Mandatory AI Education For All U.S. Kids? 250-Plus CEOs Say Yes

Key Facts

Leaders signing the open letter include CEOs of such high-profile companies as Adobe, Accenture, AMD, American Airlines, Blue Origin, Cognizant, Dell, Dropbox, IBM, LinkedIn, Lyft, Microsoft, Salesforce, Uber, Yahoo and Zoom.

“In the age of AI, we must prepare our children for the future — to be AI creators, not just consumers,” the letter says.

In an AI-driven economy, taking CS and AI courses is the fastest way to shrink skill and wage gaps, and to keep the U.S. ahead in the global AI race, the letter says.

“Change is already underway,” it reads. “This movement has bipartisan support from leaders on both sides of the aisle. In the past 10 years, all 50 states have taken steps forward, and 100,000 teachers have started teaching computer science.”

The letter cites research from the Brookings Institution showing that just one high-school computer science course can increase lifetime wages by 8% and employment odds by 3%. It says young women and low-income students see the biggest gains.

Twelve U.S. states currently require students to learn basic computer science, but business letter who signed the letter are pushing for far more. “We have a responsibility to prepare the next generation for the new American Dream,” the letter says. “We owe it to them to provide an education that reflects the demands of our time.”

News Peg

This week, the United Arab Emirates announced that it will implement an AI curriculum across all levels of public education in the next academic year. In doing so, it joins Brazil, China, South Korea and Singapore, all of which have already made computer science or AI mandatory for all students.

On April 23, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that seeks to foster U.S. AI literacy from a young age through grants for training computer science and AI teachers, public-private partnerships to enhance classroom resources and a national AI-education task force to track progress and gaps ​in K-12 CS and AI.

“Early learning and exposure to AI concepts not only demystifies this powerful technology but also sparks curiosity and creativity, preparing students to become active and responsible participants in the workforce of the future and nurturing the next generation of American AI innovators to propel our nation to new heights of scientific and economic achievement,” the order says.

Why The Open Letter Matters

While some educators worry that generative AI tools like ChatGPT could promote cheating and undermine students’ critical thinking and writing skills, the involvement of so many top executives in the conversation about the benefits of artificial intelligence in the classroom spotlights the growing push to make AI literacy a core part of U.S. education.

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