Bold Insight researchers are among the co-authors of a new peer-reviewed study in Frontiers in Artificial Intelligence, finding that generative AI-powered learning tools can meaningfully improve student outcomes over traditional digital textbooks. Partner Scott Siebert, Senior UX Researcher Lucy Tootill, and UX Researchers Abraham Ortiz Tapia and Nicole Miller collaborated with Google researchers on the article, “An Experimental Evaluation of an AI-Powered Interactive Learning Platform.”

The study grew out of a partnership between Bold Insight and Google to assess Learn Your Way, an experimental platform developed by Google Labs that transforms textbook content into dynamic visual and audio representations. Leveraging expertise in evaluating emerging technologies, Bold Insight’s team supported data collection and reporting throughout the research, conducting a mixed-methods study with 60 US-based high school students.

The findings demonstrate that students who used Learn Your Way had a more positive learning experience and achieved better learning outcomes than those using the digital textbook. Students responded especially positively to the platform’s dynamic representations of content, interactive quizzes, and feedback mechanisms, pointing to the potential of AI-driven tools that give learners meaningful choice in how they engage with material.

“This research reflects what we see time and again in our work, that how people interact with a tool matters just as much as the tool itself,” said Siebert. “Working with Google to rigorously test this platform gave us the opportunity to bring our human factors lens to an emerging space, and the results make a strong case for designing AI learning tools around the real needs and preferences of students.”

The paper is an open-access resource, freely available to researchers, educators, and industry professionals. Download the full paper here.

About Frontiers
Frontiers is one of the world’s largest and most impactful research publishers, dedicated to making peer-reviewed, quality-certified science openly accessible. Their mission is to make science open so that scientists can collaborate better and innovate faster to deliver the solutions that enable healthy lives on a healthy planet.

About Bold Insight
Bold Insight is a UX and human factors research agency that helps consumer technology companies build products people actually want to use. We specialize in user research, usability testing, and human factors engineering across connected devices, wearables, mobile apps, and emerging technology platforms. Our work ensures that products are intuitive, effective, and ready for market. Bold Insight is part of the ReSight Global and UXalliance network, with offices in the US and UK, with partners worldwide. Learn more about our work in AI research.