Given the AI industry’s influence in the White House, it is highly unlikely we’ll see tech regulation from the federal side. Congress voted 99-1 to strike language from the so-called Big Beautiful Bill that would have preempted state authority to regulate AI. As a result, states remain the primary laboratories for governing the technology.

In Michigan, the proposed gigawatt-scale hyperscale data center in Saline Township is an early test of local control. Construction is scheduled to begin in early 2026. Although the MPSC has approved the project, many questions remain unanswered. Public pressure for transparency has already altered timelines for three other data center projects across the state.

This presentation is the first in a series designed to lay out what AI regulation actually means: how regulatory authority works, how data centers work, their context and their impact on our communities.