The Education Secretary used her Bett UK Conference speech to set out an ambitious but cautious vision for the role of AI and EdTech in education. She highlighted how AI can support inclusion and personalised learning, illustrated through the example of a specialist teaching assistant using AI to better support Deaf pupils and learners with SEND. While emphasising AI’s potential to represent the biggest shift in learning since the printing press, she repeatedly stressed that technology must be safe, evidence-based, and supportive rather than replacing teachers. Alongside this, she outlined new safety standards for schools, plans to address children’s wellbeing online, forthcoming guidance on screen time, and a firm stance on limiting harmful or excessive digital exposure, particularly around social media and mobile phones.
The speech also set out five national goals for AI in education, covering student digital skills, workforce confidence, high-quality EdTech tools, a data-driven school system, and reliable infrastructure. Central to this agenda was the announcement of a £23 million investment to expand the EdTech Testbeds pilot into a four-year programme, designed to generate robust evidence about what works in real classrooms. Additional commitments included support for assistive technologies, new digital skills pathways for teachers, and a forthcoming schools white paper to guide reform into the 2030s. Throughout, the Secretary reinforced that AI should raise standards, reduce disadvantage, and support ambition, while keeping teachers firmly at the heart of education.
The conference also featured a keynote discussion between Hannah Fry and Amol Rajan that deliberately cut through the hype surrounding AI. Rather than promoting its potential, the conversation focused on clarity, limits, and public understanding. Fry challenged vague definitions and inflated claims, arguing that AI is too often presented as a single, all-purpose solution. At the same time, she acknowledged that recent developments mark a real shift, with modern AI systems now able to work with language and concepts in ways that allow them to identify patterns that humans may overlook.
Rajan steered the discussion toward trust and perception, questioning how AI is understood outside the technology sector and how it is communicated to the public. He emphasised the role of educators and policymakers in balancing optimism with caution, particularly as AI becomes more visible in classrooms. Together, the keynote framed AI not as a miracle tool, but as a powerful technology that requires clear explanation, realistic expectations, and careful integration if it is to earn and maintain public confidence.
