Google and Oxford University are collaborating to provide students and faculty with AI tools for higher education
Google is collaborating with the University of Oxford to provide students and faculty members with our most advanced AI tools and models, including Gemini for Education and NotebookLM, helping them to learn, create, teach and collaborate in more powerful and effective ways.
Following a successful pilot programme, in which 85% of survey respondents reported increased productivity and nearly 75% said Google’s AI tools helped them work more effectively, university faculty, administrators and students will now be able to obtain Pro licences through their departments or colleges, to use within Oxford’s Google for Education workspace. The university has also made Gemini for Education and NotebookLM available to all staff and students through its secure Google workspace.
Gemini for Education includes Guided Learning, a personal learning companion designed to foster deep understanding through probing questions and tailored, step-by-step guidance rather than simply providing an answer.
Oxford’s colleges and academic departments now have secure access to Gemini 3, Google’s latest model which is grounded in learning science and built in partnership with education experts.
The university’s Gemini Pro licenses include access to Deep Research, an AI-powered academic assistant that can formulate multi-step research plans, browse hundreds of relevant web sources, reason through the findings, and synthesise them into a comprehensive, multi-page report with citations.
These cutting-edge tools will enable Oxford’s community to enrich its research and unlock more effective and personalized pathways to learning while fostering crucial AI literacy and skill-building.
Oxford University is pioneering the provision of secure AI tools in higher education, to support students, accelerate research breakthroughs, and create efficiencies for administrative staff and faculty members.
Alwyn Collinson, Head of the AI Competency Centre at the University of Oxford, said: ‘Many of our staff and students are already experimenting with AI. The Gemini for Education and NotebookLM tools we’re making available through our partnership with Google will provide secure access to leading AI models, supported by training and guidance to ensure they are used safely and responsibly for work and study. They will help to ensure that our researchers and academics can harness AI’s potential to accelerate high-impact research, facilitate breakthroughs, and drive innovation which could help us to address key global challenges.’
Oxford’s pilot programme identified key use cases such as accelerating research and supporting grant proposals, and improving productivity using Gemini and NotebookLM — critical functions for a world-leading research institution.
Through this collaboration, Oxford University and Google share a commitment to advancing critical AI literacy and skill-building, supporting the next generation as they prepare to embark on a future in which AI tools will be used in multiple ways.
By empowering its community with a choice of best-in-class AI solutions, Oxford is reinforcing its position as a global leader in education and research. It’s ensuring that students can leverage the tools and skills they need to become the creators, collaborators, and problem-solvers of tomorrow, while demonstrating how universities can strategically use AI to help their students, staff, and faculty members succeed.
