Prime Highlight
- Amazon has expanded its AI education program after overwhelming interest, now supporting 18 education partners across seven U.S. regions.
- The initiative aims to give students hands-on AI learning opportunities and help educators integrate AI tools into classrooms.
Key Facts
- The program’s investment has increased to $800,000 and is part of Amazon Future Engineer and the Future Ready 2030 goal.
- Participation includes large public school districts, charter networks, individual schools, and a state-level education service center, reaching close to 500,000 students.
Background
Amazon has expanded its U.S. AI education program after receiving far more interest from school districts than expected during its pilot phase. The company increased its investment to $800,000 and is now working with 18 education partners across seven regions, helping close to 500,000 students access practical AI learning tools.
The initiative began as a small effort to help selected schools take part in the White House Presidential AI Challenge, which aims to widen access to artificial intelligence education. Amazon had first planned to support only a limited number of districts already ready to adopt AI lessons. That plan changed quickly after a strong early response from across the country.
In the expanded version, Amazon now supports a mix of large public school districts, charter networks, individual schools, and a state-level education service centre. The company said the scale-up shows how fast AI education has moved from early testing to full district planning.
The program runs through Amazon Future Engineer and forms part of Amazon’s Future Ready 2030 goal to prepare 50 million people worldwide for the future of work. It also builds on the company’s wider training efforts, including AWS cloud skills programs.
Amazon delivers the program with education nonprofit PlayLab. Districts receive access to custom AI tools for students and teachers, along with hands-on training. Educators use the tools to plan lessons, while students design AI-based solutions linked to real problems in their communities.
Participation varies by region. Fairfax County Public Schools plans to reach all high school students, while in Washington, DC, students from Friendship Charter Schools took part in workshops to build AI tools.
The expansion also supports Amazon’s pledge under the White House Pledge to America’s Youth. By 2028, Amazon plans to help four million U.S. learners gain AI skills and support 10,000 educators with AI curricula.
