India tops Gemini Guided Learning usage; 2 million students have free AI tools: Google's Ben Gomes

Guided Learning acts like a tutor, offering step-by-step hints and open-ended questions that help learners find answers on their own.

Over two million students in India have received free access to its advanced artificial intelligence (AI) tools through the recently concluded Google AI Pro student promotion, Google’s chief technologist for learning and sustainability Ben Gomes said on November 7.

He made the announcement while highlighting the rising AI adoption in the education sector and the potential for the technology to reshape the sector.

Eligible students, aged 18 and above, received a free one-year subscription to the AI Pro plan, which costs Rs 1,950 a month. This includes access to the company's flagship AI model, Gemini 2.5 Pro, Gemini’s Deep Research feature, AI video generator Veo 3, and higher usage limits in NotebookLM, the company's AI-powered note-taking and research assistant. The promotion ended on September 30, 2025.

This move however triggered a fresh wave of competition in the world’s second-largest internet market. Perplexity is offering a year of Perplexity Pro at no cost to Airtel’s 360 million customers, while OpenAI is providing a free year of its entry-level ChatGPT Go plan to all users in India.

Last week, Google partnered with Reliance to offer Google AI Pro to Jio customers for free for 18 months, starting with users aged 18 to 25.

India home to Gemini's largest youth base

Gomes said India is home to Gemini’s largest global user base of 18 to 24 year olds. While the company did not provide a breakdown, Google CEO Sundar Pichai recently said that AI assistant has 650 million monthly active users globally.

India is also the top market for Gemini’s Guided Learning feature, Gomes said.

Powered by LearnLM, the Gemini-based models for learning, Guided Learning acts like a tutor, offering step-by-step hints and open-ended questions that help learners find answers on their own. The company said this approach helps shift students from basic answer retrieval to strategic problem-solving.

Gomes said students engage in long, multi-turn conversations, going deeper into topics. He said students are also using it to prepare for a wide range of subjects, from advanced physics and STEM subjects to acquiring practical skills like programming languages or developing creative talents.

Given that India is a multimodal and multilingual country, students are also moving beyond text prompts by uploading photos of textbook pages and complex notes. Gomes noted that many students also frequently switch between English and local languages such as Hindi while using the feature.

Education is also one of the top use cases for Google's AI-powered search features such as Lens and AI Mode. The company is seeing strong local interest in NotebookLM among Indian students as well, who are using it as a study partner, he said.

NotebookLM helps students to convert their study materials into quizzes, flashcards, or immersive audio and video experiences. Gemini and NotebookLM’s features are currently available in 10 Indian languages, while AI Mode in Search is available in 8 Indian languages.

AI's potential to reshape education sector

Gomes said that India is on the "cusp of creating greater opportunities for many more people by harnessing the potential of these new tools".

“AI has the potential to transform learning, not only in how we learn but also in what we need to learn. It can make education more engaging, more effective, more personal, and more accessible to people," Gomes said.

“We’re already seeing tremendous energy around this in India today. Bringing the best of our technology to every student has always been part of our focus,” he added.

Google's goal is not to "replace the essential human elements of learning, but to support educators and make learning more effective and engaging", Gomes said.

"AI is not a silver bullet, but it is an enormously powerful tool. If it is developed properly and thoughtfully, it can unlock a lot of potential," he said.

The tech giant also released a paper on AI and the Future of Learning, which outlines the company’s approach to building AI learning tools that help improve learning outcomes for everyone.

Gomes said the company is focused on helping the education community navigate challenges related to academic integrity, particularly by helping students and learners develop the AI literacy needed to use these tools in a constructive manner.

This includes experimenting with ways to rethink assessments for an AI-enabled environment, including a shift toward evaluation methods that are harder to replicate with AI, such as in-class debates, portfolio projects and oral examinations.