Mayor Mamdani Launches “Public Interest Technology (PIT) Crew” to Rapidly Build Digital Solutions to Public Problems

City will deploy five PIT Crews — including one with support from The Rockefeller Foundation to the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City — to make City services easier to access for working New Yorkers  

First PIT Crew will build an online complaint portal to enforce nation's first “Click to Cancel” protections  

Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani and Chief Technology Officer and Office of Technology & Innovation (OTI) Commissioner Lisa Gelobter today announced the launch of “Public Interest Technology (PIT) Crew,” a new initiative that will deploy teams of technologists alongside City agencies to tackle public problems with in-house digital solutions.  

 

The first PIT Crew will team up with the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (DCWP) to build an online portal that allows New Yorkers to easily file complaints against companies that trap customers in hard-to-cancel, costly subscriptions. The tool will support the Mamdani administration’s implementation of the nation’s first “Click to Cancel” protections.  

 

OTI will deploy a total of five PIT Crews: the first to support Click to Cancel, three more to advance Mayor Mamdani’s agenda of affordability and public excellence and an additional team developed with support from The Rockefeller Foundation to the Mayor’s Fund to Advance New York City. The Rockefeller Foundation has supported efforts to help governments harness the latest technologies to improve processes and systems for underserved communities across the United States.  

 

Each PIT Crew will include product managers, designers, engineers, user researchers and data experts who will work alongside City agencies and New Yorkers to design, build and launch digital solutions on accelerated timelines. Instead of waiting years for new technology, agencies will be able to move from idea to implementation in a matter of months. 

 

“Government should be as responsive and innovative as the people it serves,” said Mayor Mamdani. “New Yorkers should not be forced to navigate systems that are confusing, outdated and burdened by bureaucracy. The PIT Crew turns that model on its head. These teams will move quickly and deliberately to solve real problems, make City government easier to use, deliver for working New Yorkers and advance our agenda of affordability and public excellence. It’s fitting that our first project will enforce our Click to Cancel law by making it easier to hold companies accountable when they engage in predatory practices to squeeze working people.” 

 

“In the twenty-first century, every government service is, in some way, a digital service,” said Chief Technology Officer and OTI Commissioner Lisa Gelobter. “Technology is no longer just how government operates behind the scenes — it is how people experience government. Every confusing process, unnecessary step or difficult interaction makes government harder to navigate. Every simpler experience strengthens trust. New Yorkers shouldn’t have to understand how government is organized to get the services they need. Our job is to make government work better for people. The PIT Crew gives us a new way to do that — partnering with agencies to understand problems, rapidly test ideas, launch solutions, learn from real users and prove what works. By demonstrating better ways of solving public problems, we can help agencies move faster and give New Yorkers the government they deserve.” 

 

“New Yorkers deserve protections that keep pace with technological change, from canceling a recurring subscription with a single click and getting an honest price when booking a hotel, to reporting bad actors without jumping through a labyrinth of bureaucratic hoops. DCWP is thrilled to have a new partner in the NYC PIT Crew to achieve just that,” said DCWP Commissioner Samuel A.A. Levine. “No one should have to navigate the maze of subscription traps or junk fees alone, and no one should struggle to access the government resources they already have. Today’s announcement sends a clear message: this administration is committed to modernizing government, harnessing technology in the public interest and ensuring market innovation works for New Yorkers — not the other way around.” 

 

“At a moment of profound disruption, New Yorkers, like Americans everywhere, want government to deliver for them and we should be able to use today’s incredible technological advances to help” said Dr. Rajiv J. Shah, President of The Rockefeller Foundation. “The Rockefeller Foundation is proud to support our hometown’s PIT Crew initiative, which will be a model for how to harness the latest tools to solve problems and expand opportunity for everyone.” 

 

Experienced product managers, software engineers, designers, user researchers, service designers and other technologists committed to public service are encouraged to learn more and apply to join a PIT Crew at nyc.gov/pitcrew.