Mamdani Backs Push for Hochul to Sign NY Data Center Bill

A direct question on stage

The moment came at the "People's AI Assembly," organized by the AI Now Institute and More Perfect Union. Actress and advocate Ilana Glazer asked the mayor whether he would press Gov. Hochul to sign the "Responsible Data Center Development Act." According to the AI Now Institute, the bill passed New York state legislation earlier this year.

Mamdani's reply, as described by the institute, was a "simple and resolute" yes. The AI Now Institute headlined its account as Mamdani backing a major expansion of New York's data center moratorium. The text provided does not spell out the bill's provisions or say when the governor must act, so those details remain unconfirmed here.

A packed hall at Webster Hall

The assembly took place on Monday night at Webster Hall in New York City. The AI Now Institute reports that the entry line wrapped "comfortably around the block." It described the collective anxiety over AI development as palpable in the room.

The institute lists a varied crowd. Attendees included:

• college students carrying "no data center" signs
• concerned parents of school-age children
• some tech workers employed by companies that sell the technology

This mix suggests the concern is not limited to one group, though the source offers no attendance figures.

Growing public unease about data centers

The AI Now Institute says numerous surveys find that anti-AI sentiment, and specifically anti-data-center sentiment, has grown nationwide over the past year. The source does not name the surveys or give figures, so the scale of that shift cannot be verified from this text alone.

Data centers are the large facilities that house the computing power behind AI systems. Local debate over where they are built and how they are regulated is the context for the state bill that Mamdani wants the governor to sign.

What it means

Mamdani's public backing adds the weight of the mayor of the country's largest city to a bill that has already cleared the state legislature. The decision now rests with Gov. Hochul. The source does not say whether she has indicated a position or when she will decide.

For the AI industry, the event shows that opposition to data center expansion is organizing in public venues and drawing in people from different backgrounds, according to the AI Now Institute's account. Whether the bill becomes law depends on the governor's action, which the source does not report.