On Wednesday, Ross Gerber pushed back against New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s one-year moratorium on student-facing artificial intelligence tools, arguing that schools risk repeating their earlier resistance to computers.
Ross Gerber Mocks NYC AI Ban
Gerber, co-founder, president and CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management, took to X after NYC officials announced the policy.
“All the kids use AI already. What a goof. I remember when they told me I couldn’t use the computer- go use the typewriter they said…” Gerber wrote.
His comments came after Mamdani announced that New York City public schools would suspend the use of roughly 40 AI-powered educational tools during the 2026-27 school year.
Zohran Mamdani Says Students Need Human Connection
The moratorium affects nearly 600,000 public school students from 2-K through eighth grade, making it one of the broadest AI restrictions by a U.S. school district.
High school students will have limited opportunities to use AI, while teachers can use the technology for tasks including lesson planning and scheduling.
“Children need their teachers and human connection in order to learn and grow,” Mamdani said. He added that students need to develop skills with peers, build relationships with educators and “wrestle with tough problems on their own.”
NYC’s Previous ChatGPT Ban
The move also revives memories of NYC schools’ earlier response to AI.
In late 2022, the district temporarily blocked OpenAI’s ChatGPT shortly after its launch, before reversing course in 2023 and working with Microsoft on a custom AI-powered teaching assistant.
Trump, Anthropic Drive AI Education Push
In April 2025, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the federal government to promote AI literacy and proficiency among American youth, including through K-12 AI education, teacher training and public-private partnerships.
In July earlier this year, OpenAI rival Anthropic expanded its push into education by launching Claude for Teachers, offering verified U.S. K-12 educators free access to premium AI tools.
Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.
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