Why Do High Schools Need AI Education?

September 28, 2025

From Nobel Prizes to Hollywood

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is no longer just powering apps on our phones. It's shaping science, medicine, art, and even the movies we watch. For our children, AI is not a distant future. It's here now. If high schools want to prepare students for the world ahead, AI education must be part of the curriculum. These two recent examples, one from science, one from entertainment, make this crystal clear.

Science at the Highest Level: The 2024 Nobel Prize in Chemistry

In 2024, the Nobel Prize in Chemistry was awarded to scientists whose groundbreaking work was made possible by AI. AlphaFold, developed by Hassabis and Jumper, solved a decades-old challenge: predicting how proteins fold into their 3D shapes. This is a critical breakthrough for biology and medicine, enabling faster drug discovery, new disease insights, and even environmental applications like enzymes that break down plastic.

This Nobel Prize was not just a win for chemistry. It was a win for AI as a tool of discovery. It shows that the next generation of scientists will need AI literacy to push the boundaries of knowledge.

Creativity and Storytelling: OpenAI's Critterz

AI is also making its mark on the arts. OpenAI is backing an animated feature film called Critterz, produced largely with its AI tools.

  • The movie is being developed in under nine months with a budget below $30 million, far faster and cheaper than traditional animation.
  • Tools like GPT-5 (for script development) and image-generation systems (for design and animation workflows) are central to the process.
  • Human artists remain part of the team, but AI accelerates production and opens creative possibilities that once required massive studio resources.

This shows students that AI is not just about coding. It's about storytelling, creativity, and rethinking industries once thought untouchable by automation.

What These Examples Mean for Our Schools

Together, the Nobel Prize and Critterz highlight a truth parents and educators can't ignore: AI is reshaping both science and culture at the highest levels.

  • Relevance across fields: Whether our kids want to be doctors, filmmakers, or entrepreneurs, AI will play a role in their work.
  • Inspiration, not intimidation: Real-world examples show students that AI isn't abstract or scary. It's a tool they can learn and use to make an impact.
  • Ethics and responsibility: Powerful tools bring powerful questions. Who controls these systems? How do we prevent bias, misuse, or inequality? High school is the right place to start teaching these values.
  • Democratization of opportunity: Just as calculators once became standard in math classes, AI tools are lowering barriers in science and art. Giving students early exposure ensures they aren't left behind.

These real stories are more than headlines. They are signals of a world where AI is part of discovery and creativity alike. Our high schools must prepare students not just to live in that world, but to shape it.

AI education isn't about turning every teenager into a computer scientist. It's about ensuring every student, future doctor, artist, lawyer, or teacher has the knowledge to understand, question, and use the tools that will define their future. Because the truth is simple: the future is already here. Our students deserve to be ready for it.