Mamdanis AI ban may not be enough to protect NYC students

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani stood at a podium today (Sep.

2) and said the words "moratorium on generative AI" to a national audience.

To those fighting to ban artificial intelligence in schools across the country, this moment was huge .

Mamdani, speaking alongside NYC Chancellor Kamar Samuels, announced the new comprehensive, human-first AI policy for the nation's largest school district.

"The tech industry wants us to believe that A.I.-powered early education is not only inevitable, but necessary," Mamdani said to press.

"We do not see it that way." The new guidelines — an update to a system-wide AI rulebook launched in March — include a ban on chatbots and a one-year pause on the use of AI tools for students in pre-K through the eighth grade.

The guidelines also bar individualized screen time for pre-K through second grade.

The city says around 38 programs were flagged by the district as violating new policies following an audit of the system's current EdTech, which will either be removed entirely or have their AI features "disabled." New York City's new policies are some of the strictest AI guidelines in the state, potentially nationwide.

SEE ALSO: Is Meta finally backing a federal kids safety bill, or is it all PR? Nationwide call for AI bans New York City schools are not the first to place limits on AI use among students, following a concerted, nationwide effort from parents, educators, and child safety advocates who have joined together to call for moratoriums on the technology and a hard line on tech usage in classrooms.

One such group is the AI Moratorium (AIM) Coalition, made up of local and national parent organizations like environmental group Climate Families NYC , Class Size Matters , and the Parent Coalition for Student Privacy .

The AIM Coalition has been on the front lines of the fight in NYC.

In April and July, the group held public rallies urging the mayor's office to intervene in proposed AI adoption across the NYC school system.

The group has gathered more than 6,000 signatures on a petition to the mayor's office calling for a two year AI moratorium across city schools, and penned a second letter to Mamdani on behalf of the group NYC Artists Against AI.

The letter has been signed by more than 200 creatives, including actors Elliot Page and Mark Ruffalo and Broad City stars Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobsen.