America's economic growth is increasingly driven by massive AI infrastructure investment, with tech giants pouring trillions into data centers and software while traditional manufacturing continues to contract. While spending on data centers is up 18% this year, creating jobs in construction and trades, it is also straining power supplies and diverting capital from factory construction, which is down 2.5%, highlighting the tension between the White House's AI ambitions and promise to revive US manufacturing.

Entergy Mississippi is committing $1.2 billion to upgrade its energy infrastructure, focusing on the construction of the Vicksburg Advanced Power Station. The investment aims to replace older natural gas plants with state-of-the-art, efficient facilities, supporting both the reliability of the grid and economic development in the region. The initiative is also expected to minimize customer rate impacts and create jobs.

FirstEnergy projects a 45% increase in system peak load by 2035, rising from 33.5 GW to 48.5 GW, primarily driven by the rapid expansion of data centers. The company currently has 3.8 GW of contracted data center load and 11.7 GW in potential agreements, reflecting substantial growth -- up 30% and 92%, respectively, since February. FirstEnergy anticipates that this data center demand will significantly increase industrial electric loads in the coming years.

PJM Interconnection is facing a generating capacity crisis as data centers continue to drive up power demand. One of its biggest problems is a lengthy and costly interconnection process that can take over eight years, asserts the team from RMI. RMI recommends several changes to mitigate the issue, including using third-party software to automate and accelerate interconnection studies.

American Transmission Systems, a FirstEnergy unit, is building a substation and a 9-mile, 345-kV transmission line in Ohio's Fulton County to reduce outages and enhance reliability. The project is part of the $28 billion Energize365 grid modernization program and is expected to be completed by December 2026, serving areas including Delta Village and several townships.

The US and China have reached a preliminary consensus on a number of topics, potentially setting the stage for President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping to finalize a deal. The US' earlier threat to impose a 100% tariff on imports from China "is effectively off the table," according to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Separately, the US has also announced trade deals with Cambodia and Malaysia.

Hawaiian Electric has proposed a Backup Power Rebate Program for customers in areas at risk of wildfires, offering rebates of up to $500 for generators and $1,000 for batteries to eligible residential customers, and $400 per kilowatt to commercial customers. The two-year pilot program aims to help low-to-moderate-income households and those with special medical needs maintain essential power during outages caused by preemptive shutdowns.

Humanoid robots are on the verge of widespread deployment in factories, but a major obstacle remains: replicating the unique functionality of human hands. This "hands problem" involves replacing muscles and skin with motors and sensors, a task that has perplexed researchers for years. Successfully addressing this issue could unlock a global market for humanoid robots that Morgan Stanley estimates could reach $5 trillion by 2050.

Los Angeles has introduced a free community Wi-Fi network in the Crenshaw Corridor, powered by streetlight infrastructure and fiber connections. The Crenshaw Community Connectivity Pilot, a collaboration between the city, Cisco, Destination Crenshaw, the California Community Foundation and Digital Equity LA, is targeting the digital divide and lays the groundwork for future smart city initiatives.

Effective metrics are crucial for translating technical risks into business language, according to cybersecurity expert Maman Ibrahim. Ibrahim has helped companies in various industries make cyber resilience measurable and relevant to strategic priorities. Companies must ensure metrics reflect operational effectiveness and align with corporate values as new technologies and regulations emerge, he says.

AI-driven capital expenditures have become a major force behind recent US economic growth, contributing 1.1% to GDP in the first half of 2025 and helping push overall GDP up at a 3.8% annual rate in the second quarter. Major tech companies tied to AI have seen soaring stock valuations, driving significant gains in the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. However, this AI-fueled expansion is primarily concentrated in a handful of mega-cap firms, creating a disconnect between headline economic indicators and the struggles of other sectors.

Redwood Materials has secured $350 million in an oversubscribed Series E funding round featuring Eclipse Ventures, Nvidia's venture capital arm and other supporters. It plans to use the new capital to accelerate the rollout of energy storage systems, including a recently launched business unit, Redwood Energy, which repurposes used EV battery packs for large-scale storage.