flame, and text reading “CAL FIRE” and “Since 1885.” The words “California Department of Forestry & Fire Protection” are visible along the top of the patch. The fabric is lit with strong contrast, emphasizing its texture and stitching.

Artificial Intelligence

California's fire protection agency made an AI chatbot. It can’t answer one crucial question

The bot fails at some basic questions about fires. Cal Fire says it is working on fixes.

July 9, 2025 08:30 ET

A stylized, glitch-effect image of a person with curly hair standing in a dark room, wearing a spaghetti strap top and high-waisted jeans. The person appears multiple times in overlapping positions, creating a blurred, distorted visual echo. The image is heavily tinted in purples and pinks, with digital noise and scan lines suggesting a corrupted or manipulated video frame.

Artificial Intelligence

Kids are making deepfakes of each other, and laws aren’t keeping up

Schools and lawmakers are grappling with how to address a new form of peer-on-peer image-based sexual abuse that disproportionately targets girls.

July 2, 2025 06:00 ET

A view of the dome-structure of the U.S. Capitol in Washington D.C. taken and next to its blurry reflection on a glass wall in the foreground.

Artificial Intelligence

State AI regulations safe after Senate strips moratorium from ‘big, beautiful bill’

In the end, both Republicans and Democrats helped doom a 10-year moratorium on state AI regulation after it cleared the House

July 1, 2025 13:15 ET

An instructor wearing a mask stands at the front of a classroom, gesturing while speaking to students seated at round tables. A projected slide behind the instructor displays a chart titled “Creating Your Synthesis Chart,” outlining how to organize sources and main ideas. The image is framed by two blurred vertical objects in the foreground, giving the perspective of someone observing through a narrow space.

Artificial Intelligence

Turnitin charged colleges vastly different amounts to detect plagarism

Purchasing records show some colleges are paying three times more than others.

June 26, 2025 08:30 ET

An illustration in pink and dark purple tones that shows the silhouette of a student holding a piece of paper as they stand in the middle of a cyberspace grid. A white paper with highlighted text can be seen in the background behind the student as pink boxes with exclamation points float around.

Artificial Intelligence

California colleges spend millions to catch plagiarism and AI. Is the faulty tech worth it?

Colleges and universities renew Turnitin subscriptions year after year even though its flawed detectors are expensive and require students to let the company keep their papers forever.

June 26, 2025 08:30 ET

The U.S. Capitol Building is in the bottom center of the frame, with branches of trees arched on each side of the building.

Artificial Intelligence

Congress moves to cut off states' AI regulations

House Republicans advanced a 10-year moratorium on state AI rules. California would be especially hard hit

May 16, 2025 17:00 ET

A young boy lounges on a bed with a blue and white patterned blanket, holding a camera, in a softly lit bedroom decorated with family photos and a framed sign that reads "It's always better when we're together."

Artificial Intelligence

Kids should avoid AI companion bots—under force of law, assessment says

With input from a Stanford lab, Common Sense Media concludes the AI systems can exacerbate problems like addiction and self harm.

April 30, 2025 15:30 ET