Lego Teaches Kids AI Without Screens or Data Collection

Schools across America are about to get smarter about teaching artificial intelligence, and it starts with colorful plastic bricks instead of computer screens.

Lego Education unveiled its Computer Science and AI Learning Solution this week, designed for students from kindergarten through eighth grade. The kits teach fundamental concepts like probability, algorithmic bias, and machine perception through classic Lego building combined with motors and sensors.

What makes this different from typical AI education? Everything stays local. Andrew Silwinski, Lego Education's head of product experience, emphasizes that no student data ever travels across the internet. Kids can train their own machine learning models entirely on classroom devices, even decade-old Chromebooks.

The company drew hard lines about what AI education should not be. The lessons never treat AI as magical or human-like, deliberately avoiding the conversational interfaces that make tools like ChatGPT feel almost alive. Instead, students learn the mechanics behind the technology through tangible, physical models they build themselves.

Lego started developing these courses before generative AI dominated headlines. Their goal was teaching computer science fundamentals that happen to include AI concepts, not creating junior prompt engineers. Students learn coding, loops, conditionals, and event sequences alongside AI principles.

The kits work for four students at a time with comprehensive teacher support included. Lego designed everything knowing many teachers feel unprepared to teach these subjects. A commissioned study found that half of teachers globally say current computer science resources leave students bored and disconnected from their daily lives.

The Ripple Effect

The youngest students can use these kits without screens at all. The sets include a mode where motors and sensors connect together in a mesh network, creating complex interactions through purely physical building.

Teachers receive complete lesson materials, training notes, and presentation tools regardless of their existing tech fluency. Lego Education also works directly with schools to create appropriate starting points, whether students begin in kindergarten or jump in at middle school.

Single kits start at $340 for grades K-2, with higher grade levels priced up to $530. Each kit serves four students, and schools can purchase multi-kit bundles or request district-wide quotes. The first shipments begin in April.

This approach mirrors Lego's recent Smart Play system, where technology enhances play without requiring apps or connectivity. By making AI education hands-on and offline, Lego transforms abstract concepts into something kids can literally build and understand with their own hands.