Mamdani says feds have abdicated on AI, urges New Yorkers to push back
Mayor Mamdani urged New Yorkers to resist AI's unchecked rollout, criticizing federal inaction on regulation.Summary
New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and activist Ilana Glazer spoke at The People's AI Assembly at Webster Hall in Manhattan, hosted by the AI Now Institute, about the future of AI in society. Mamdani encouraged New Yorkers to resist the feeling that AI is inevitably taking over their jobs, children's minds, and dignity, and to take back control instead. He argued that the rapid rollout of AI is not inevitable and that public officials should hold AI companies accountable, especially as the federal government does little to regulate AI, leaving cities to act on their own. Mamdani recently banned AI use in elementary and middle schools and introduced a policy requiring disclosure of AI-generated listing photos to protect against "house-phishing." He criticized the "complete abdication of federal law" on AI, pointing to the framing of AI as an arms race with China that sidelines humanistic concerns. He also cited the U.S. military's February strike in Iran that killed over 150 people as an example of the dangers of overreliance on AI in targeting. Mamdani called for a different framework for thinking about and regulating AI in the future.
(Source：TechCrunch)