At legislators' retreat, lawmakers discuss AI and economic growth

A modernization agenda is the key to growing New York’s economy is the message being communicated to the state’s newest lawmakers. 

Growth of the New York City technology economy, including positioning the city as a global artificial intelligence hub, and maintaining and improving the state’s transportation infrastructure are top priorities for the economic growth agenda, new lawmakers were told. The messages came from speakers at City & State’s Legislators’ Retreat Friday at the Museum for Jewish Heritage in Lower Manhattan. 

“New York will need to capture a significant share of the growth expected in a range of emerging tech fields, and few will be as important as artificial intelligence, a field that many believe will not only be one of the fastest growing segments of the tech sector in the years ahead, but a key driver of growth in industries across the city's economy,” Jonathan Bowles, executive director of the Center for an Urban Future, told attendees.

Bowles used his remarks to outline an economic agenda that puts AI growth front and center. He said that New York City is well-positioned to be the global hub for applied AI but that it is not a sure thing. Bowles said there are other cities competing for these jobs and among the factors being touted to the industry is low taxes, housing costs and electricity.

Bowles said the outmigration of technology sector workers out of the San Francisco Bay Area, shows that regions considered dominant within an industry should not rest on their laurels but rather look for ways to continue to keep and grow industries. 

“Most importantly, we'll need to make sure New York continues to be the place where top engineers and other tech workers want to be,” Bowles said, noting a need to focus on quality of life in New York. “This more than any economic development policy, certainly more than any incentive or subsidy, has been the key to the city's tech growth in the last couple of decades.”

Bowles cited a recent report from the Center for an Urban Future on growth of the tech economy as a blueprint for policymakers. Among the report’s recommendations are having city officials launch AI city procurements, incentivize AI startups to unlock city data, recruit major AI conferences to the city and launching a city AI Service Corps to grow the workforce. 

State Transportation Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez, in a keynote speech, used her remarks to the conference to highlight the work the state is doing on reconnecting communities, a top priority for Gov. Kathy Hochul, and in the importance of transportation on the state economy. Among the community reconnection projects Dominguez cited are the redesign of traffic in the Hunts Point section of the Bronx, the reconstruction of the Livingston Avenue Bridge in Albany and the major plan to dismantle and reroute I-81 through Syracuse. 

In terms of the I-81 project, Dominguez said it is not just dismantling the highway viaduct and creating a grade level boulevard in the middle of the city and rerouting the highway around Syracuse, but also an economic engine for Central New York. 

“The I-81 project is not just reconnecting the community in Syracuse but also breaking the cycle of poverty by connecting local residents with training and jobs through our local hiring initiative,” she said. 

Dominguez highlighted a number of issues in the department’s agenda, including highway worker safety, noting that cracking down on speeding in workzones benefits the safety of those working on highway repair.

Beth Finkel, the state director for AARP, reminded lawmakers that no matter what the issue, New Yorkers are paying attention. She said that while some may think AARP’s membership base, the seven million New Yorkers over 50, may be hyper focused on senior issues, she said that is not the case for them and all New Yorkers. 

“They care about the issues that we all care about in New York State,” Finkel said.