An AI chatbot is talking to and recording our youngest students throughout the state and nobody asked parents first

If your kid is in kindergarten through second grade in New Mexico public schools, an AI program called Amira is talking to them and recording their voice. And your school probably never asked you. Of the parents tech policy expert Ifeoma Ozoma has spoken to, not one was notified or given a way to opt out.

Ozoma says the real value for this private company is the data: terabytes of voice recordings from five-to-eight-year-olds, with no state privacy protections. Amira’s CEO claims the company “never ever” shares data, but a Willamette Week investigation found its Portland schools contract collects place of birth, disability information, even migrant status, and allows disclosure whenever “required by law.”
Wanna do something about this? Download the opt-out form and turn it in soonish, because assessments start in the first 30 days of school. You can also show up to the SFPS board meeting July 30th and demand Amira be made opt-in. And share this with another parent.