{"slug": "parents-learned-ai-was-in-their-kids-classrooms-then-they-took-it-to-mamdani-s", "title": "Parents learned AI was in their kids' classrooms. Then they took it to Mamdani's office.", "summary": "New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has imposed a one-year AI moratorium for the city's elementary and middle schools after lobbying from AIM, a coalition of NYC parents, some of whom were unaware their children were using AI chatbots daily. Craig Garrett, a parent who joined AIM, said he was 'horrified and shocked and disappointed' upon learning his 5-year-old daughter interacted with an AI chatbot every day. Supporters argue early AI exposure builds literacy for a tech-driven workforce, while critics, including a Rutgers neuroscientist, warn it may hinder children's problem-solving development.", "body_md": "**Some of them had no idea.**\n\n\"I was kind of horrified and shocked and disappointed,\" [ Craig Garrett told BI](https://www.businessinsider.com/mamdani-school-ai-moratorium-parents-lobbying-classroom-children-2026-9).\n\nAt a school meeting, educators [ revealed the extent of AI use](https://l.businessinsider.com/a/zc/21432/270432a52fa3465a93f72f8e6728ef49/8c7d9e89b332461486e11d06f40884b5) in his daughter's classroom. It was there that Garrett learned his 5-year-old was talking to what he described as an AI chatbot every day.\n\nThat meeting \"radicalized\" many of the parents in the room, Garrett said.\n\nIt led him to join AIM, a coalition of New York City parents that has just [ pushed Mayor Zohran Mamdani to impose a one-year AI moratorium](https://www.businessinsider.com/mamdani-new-york-ciy-schools-ai-moratorium-2026-09) for the city's elementary and middle schools.\n\nBut AIM was not the only group lobbying Mamdani. Some parents [ want AI in the classroom](https://www.businessinsider.com/mamdani-school-ai-moratorium-parents-lobbying-classroom-children-2026-9).\n\n**Proponents see a head start, not a shortcut.**\n\nSupporters say early exposure builds AI literacy for a working world increasingly intertwined with the technology. A world, [ as the White House envisions it](https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefings-statements/2026/03/first-lady-melania-trump-convenes-record-45-nations-at-the-white-house-and-introduces-american-built-humanoid/?utm_source=chatgpt.com), where an always-patient humanoid educator called Plato awaits.\n\nGood for the career, perhaps. But critics worry it is [ bad for the brain](https://www.businessinsider.com/mamdani-school-ai-moratorium-parents-lobbying-classroom-children-2026-9).\n\nA neuroscientist and associate professor at Rutgers University told BI that research suggests AI tools may keep young children from developing their own problem-solving skills.\n\nIn other words, they are outsourcing skills they never sourced themselves.\n\nThe question is not whether children should encounter AI. They almost certainly will. The question is whether classrooms should introduce it before children have learned how to think without it.\n\nWe've collected some of the sharpest tech-and-business commentary on both sides. __Read them here.__", "url": "https://wpnews.pro/news/parents-learned-ai-was-in-their-kids-classrooms-then-they-took-it-to-mamdani-s", "canonical_source": "https://www.businessinsider.com/nyc-schools-ai-moratorium-parents-mamdani-robot-teachers-2026-9", "published_at": "2026-09-04 11:18:00+00:00", "updated_at": "2026-09-04 11:52:56.682728+00:00", "lang": "en", "topics": ["ai-policy", "ai-ethics"], "entities": ["Zohran Mamdani", "AIM", "Craig Garrett", "New York City", "Rutgers University", "White House"], "alternates": {"html": "https://wpnews.pro/news/parents-learned-ai-was-in-their-kids-classrooms-then-they-took-it-to-mamdani-s", "markdown": "https://wpnews.pro/news/parents-learned-ai-was-in-their-kids-classrooms-then-they-took-it-to-mamdani-s.md", "text": "https://wpnews.pro/news/parents-learned-ai-was-in-their-kids-classrooms-then-they-took-it-to-mamdani-s.txt", "jsonld": "https://wpnews.pro/news/parents-learned-ai-was-in-their-kids-classrooms-then-they-took-it-to-mamdani-s.jsonld"}}