Google is offering third-level students in Ireland 12 months of Gemini AI Plus at no charge, alongside a national prompting competition with more than €10,000 in prizes. The practical catch is worth clocking: students need to add a payment method, and the subscription switches to a paid monthly plan after the free year unless cancelled.
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What happened
The University Times reports that students can claim the offer by signing in with a personal Google account, visiting Google’s Gemini for Students page and verifying student status with a college email. The free year includes 400GB of cloud storage, unlimited file uploads, Study Notebooks and Gemini Live. Google Ireland launched the initiative on 24 September, the paper says.
The Gemini for Students Prompting Championships are open to students in any discipline, with no technical background required. Entrants submit prompts for solving everyday problems such as budgeting or revision. Shortlisted finalists compete live at Google’s Dublin office; registration closes on 22 October.
Google is also starting free, hands-on Gemini Academy workshops on campuses, though the colleges involved have not been named. Separately, a free AI-skills programme for students heading into non-technical careers is being offered at Maynooth and DCU.
Why it matters
This is a sizeable free trial for students, not just another AI workshop announcement. The offer bundles Gemini access with storage and study features, while the competition gives students a reason to experiment with prompting on practical tasks. The renewal terms matter: “free for a year” can become a subscription people did not mean to keep.
Our read
There is useful substance here, from a clear eligibility route to a real competition deadline. Students considering the offer should check the terms and set a cancellation reminder if they do not want a paid plan afterwards. A payment method is a small detail with an impressive talent for being forgotten.
What to watch
- Which colleges will host Gemini Academy workshops.
- The full competition rules and the projects shortlisted for the Dublin final.
- Whether Google expands the AI-skills programme beyond Maynooth and DCU.
Discussion spark: Should universities encourage students to use free AI subscriptions when the offer auto-renews into a paid plan, or should providers have to make renewal opt-in?
Sources and evidence
- Google Gives Students a Free Year of Gemini AI Plus, and Launches €10k Prompting Competition – The University Times (13 October 2026, 00:00 UTC)
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