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All Mass. residents to get free access to Google AI training classes, Healey says
Gov. Maura Healey, who is increasingly focusing on AI adoption, announced a new partnership with Google.
Every Massachusetts resident will soon have free access to online training courses from Google about artificial intelligence and other technology topics, Gov. Maura Healey announced Thursday.
The tech giant offers professional certificates through its Grow with Google program. Users can enroll in classes on topics like cybersecurity, digital marketing, user experience design, data analytics, and more. There are also a range of courses on AI, including ones tailored for students, educators, small business owners, and people searching for new jobs. Google recently launched the new “AI Professional Certificate,” which teaches a variety of skills.
AI was the main focus of Healey’s remarks, which she delivered Thursday at Google’s office in Kendall Square.
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“We should be the state that takes advantage of what Google has to offer and provide that to all of our residents,” she said.
Healey, who is running for reelection, has increasingly promoted AI and emphasized its importance to the future of the Massachusetts economy. She set aside $100 million in 2024 for AI-related business development, which led to the creation of a new AI hub. Earlier this month, she announced a deal with OpenAI to bring a ChatGPT assistant to some 40,000 state workers.
The governor spoke glowingly about Grow with Google, which will allow anyone interested in “high-growth” fields in the tech sector to learn essential skills for free. The courses normally cost $49 a month after a free weeklong trial period. A form is available online now for those interested in enrolling in a class. The offer will run until at least the end of 2027.
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The partnership with Google, and the classes being offered, “democratize” AI, Healey said. She wants to make Massachusetts the “applied AI capital” of the U.S. and attract talent in a number of sectors. Healey acknowledged that many remain skeptical, or even fearful, of incorporating AI into their everyday lives.
“The more of us that know AI, that understand AI, that work with AI, the safer I believe we’re going to be,” she said.
Half of Americans now say that they are more concerned than excited about the increased use of AI in daily life, compared to just 10% who are more excited than concerned, according to data from the Pew Research Center. The U.S. remains one of the more AI-skeptical countries in the world, according to survey data from Stanford University and Ipsos. AI, and the power-hungry data centers that power the technology, stand to be a defining issue in American politics in the near future.
Secretary of Economic Development Eric Paley said that he hears fears from both those in the tech sector and everyday people about AI. Tech professionals are afraid that Massachusetts will be left behind, while others are afraid of the downstream effects of embracing AI at scale. The partnership with Google is meant to address both of these fears, he said.
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“There are ethical questions that we need to keep embracing,” he said. “But this is happening. This is happening no matter what. And the question is: Do we give people these tools and help them accelerate their work, their productivity, their hireability in the workforce, or not?”
The state’s Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development recently surveyed training providers and found that only 17% of respondents had integrated some AI skills into their curricula, Secretary Lauren Jones said during the Google event. Another 21% plan to integrate AI into their lessons in the near future, but 60% are “eager” for more access to AI tools and training in how to use them, she said.
For Paley, embracing AI is crucial.
“If we do not give people these skills, they’re absolutely going to be left behind,” Paley said. “This would be like saying we don’t want people to learn to use computers, we don’t want people to learn to use email, we don’t want people to learn to use the internet.”
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