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ANN ARBOR - A controversial proposal to build a major natural gas-fired power plant on farmland outside Ann Arbor may signal the beginning of a much larger transformation now reshaping Michigan’s economy, energy grid, and political landscape. What initially appears to be a local land-use dispute is increasingly tied to a national race to build
GRAND RAPIDS - West Michigan’s economy continued to expand in April, but rising oil prices, tariff uncertainty and growing fears about a broader national slowdown are beginning to cloud the outlook across the entire state of Michigan. That was the takeaway from the latest monthly industrial survey by Grand Valley State University economist Brian Long,
ANN ARBOR - Michigan’s economy could face mounting pressure later this summer as rising oil prices tied to the growing Middle East conflict begin spreading through the state’s three largest economic pillars — the auto industry, tourism and agriculture. Economists warn the full impact of the global energy shock may not hit consumers and businesses
WASHINGTON DC - The United States national debt is rapidly approaching an almost unimaginable milestone: $39 trillion. The number is so enormous that economists, policymakers and ordinary Americans alike often struggle to truly grasp what it represents. A trillion dollars is not merely “a lot of money.” It is wealth on a scale that defies
Part 1 or a two-part series on the Chinese auto threat to Michigan. DETROIT - For generations, Detroit was the beating heart of American industrial power. In the decades following World War II, Michigan’s auto industry dominated not only the United States, but much of the global automobile market as well. During the 1950s and
ANN ARBOR - In an age flooded with AI-generated content, authentic storytelling may be more valuable than ever For decades, veteran Michigan journalists Mike Brennan and Matt Roush have interviewed entrepreneurs, CEOs, engineers, innovators, investors, and policymakers shaping the future of business and technology. Now the longtime MITechTV co-hosts are launching a new venture designed
ANN ARBOR - For decades, white collar workers believed college degrees and office careers offered protection from the economic disruption that devastated factory towns across the Midwest. Automation was supposed to threaten assembly lines — not office cubicles. But economists, labor researchers and major national publications are increasingly warning that artificial intelligence could reshape professional
DETROIT - General Motors is pouring more than $6 billion into U.S. manufacturing in just 12 months, a massive capital commitment that underscores a growing reality inside the auto industry: the transition to electric vehicles isn’t happening as fast as expected. The latest piece of that investment—about $830 million across key Midwest plants—is aimed squarely
WASHINGTGON DC - A fast-growing fight in Washington over hemp-derived THC products is colliding with two massive industries—and Michigan is right in the middle. At stake is not just cannabis policy, but a shifting consumer market worth hundreds of billions of dollars, where alcohol, hemp, and marijuana companies are all competing for the same customer.
ANN ARBOR — Artificial intelligence is no longer just a futuristic concept—it’s beginning to reshape the workforce in real time. While much of the attention has focused on factory automation and robotics, the next wave of disruption may hit a different part of Michigan’s economy: office jobs, service roles, and digital work that can now
