A Blueprint for Cities to Own Their AI Infrastructure

The private sector now owns more than 80% of AI supercomputer performance, while the public sector’s share has dropped from about 60% in 2019 to less than 20%. On the current trajectory, local government’s only relationship with AI compute may soon be to receive an invoice from a handful of consolidated owners. Principal Preston Rhea has a different vision: cities and counties building their own small, right-sized data centers to run AI for public services on their own terms, to maintain competency over mission critical assets for the 21^st Century.

In a new essay for the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, Preston makes the case for public municipal data centers, drawing lessons from the municipal broadband movement and pointing to real-world models like EPB of Chattanooga. Read it here.

Preston also unpacked the idea live at Benton’s “A New Compact for Connectivity” convening in Washington, DC on September 24. Watch his lightning talk here.