New York City Schools To Temporarily Ban Generative AI For Students Through Grade 8, Launch AI Literacy Classes For High Schoolers | Video

New York City's public schools will temporarily prohibit the use of generative AI tools for students in grades through 8th grade, Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced on September 2, 2026. This one-year moratorium, aimed at assessing children's interaction with the technology, is the most extensive prohibition of its kind in the country.

The policy covers all software utilizing student-facing generative AI. Concurrently, the city will introduce twice-yearly AI literacy classes for high school students and pilot programs for some high schoolers to gain experience with AI platforms under an educator's supervision. Companion chatbots will be banned across all grade levels.

Mayor Mamdani emphasized the importance of teaching students to question, challenge assumptions, and interrogate premises when it comes to AI in schools. Over 12,000 IIT aspirants also petitioned the government for a third JEE Advanced attempt, urging amendments to existing attempt rules.

The city will recommend screen time limits, with a maximum of 30 minutes daily for students in grades 3 to 5 and 45 minutes for students in grades 6 to 8. Teachers will be permitted to use AI for instructional planning and operational tasks. At least 37 states have established AI guidance for schools, though there is no uniform definition of AI literacy or teaching methods.

New York state banned students' cellphone use in schools last year. City education officials will conduct a comprehensive review of all technology tools used in the school system, potentially eliminating non-essential tools. While UFT President Michael Mulgrew commended the screen time limits, he criticized the AI policy, stating that it leaves many questions unanswered, particularly regarding the department's efforts to ensure purchased products have AI safeguards. New York City's public school students are set to return to the classroom next week.