New York City is hitting pause on AI in its classrooms, at least for younger kids. Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Wednesday unveiled a one-year prohibition on students using generative AI from 2-K through 8th grade starting in the 2026–27 school year, which begins Sept. 10. The move will cover nearly 600,000 children, reports ABC7. AI-powered tools and chatbots aimed at students will be off-limits while a coalition of educators, parents, experts, and elected officials studies their impact. “The tech industry wants us to believe that AI-powered early education is not only inevitable, but necessary,” said Mamdani. “We do not see it that way.”
As for the city’s high schools, AI pilot programs will run in some classrooms, and twice-yearly lessons on AI literacy, bias, ethics, and critical thinking will be held. Teachers can still use AI for planning and paperwork but not grading. The policy also caps daily screen time for younger grades, with no more than 30 minutes for grades 3 to 5 and 45 minutes for grades 6 to 8; even younger grades get no screens. The city described the policy “as the most expansive prohibition in the country,” as NBC New York puts it. The New York Times reports that roughly 40 apps with AI elements that had previously been used by students will be removed or altered.