Human First in the Age of AI: Reflections from Coaching at the 20th Anniversary Google Innovator Academy
By Janna G.
Last week, I had the honor of traveling to Sweden to serve as a coach for the Google Certified Innovator Academy during its landmark 20th anniversary. Alongside a team of fellow coaches and event organizers, all former innovators themselves, I spent the week guiding a truly international cohort of passionate educators representing 18 countries.
Over the years, the academy has evolved to help educators develop solutions to the challenges they bring with them using the Design Thinking process. This year, that framework was taken a step further through the integration of artificial intelligence. Rather than using AI solely to build prototypes, educators utilized it as a thought partner and even as a target user profile to unlock deeper empathy insights. This approach allowed us to examine systemic challenges in education from entirely new and innovative perspectives.
“Brain first.” This core message resonated throughout every workshop, brainstorming session, and prototype discussion. It served as a reminder that no matter how advanced our technology or AI tools become, the most powerful, creative, and essential resource in any room will always be people.
Practicing “Brain First” thinking means keeping humans at the center of every stage of development. At the Google Innovator Academy, AI served as a thought partner to generate ideas and simulate user personas within the Design Thinking process, but the final decisions always remained with educators, who critically reviewed and evaluated every output.
Beyond the framework of Design Thinking and the integration of AI, the heart of the academy was its strong sense of community and collaboration. It was inspiring to witness educators from diverse cultures, backgrounds, and school systems transcend geographic boundaries as they formed authentic connections and worked together to address shared educational challenges.
We were not simply solving localized educational problems. We were building a global network of support and innovation. These cross border human connections demonstrated that our shared commitment to improving education creates bonds stronger than any technology ever could.
I feel incredibly fortunate to have been part of such an inspiring milestone academy. The meaningful relationships formed, the collaborative spirit fostered, and the innovative ideas explored have left a lasting impact on me. I am excited to bring these insights, human centered AI frameworks, and a renewed passion for community back to VIS.
