OXFORD, Miss. — The University of Mississippi will host a one-day public forum in Oxford on Nov. 16 about how the state should get ready for artificial intelligence, as large data center projects pour money into Mississippi.
The event is the Mississippi stop on AI Across America, a tour by SeedAI, a nonprofit that works on AI readiness and is visiting all 50 states. Sessions take place in the campus student union, named for Gertrude C. Ford, at 218 Student Union Drive. Doors open for registration and networking at 8:30 a.m., and sessions run into the afternoon. Admission is free with registration.
Ole Miss is not doing it alone. Partners include Jackson State, Mississippi State, Innovate Mississippi, the Mississippi AI Network, Mississippi Gulf Coast’s community college and the state’s information technology agency, and the University of Southern Mississippi was invited to help lead talks.
The backdrop is a wave of investment. Four companies, xAI, AVAIO Digital, Compass Data Centers and Amazon Web Services, have pledged a combined $49 billion-plus for server campuses spread over five counties. Dominique Halaby, who oversees innovation and economic engagement as an assistant vice chancellor, said the forum is meant for people across the state, and that the goal is for residents to benefit from the centers rather than simply host them, since the facilities bring tax money but relatively few jobs.
The schedule includes panels on the federal supercomputers in the state and who can use them, AI in research labs and clinics, the AI policy agenda heading into the 2027 legislative session, what local towns gain from new data centers, and how to keep AI talent and startups in Mississippi.
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