New Delhi: Indian college students will be able to access Google AI Plus free for one year, as Google rolls out a new set of AI-powered tools aimed at helping students prepare for exams, organise coursework and conduct research.
The offer gives eligible students access to Gemini Omni, twice the standard Gemini usage limits and 400 GB of storage, among other benefits. Google is also offering students a bundle of Google AI Pro and YouTube Premium at up to 70% off.
But the bigger push is around how students can use Google’s AI tools for learning.
Google has added practice quizzes for major competitive and standardised examinations, including JEE and NEET, alongside tools that can turn course material into personalised study plans, explain difficult concepts through interactive simulations and help students work through problems using images.
For an Indian student, this means Google’s AI ecosystem is moving beyond being a general-purpose chatbot to offering tools specifically geared towards exam preparation and academic work.
JEE, NEET preparation gets an AI layer
One of the more relevant additions for Indian students is the ability to generate practice quizzes for JEE and NEET directly through Google Search. The quiz feature can also be used for exams including the ACT, AP, ENEM, GRE, LSAT, MCAT and SAT.
Google said it has partnered with education companies including The Princeton Review, Careers360, PhysicsWallah and Akira Enem to provide content for these quizzes.
The interactive quizzes provide explanations for answers and links to additional resources, allowing students to use them not just for testing but also for identifying areas that need more work. The practice quiz feature is available globally in English through Google’s AI Overviews and AI Mode.
From lecture notes to personalised study plans
For college students, Google’s study notebooks are perhaps the more significant addition. Students can upload their own academic material, such as lecture notes, and Gemini can create a study plan around those materials.
It can also conduct a diagnostic quiz to identify gaps in the student’s understanding and then generate bite-sized lessons and quizzes based on those gaps. A progress dashboard helps students track their learning.
Google is also working on adding graphs and images to these lessons.
Another feature could be particularly useful for students managing multiple courses. With their permission, Gemini can identify examination and assignment dates from a syllabus and add them to Google Calendar.
AI that explains, rather than just answers
Google is also expanding interactive visualisations in Gemini. Students can ask Gemini to create 3D models, simulations, tables and other visual explanations for concepts that may be difficult to understand through text alone.
A biology student, for example, can ask for a 3D explanation of DNA and interact with the resulting model by rotating and zooming into it. Google is also bringing a new learning experience to Google Lens, allowing students to photograph a problem they are working on.
The AI can explain the concept, identify where the student may have gone wrong and guide them through the next step. Students can continue the discussion in AI Mode if they need further clarification. The Lens-based learning experience will roll out globally in English in the coming weeks.
Gemini Live gets Deep Research
Google is also bringing Deep Research to Gemini Live, allowing students to initiate detailed, multi-step research through a voice conversation.
A student can ask Gemini to research a topic, leave the conversation and return when the report is ready. Gemini will work on the research in the background and notify the user when it is complete. Students can then discuss the report, ask follow-up questions or refine the research using voice.
For higher education students, the feature could have applications beyond exam preparation, particularly for assignments, research projects and exploratory learning.
Search becomes a study workspace
Google is also bringing notebooks to AI Mode, allowing students to create separate spaces for courses and projects. Students can add lecture slides, syllabi, web articles and previous AI Mode conversations to a notebook and then ask questions based on those sources.
Existing notebooks created in Gemini Notebook, formerly NotebookLM, or the Gemini app will also appear in Search, with their sources and instructions synced across Google’s products. The notebooks are rolling out across more than 180 countries in English, with local-language support to follow.
Students will also be able to create custom study files from their course material. For example, a student can upload handwritten notes and lecture slides and ask Search to create a one-page summary of key concepts. The feature initially supports documents, presentations, spreadsheets and text files.
What the offer means for students
Google’s move comes at a time when AI tools are becoming increasingly embedded in how students search for information, prepare for examinations and complete academic work.
For Indian students, the combination of free AI access, JEE and NEET preparation tools, personalised study plans and academic research features makes the latest Google offering more than a conventional student subscription.
The challenge, however, will be how students use these tools. The value of AI-assisted learning will depend on whether it helps students understand concepts and identify gaps in their knowledge, rather than simply generating answers.
Google said its education tools are designed to be safe and based on learning science, with the aim of supporting personalised learning while keeping teachers in the lead.
