New Google partnership to accelerate AI adoption across HE and FE

The new new two-year collaboration was announced today at Google’s Higher Education Leader Series event, The Science & Strategy of the AI-Powered University. It will support universities and colleges in developing the skills and capability to move beyond experimentation towards sustainable, large-scale AI adoption.

AI is creating significant opportunities to enhance teaching, learning, research and student experience. However, many institutions are seeking support to navigate challenges around implementation, governance, capability development and measuring impact. Through this agreement, we will work together with Google to help institutions realise the benefits of AI safely, effectively and at scale.

The partnership will combine Google's expertise in AI innovation with our leadership in digital transformation, governance, sector engagement and evidence generation.

Together, the organisations will deliver a programme of workshops, webinars, leadership engagement, practitioner communities and knowledge-sharing activities focused on developing institutional capability and confidence. Activity will include support around Google Gemini, NotebookLM and related AI technologies.

In addition, the collaboration includes a dedicated Jisc reseller framework that will provide a bespoke route to market of Google Workspace for Education and enable a broader range of selected Google partners to support higher and further education institutions. Alongside licensing, the framework will help institutions explore opportunities relating to AI, cloud technologies, teaching and learning, research, and operational efficiency. Insights from the pilot will help inform Jisc's longer-term approach to supporting members' evolving digital needs.

Luciana Piccoli, head of enterprise systems, Jisc, says:

"The challenge for the sector is no longer whether to engage with AI, but how to do so in ways that deliver meaningful benefits for students, staff and researchers. Equitable access must be central to this transformation. The goal is to support everyone to have access to a baseline level of AI capability, ensuring that the opportunities offered by this potentially transformative technology are not limited by institutional resources or individual circumstances. This partnership will help institutions to effectively experiment and securely integrate AI at scale, enhancing student experience, and developing skills and capabilities."

Alongside Google, we are now working closely with institutions to bring together the first cohort of participants, ensuring representation across different institution types, sizes and levels of AI maturity. This initial cohort will provide an important opportunity to explore how AI can be adopted responsibly and effectively in real-world education and research settings, while identifying challenges, sharing experiences and evaluating the benefits for students, staff and researchers.

The partnership will be supported by institutional leadership engagement, practitioner communities and collaborative evidence gathering, allowing lessons from the first cohort to inform future participation, sector guidance and longer-term approaches to AI adoption.

The first participating institutions will help build a collaborative community that will help shape equitable, responsible and sustainable access to AI across the UK education and research sector.

Anu Manthri, head of Education UK and Ireland, Google for Education, comments:

“Higher education is about progress. Whether that’s students reaching their individual potential, academics pushing the boundaries of knowledge, or internal teams enhancing institution’s capabilities as hubs for innovation.

“At this critical juncture, where technology evolves at unprecedented pace, the sector is navigating a period of significant digital transformation. Institutions have an essential responsibility to use this technology as a partner - rather than a replacement - to enable better use of human expertise, and accelerate positive progress.

“Google are delighted to partner with Jisc on a landmark agreement; it is our shared mission to support Further Education and Higher Education, and our partnership provides a clear pathway for digital transformation for institutions across the UK and Ireland.

“This partnership with Jisc has two key priorities. Firstly, to ensure that all education institutions know that they qualify for free access to our secure, education focused AI tools - Gemini for Education and Gemini Notebook. Secondly, to allow FE and HE institutions to procure enhanced productivity and AI through a clear framework and favourable commercial terms.”

View details of the agreement via the Chest platform.