Sayfullo Saipov was present in court before US District Judge Vernon Broderick but his lawyer David Patton spoke on his behalf.
Saipov, 29 and originally from Uzbekistan, has said he acted in the name of the Islamic State group.
He faced a 22-count indictment that includes charges of murder and provision of material support and resources to a foreign terrorist organisation.
He appeared in court wearing a dark blue prison uniform. His feet were chained together, but not his hands.
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Saipov allegedly drove a rented pickup truck down a mile-long (1.6-kilometre) stretch of bike path in lower Manhattan, where children and their parents were preparing to celebrate Halloween.
Of the eight people killed, five were friends from Argentina celebrating 30 years since their high school graduation. Twelve other people were hurt.
President Donald Trump has called for Saipov to be executed, but a capital punishment case would be extremely rare in New York, which has abolished the death penalty at the state level.
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