In summer 2025, Microsoft hosted an AI workshop for 200 teachers at the United Federation of Teachers headquarters in Manhattan, promoting its Copilot chatbot and Minecraft Education videos. The session mirrored similar corporate-led trainings by Amazon, Apple, Meta, OpenAI, and Alphabet. Dr. Adriane Fugh-Berman of Georgetown University Medical Center compared these to pharmaceutical industry seminars for doctors, noting, "Industry funds what helps industry." While such workshops help educators learn new tools, they also serve as marketing, offering a sanitized view of product risks.

The next day, the American Federation of Teachers (A.F.T.), with 1.8 million members, announced a $23 million nationwide AI teacher training program funded by Microsoft, OpenAI, and Anthropic. A.F.T. president Randi Weingarten said the partnership would help educators use chatbots "safely, wisely and ethically" and gain influence with tech giants. However, concerns persist about conflicts of interest, as Big Tech trade groups lobby against AI regulations while funding educator training. Over the past decade, schools have embraced tech industry involvement with minimal scrutiny, allowing a few giants to shape the education supply chain through money, platforms, and sponsored curricula.