This week, the United Arab Emirates announced that it will implement an AI curriculum across all levels of public education in the next academic year. In doing so, it joins Brazil, China, South Korea and Singapore, all of which have already made computer science or AI mandatory for all students.

On April 23, President Donald Trump signed an executive order that seeks to foster U.S. AI literacy from a young age through grants for training computer science and AI teachers, public-private partnerships to enhance classroom resources and a national AI-education task force to track progress and gaps ​in K-12 computer science and AI.

“Early learning and exposure to AI concepts not only demystifies this powerful technology but also sparks curiosity and creativity, preparing students to become active and responsible participants in the workforce of the future and nurturing the next generation of American AI innovators to propel our nation to new heights of scientific and economic achievement,” says the order titled “Advancing Artificial Intelligence Education for American Youth.”

While some parents and educators worry that popular generative AI tools like ChatGPT could promote cheating and undermine students’ critical thinking and writing skills, the involvement of so many top executives in the conversation about AI and the classroom spotlights both the potential benefits of artificial intelligence literacy for youth and the growing push to make it a core part of U.S. education.