‘AI is not the future; it is current’: Lawmakers examine how to make Pennsylvania an AI powerhouse

Republican state lawmakers visited Astrobotic Technology in Pittsburgh on Wednesday for a hearing focused on how the Western Pennsylvania region can position itself as a leader in artificial intelligence at a time when both the public and private sectors are rushing to embrace an evolving technology that is transforming business, government and society at large. 

Testifiers said Wednesday that Pittsburgh is uniquely situated to take advantage of the global AI boom, thanks to its combination of research universities, industrial sites and its existing technology economy. To do that, public and private sector leaders must collaborate on challenges that stand in the way of AI innovation, with increased energy demands and attracting top talent in the AI space.

“What is the new AI economy? It’s not just a new industry. It’s a new (era) defined by massive innovation cycles that demand re-industrialization, resilient chains and very deep resource collaboration,” said Joanna Doven, the executive director of the AI Strike Team, a 24-month initiative aimed at attracting AI companies to the region and state. “This is not fake news, this is not hypothetical – this is real. Economic reshuffling is already underway for the first time since the 70s.”

How Pennsylvania leaders can capitalize on the opportunities presented by the AI economy remains to be seen. Still, panelists in attendance at Wednesday's hearing used the event as a chance to provide commonwealth leaders with a roadmap on how to harness the potential of AI. 

Existing AI uses in Pennsylvania

Recent advancements with generative artificial intelligence – AI that can be used to create text, imagery and other content – have made tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and xAI’s Grok household names. 

However, Pennsylvania is no stranger to artificial intelligence, with AI already being prevalent in various sectors, including health care and financial services, among others.

Dr. Hooman H. Rashidi, the associate dean of AI in medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, is executive director of the Computational Pathology & AI Center of Excellence, a joint effort between the University of Pittsburgh and UPMC. 

Rashidi said that CPACE, founded in 2024, is already being recognized as a national and global leader on AI in health care. 

“CPACE has launched multiple clinically integrated AI tools … which are all used to enhance diagnosis, reporting and decision making,” Rashidi said. “Our AI innovations are enabling faster diagnosis and reporting through intelligent automation and targeted AI tools, empowering clinicians with AI-assisted tools at the point of care, even in settings without access to large clinical teams.”

Rashidi pushed back on characterizations that AI is something out of the future that can be pushed off or addressed later. “We believe AI is not the future; it is current and an urgent necessity,” he said, adding that Pitt and CPACE are “laying the foundation for a future where AI is usable, ethical and impactful for all.”

AI’s potential has also been seen in Pittsburgh’s financial services sector. BNY – a global financial services firm that counts state and local governments, pension funds and labor unions among its clients – has used AI to improve data processing and identify financial patterns, according to Christopher Martin, the senior director of BNY’s Pittsburgh-based AI hub. 

“AI enables us to process vast amounts of data, identify difficult to discern patterns and make better decisions more quickly, he said. “This allows us to drive better outcomes for our clients and make financial markets more resilient.” 

AI has also been adopted in the public sector, including at the state level, where Gov. Josh Shapiro has championed a pilot program with Open AI that provided access to ChatGPT to employees in his administration. 

“There are too many public officials who think they can stick their head in the sand and ignore this – try and ban emerging technologies,” Shapiro said when announcing the pilot program’s results in March. “I believe we need to embrace them. We need to use it for the betterment of society and the betterment of the people we serve.” 

Positioning Pennsylvania as an AI hub

AI experts testifying at Wednesday’s hearing offered a range of suggestions for how Pittsburgh – and Pennsylvania as a whole – can transform into a national, and even global, leader in artificial intelligence. 

Martin suggested three areas of focus for state lawmakers as they weigh how to develop policies and plans for artificial intelligence. He stressed that the state needs to attract and retain Pennsylvania graduates and create a “vibrant AI ecosystem” in Southwestern Pennsylvania. “Finally, we can promote a vibrant and safe downtown Pittsburgh – which BNY is committed to – and where employees, clients and partners want to live, work and play.”

Pittsburgh is currently home to “AI Avenue,” a one-mile stretch from Penn Avenue to Fifth Avenue that is home to several heavyweights in tech and AI, including Google, Duolingo and the Carnegie Mellon University Cloud Lab. 

Doven said that the state should work to “quickly enact policies that spur the commercialization and growth of homegrown AI companies.” She added that Pennsylvania natural gas can be used to power AI data centers, and that the region can take advantage of its shuttered industrial steel sites for AI-based facilities. 

Some lawmakers expressed concern on Wednesday that Pennsylvania’s energy supply might not be up to handling the power demands required by data centers and other AI infrastructure – an area that could play into Western Pennsylvania’s strengths. 

State Sen. Tracy Pennycuick, who chairs the Senate Communications & Technology Committee and invited lawmakers to Pittsburgh for the hearing, said she thinks portable nuclear reactors and natural gas could be key to powering AI data centers. “What I heard loud and clear is our energy policy is going to hold us back,” she said. “We do not have a strategic energy plan in Pennsylvania, and I hope that this is an eye-opener for all of us to get together and to figure that out.”

Matt Smith, the chief growth officer at the Allegheny Conference on Community Development, said AI’s energy challenges could present a golden opportunity for the region. 

“While AI is already revolutionizing industries and generating new jobs, it's also increasing our energy demand at an unprecedented rate, and that’s putting pressure on the system. Where that pressure is on the system and the need for power is only going to increase significantly over the next couple of years,” he said. “We see that as a significant opportunity for Southwestern Pennsylvania to solve one of the world’s largest problems that everyone will face over the coming future – and that’s the need for power generation.”