Artificial Intelligence
Critics call for more details about Stratos data center in Utah’s west desert
Utah’s Military Installation Development Authority says it’s hitting pause on the project for now.
I stopped being John Henry
COMMENTARY | Don’t mistake the swinging of the hammer for the building of the tunnel, like the 19th century steel-driver, when it comes to embracing AI in government.
Modernization a challenge when systems can’t go down, city leader says
While agencies want to embrace artificial intelligence and retire legacy tech, it’s difficult when those power vital services that cannot break, a senior official said this week.
Developer proposes hyperscale data center at former Eastern Kentucky steel mill
An international company wants to build a hyperscale data center in Eastern Kentucky.
Experts tell Alabama lawmakers to set red lines to protect adolescents from AI, chatbots
A state commission hopes to address adolescent mental health through legislation at the recommendation of industry experts as access to technology, like artificial intelligence, and social media grows for children and teens.
National initiative launches to help public health agencies implement AI
The Coalition for Health AI will select 10 state, local and tribal jurisdictions to participate in an AI pilot program to help develop playbooks on the technology.
Mamdani’s government has started to embrace AI. Will he?
The personally AI-avoidant mayor faces calls to both expand use of cutting-edge technologies and put in guardrails to curb their usage.
How NYC government is using AI
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani may not use ChatGPT, but his agencies have adopted chatbots and other artificial intelligence.
After months of debate, Virginia fails to pass data center clean energy requirements
The state will tax data center electricity but plans to reduce emissions at the facilities and secure environmental protections went nowhere.
The new trust challenge facing state and local government
COMMENTARY | Residents receive information through systems that sit between the publisher and public, like AI and search engines. Accountability, then, becomes harder to follow.
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Lee County residents demand pause on North Carolina data center, claiming deception
Lee County residents demand pause on proposed data center, citing noise pollution, environmental impacts and a lack of transparency.
What Rhode Island lawmakers did — and didn’t do — on AI, crypto and data centers
Lawmakers passed limited AI rules for companion models and healthcare. Broader tech regulations, including data centers, largely stalled, although a cryptocurrency study commission is finally coming.
New York governor signs nation’s first moratorium on large data centers
Kathy Hochul said the one-year ban on hyperscale data centers comes alongside an effort to establish standards for their development and prevent residents footing the bill.
AI, once relegated to helping hackers with certain tasks, can now power every stage of a cyberattack
Researchers determined that AI was used in steps across entire cyber operations to identify security flaws, generate commands and carry out parts of intrusions, sometimes with little human oversight. Both U.S. and Chinese AI models have been involved.
AI’s real promise for government: Shortening the distance from data to decision
COMMENTARY | The speed of decision-making matters for those in charge of government programs. AI can change that process from months to days, hours or minutes.
Missoula County adopts temporary moratorium on data centers
The interim freeze would prohibit new or expanded data centers in the Montana county, excluding the city of Missoula.
The nation’s housing crisis needs more than AI to solve it, experts say
The technology is just one of many levers to effecting change in the housing landscape for states and localities, experts say.
Illinois governor signs major AI safety law
The legislation requires large developers to identify, disclose and mitigate risks, protects whistleblowers and — in a national first — mandates regular third-party audits.
This permit, common for dry cleaners, is now being used to build AI power plants
Texas regulators are allowing AI data centers across the state to start up thousands of new pollution sources with no public notice or environmental reviews.
California has started to track AI-related job loss
While such insights can be helpful for protecting workers against negative impacts of the technology, decision-makers should proceed with caution when using such data, experts say.
