A rural New York school district paused an AI robot teacher pilot after backlash from state officials, teachers, and community residents over student data privacy. Salamanca City Central School District board members approved the nearly $60,000 purchase of a robot named “Sally” from Realbotix, described as stationary and intended to support high school robotics and technology studies. State Education Commissioner Betty Rosa and unionized teachers raised concerns tied to data use and security agreements, and teachers also criticized the vendor’s connections to a sister company associated with sex bots. The district said the robot pilot remains on hold while it negotiates “enhanced student data privacy agreements” with state officials and continues community outreach. The episode matters for higher education leaders advising K-12-to-college pathways and for campuses piloting AI tools: it underscores how quickly vendor risk, privacy terms, and community concerns can stall adoption.