NYC Imposes One-Year AI Moratorium for Students Through 8th Grade

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels have imposed a one-year moratorium on student-facing generative artificial intelligence in public schools from 2-K through eighth grade, affecting nearly 600,000 students in the nation's largest school district.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announces a one-year moratorium on student-facing generative AI for students through eighth grade.

The policy covers the 2026-27 school year and is described by the city as the most expansive student-facing AI policy in the country. 

The moratorium does not amount to a total ban on AI throughout the school system.

High school students will be allowed to participate in five limited, teacher-supervised AI pilot programs, while every high school student will receive AI-literacy instruction through 45-minute modules twice a year. 

The city also said it will discontinue or disable AI components in more than 38 educational programs that do not meet its new safety and oversight standards. 

AI companion and mental-health chatbots will be prohibited for students across grade levels.

Teachers will still be permitted to use AI for lesson planning and certain administrative tasks, while the city will conduct a broader review of classroom technology.

Mamdani said the policy is intended to keep younger students focused on direct instruction, human interaction, creativity and independent problem-solving while preparing older students to navigate a world increasingly shaped by AI. 

The policy will be evaluated during the 2026-27 school year rather than serving as a permanent prohibition.