New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Schools Chancellor Kamar Samuels announced on Sept. 2 a one-year moratorium on student-facing generative artificial intelligence (AI) for students in 2-K through eighth grade, along with new screen time limits and restricted AI pilots for high school students.
The policy will take effect during the 2026-27 school year and affect nearly 600,000 students, or about two-thirds of New York City Public Schools enrollment.
Under the policy, the school system will prohibit student-facing generative AI software for students through eighth grade and ban companion chatbots across all grade levels. Teachers may continue using AI for instructional planning and operational work if the tools meet school system safety standards.
Exceptions will apply for assistive technology used by students with disabilities, multilingual learners, and students participating in career readiness programs such as computer science.
“Children need teachers and human connection in order to learn and grow. They need to develop skills alongside their peers, build relationships with educators and wrestle with tough problems on their own,” Mamdani said.
For high school students, the city will introduce five limited AI pilots reaching no more than 50,000 students in general education classes, or about 5% of the public school population.
Participating schools may offer the pilots in no more than five classes per high school, with students using vetted AI tools under the direct supervision of trained educators.
The pilots include Quill for English language arts, Edia for math, Brisk Teaching for teacher-created activities, Playlab for examining AI outputs and bias, and Intel AI-Ready Schools for semester-long projects focused on community problems and AI solutions.
Use of the tools will vary by pilot. Quill, for example, will be capped at 15 minutes per week, while Edia will be limited to 20 minutes per week. Intel’s program will be used for one class period each week.
All high school students will also have access to two 45-minute AI literacy modules each year. The instruction will cover how AI works, bias and other risks, ethical considerations, and the technology’s implications for careers and future skills.
“As Chancellor and as a parent, I believe our job is to protect what makes learning work, while ensuring every child has the critical thinking skills they need before graduating,” Samuels said.
The policy also establishes new screen time guidelines. Students in second grade and below will face restrictions on one-to-one screen time, while the city recommends daily caps of 30 minutes for students in grades three through five and 45 minutes for students in grades six through eight.
New York City Public Schools will also review technology tools used throughout the system and bar products that officials determine are not mission-critical to learning.
The reviews will consider vendor safety and transparency, ethics, instructional impact, existing research, learning design, and user feedback.
