The micro:bit CreateAI US pilot project, supported by Google.org
Creating and testing an ambitious programme, providing professional development and support to teachers, to enable them to teach children across the USA about artificial intelligence (AI).
With the generous support of Google.org, we are excited to expand the reach of micro:bit CreateAI, our safe, innovative educational tool that allows children as young as eight to create AI using a BBC micro:bit.
Technology is moving at an unprecedented pace and education systems worldwide are facing the challenge of how to prepare young people for their AI-enabled present and future. Many organisations have started to address this challenge, for instance UNESCO’s AI Competency Framework for teachers and OECD-EU Commission’s Empowering Learners for the Age of AI (draft 2025). But how can we put such frameworks into practice in the classroom, in ways that are tangible and applicable in the real world?
Empowering teachers and students across the US with AI literacy skills
micro:bit CreateAI is our free, web-based tool that makes it easy for anyone to explore AI through movement and machine learning, and take it into the real world with a BBC micro:bit. You can train a machine learning model with your own movement data and run it on your micro:bit. You can then create a program to use on your micro:bit anywhere. With CreateAI, students from as young as 8 years old can design an AI-powered piece of tech, developing their literacy around AI as they do so.
This makes CreateAI an ideal tool to support educators to teach young people about AI. So, we are pleased to announce that the Micro:bit Educational Foundation is developing a pilot project that will take CreateAI into every state across the US, with the generous support of Google.org.
The goal of the project is to provide all Grade 4-8 teachers in the US and internationally with standard educational resources and professional development to support them in teaching young people about AI. The pilot specifically will give important detailed insights into how teachers are using these resources with their students and help inform future activities, which we will also share with the wider community.
Preparing for a future with AI
The ultimate ambition for the program is that students will be equipped with a strong foundational understanding of how AI works and how they themselves can be creators of AI. This will provide them with important 21st century skills and give them inspiration for how they can work with technology in future.
By enabling young people to see themselves not just as consumers, but creators of AI and technology, we help ensure more young people around the world are inspired to create their best digital future.
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AI is an inevitable part of children’s futures, so this ambitious project, with the generous support of Google.org, is timely. micro:bit CreateAI is such a hands-on way to capture children’s imaginations about the possibilities of AI, and we are excited to develop the offer for teachers and students across the US and around the world.
Melanie Washington, Chief Partnerships Officer, Micro:bit Educational Foundation
