Liang and Boyer discuss data centers, AI, and cities as networks for Urban Tech substack

Taubman College’s Xiaofan Liang sat down with Bryan Boyer to talk about her ongoing projects, research interests, and courses in a recent interview published on the Urban Technology at the University of Michigan substack. The newsletter and blog are run by Boyer, faculty director of the bachelor of science in urban technology, to promote the emerging field.

In the interview, Liang discusses two of her ongoing projects focused on data centers, including a decision support tool to help people visualize and understand the implications of building a data center in their community. “It’s geared toward local planners or local governments who are considering a data center,” said Liang, professor of urban and regional planning. “There are a million different things you have to consider, right? But this tool presents it in more of a cognitive way, in an infographic or interactive media format to help people unpack the complexity of this topic.”

Liang currently teaches two courses: Urban Networks and Urban AI. In the interview, she explained that her classes encourage students to view cities and AI in new ways. “I’m trying to introduce students to a way of seeing the city as a network, with a little bit about social networks, spatial social networks, mobility networks, infrastructure, and more,” she said.

Read the full interview on the Urban Technology Substack.