It’s a strange time for the US economy. Prices are rising, jobs growth has stalled, uncertainty is everywhere and stock markets have soared to record highs. Against this background a scary word last used in the 1970s is being uttered again: stagflation.

Stagflation is the term that describes “stagnant” growth combined with “inflation” of prices. It means that companies are producing and hiring less, but prices are still going up. It’s a scenario that some economists say can be worse than a recession.

The last time the US saw a period of prolonged stagflation was in the 1970s during the oil shock crisis. Higher oil prices caused inflation to rise, while unemployment rose as consumers cut back on spending.

For now, the US economy isn’t experiencing stagflation, but recent data has shown it is edging closer to it.

After Donald Trump’s tariffs were announced in the spring, official data initially suggested the economy was shaking them off. New jobs were being added to the economy at a stable pace, while inflation went down to 2.3% – the lowest it had been since 2021.

However, when new labor market data was released in August, it became clear that there had been an impact on hiring that had been slow to appear in the data. Initial job figures for May and June were revised down by 258,000. While figures in July and August were slightly stronger, it was still a marked drop compared with earlier in the year.

Meanwhile, inflation started crawling back up in April. In August, the annualized inflation rate hit 2.9%, the highest since January.

Brett House, an economist at Columbia Business School, said that surveys of economists showed expectations of a recession for the year ahead was at a three-year low in January. Growth was expected to remain solid, and inflation was expected to continue easing.

“Both of those expectations have been turned around by the set of policies and their erratic implementation,” House said. “We’ve seen growth forecasts for the remainder of this year cut substantially, and we have seen inflation forecasts pushed up.”

In other words, the economy has both become more stagnant and inflationary – stagflation.

Economists are pointing to two policies coming out of the White House that are pushing the economy closer toward stagflation.

Trump’s crackdown on immigration has cut down the number of available workers and also increased the cost of hiring. And when it comes to prices, tariffs have just started to have a noticeable impact as companies pass tariff costs on to consumers.

Investors are banking on hopes the Federal Reserve cutting interest rates next week, but the future of the US economy remains uncertain.

In his closely watched speech at the Fed’s Jackson Hole symposium last month, the Fed chair, Jerome Powell, outlined the “shifting balance of risks” that have appeared over the summer.

“While the labor market appears to be in balance, it is a curious kind of balance that results from a marked slowing in both the supply of and demand for workers,” Powell said. Meanwhile, “higher tariffs have begun to push up prices in some categories of goods.”

Stagflation weakens the Fed’s ability to balance the economy. Adjusting interest rates can help balance out unemployment and inflation, but only if one is rising. When inflation surged to 9.1% in summer 2022, raising interest rates helped bring prices down. Inflation went down to below 2.5%, but the unemployment rate went up in the meanwhile, from a low of 3.4% in 2023 to 4.3% this past August.

The Fed actually has more power during a recession, which economists broadly define as a period of slowed economic activity. When Covid lockdowns caused a recession, with massive unemployment, in 2020, the Fed lowered interest rates down to near zero to stimulate the economy.

Because we’re not seeing stagflation yet, the Fed moving rates down next week could help the labor market without causing prices to soar. But the move comes with uncertainty.

“Say stagflation is happening, but at a very slow pace, because firms are waiting to pass through [the cost of tariffs],” said Sebnem Kalemli-Ozcan, an economist at Brown University. “Firms are going to start seeing demand increase and say: ‘Oh, now I can pass through my higher costs on to more consumers.’ … Then we are going to see inflation.”

One analysis from Goldman Sachs said that US consumers had already absorbed 22% of the cost of tariffs, and that they could eventually take on 67% if current tariffs continue.

If prices continue to rise, and the labor market continues to slow, stagflation will get stronger.

“If [stagflation] happens, it’s a very depressive situation because people are going to lose their jobs, unemployment is going to increase and people who are looking for jobs are going to have a very hard time finding jobs. That’s going to be the hard part,” Kalemli-Ozcan said.

The Yale Budget Lab estimated that Trump’s tariffs could increase the number of Americans living in poverty by at least 650,000 as tariffs become what the lab calls an “indirect tax”.

The Trump administration has urged Americans to be patient with the impacts of the tariffs and has claimed that recent economic data has been “rigged” against the president.

“The real numbers that I’m talking about are going to be whatever it is, but will be in a year from now,” Trump said earlier this month. “You’re going to see job numbers like our country has never seen.”

HARWOOD, N.D. — As a Texas company prepares to break ground this month on a

$3 billion artificial intelligence data center

north of Fargo, readers have asked several questions about the facility.

The Forum spoke this week with Applied Digital Chairman and CEO Wes Cummins about the 280-megawatt facility planned for east of Interstate 29 between Harwood and Fargo. The 160-acre center will sit on 925 acres near the Fargo Park District’s North Softball Complex.

The Harwood City Council voted unanimously on Wednesday, Sept. 10, to rezone the land for the center from agricultural to light industrial. With the vote also came final approval of the building permit for the center, meaning Applied Digital can break ground on the facility this month.

“We’re grateful for the City of Harwood’s support and look forward to continuing a strong partnership with the community as this project moves ahead,” Cummins said after the vote.

Applied Digital plans to start construction this month and open partially by the end of 2026. The facility should be fully operational by early 2027, the company said.

The project should create 700 construction jobs while the facility is built, Applied Digital said. The center will need more than 200 full-time employees to operate, the company said. The facility is expected to generate tax revenue and economic growth for the area, but those estimates have not been disclosed.

The facility has generated

questions and protest.

Here are some questions readers had about the facility.

Applied Digital said it develops facilities that provide “high-performance data centers and colocations solutions for artificial intelligence, cloud, networking, and blockchain industries.” AI is used to run applications that make computers functional, Cummins said.

“ChatGPT runs in a facility like this,” he said. “There’s just enormous amounts of servers that can run GPUs (graphic processing units) inside of the facility and can either be doing training, which is making the product, or inference, which is what happens when people use the product.”

Map by The Forum

Applied Digital hasn’t announced what tenants would use Polaris Forge 2, the name for the Harwood facility. At a Harwood City Council meeting, Cummins said the company markets to companies in the U.S. like Google, Meta, Amazon and Microsoft.

“The demand for AI capacity continues to accelerate, and North Dakota continues to be one of the most strategic locations in the country to meet that need,” he said. “We have strong interest from multiple parties and are in advanced negotiations with a U.S. based investment-grade hyperscaler for this campus, making it both timely and prudent to proceed with groundbreaking and site development.”

AI data centers need significant amounts of electricity to operate, Cummins said. Other centers have traditionally been built near heavily populated areas, but that isn’t necessary, he said.

North Dakota produces enough energy to export it out of state, Cummins said. The Fargo area also has the electrical grid in place to connect to that energy, he said.

“A lot of North Dakotans, especially the leaders of North Dakota, want to better utilize the energy produced by North Dakota for economic benefit inside of the state versus exporting it to neighboring states or to Canada,” he said.

North Dakota’s cold climate much of the year also will keep the center cooler than in states like Texas, meaning the facility will use significantly less power than in warmer states, Cummins said.

“We get much more efficiency out of the facility,” he said. “Those aspects make North Dakota, in my opinion, an ideal place for this type of AI infrastructure.”

David Samson / The Forum

Cummins acknowledged other AI data centers around the world use millions of gallons of water a day. Applied Digital designed a closed-loop system so the North Dakota centers use as little water as possible, Cummins said.

He compared the cooling system to a car radiator. The centers will use glycol liquid to run through the facilities and servers, Cummins said. After cooling the equipment, the liquid goes through chillers, much like a heat pump outside of a house. Once cooled, the liquid will recirculate on a continuous loop, he said.

People who operate the facility will use water for bathroom breaks and drinking, much like a person in a house or a car, he said.

“The data center, even with the immense size, we expect it to use the same amount of water as roughly a single household,” he said. “The reason is the people inside.”

Alyssa Goelzer / The Forum

Applied Digital claims that electricity rates will not go up for local residents because of the data center.

“Data centers pay a large share of fixed utility costs, which helps spread expenses across more users,” the company said.

Applied Digital’s center in Ellendale, North Dakota, much like the one to be built in Harwood, uses power produced in the state, Cummins said. The Ellendale center, which runs on about 200 megawatts a year, saved ratepayers $5.3 million in 2023 and $5.7 million last year, he said.

“Utilizing the infrastructure more efficiently can actually drive rates down,” Cummins said, adding he expects rate savings for Harwood as well.

Applied Digital’s concrete walls should content the noise from computers, Cummins said. What residents will hear is fan noise from heat pumps used to cool the facility, he said.

“It will sound like the one that runs outside of your house,” he said in describing that the facility will create minimal noise.

The loudest noise will be construction of the facility, Cummins said.

The facility only will cover 160 acres, but Applied Digital is buying 925 acres of land, with the rest of the space serving as a sound buffer, he said. People who live nearby may hear some sound, he acknowledged.

“If you’re a half mile or more from the facility, you will very unlikely hear anything,” he said.

Chris Flynn / The Forum

The facility won’t create emissions or other hazards that would require an environmental impact study, Cummins said.

Some have criticized Applied Digital and the Harwood City Council for pushing the approval process so quickly. Applied Digital announced the project in mid-August, and the city approved it in less than a month.

Cummins acknowledged that concern but noted the industry is moving fast. The U.S. is competing with China to create artificial intelligence, an industry that is not going away, Cummins said.

“I do believe we are in a race in the world for super intelligence,” he said. “It’s a race amongst companies in the U.S., but it’s also a race against other countries. … I do think it’s very important the U.S. win this AI race to super intelligence and then to artificial general intelligence.”

Applied Digital said it wanted to finish foundation and grading work on the project before winter sets in, meaning it needed an expedited approval timeline.

People in Harwood have shown overwhelming support, Cummins said, adding that protesters mostly came from other cities.

“I can’t think of a project that would spend this amount of money and have this kind of economic benefit for a community and a county and a state and have this low of a negative impact,” he said. “I think these types of projects are fantastic for these types of communities.”

This Community Voices column is written by Dawn Winterhalter Parks, Director of BizAccessHub at NKU’s Haile College of Business and an AI strategist.

Ever feel like tech changes faster than you can finish your morning coffee? You’re not alone. If you’re a small business owner of a certain age, you might feel like the younger generation got handed the tech instruction manual, and you got a fax machine.

The truth is, most local small businesses are run by seasoned pros who know their industry inside and out. But when it comes to AI and automation, it’s easy to feel like you’re a few steps behind.

The good news: You’re not behind. You’re just busy. And the right tools can actually give you more time, not take it away.

To cut through the noise, I reached out to a few of my favorite local AI celebrities and collaborators to answer a simple question: What tools should small businesses really be using right now?

Here’s what they said.

1. Don’t overlook the tools you already have

Helen Todd, co-founder of Sociality Squared, made a great point: Before rushing out to buy something new, take a closer look at the tools you’re already using. Platforms like Microsoft 365, Google Workspace, Canva, Zoom, and others are quietly rolling out powerful AI features in their standard offerings.

From automated writing help to smart calendar suggestions, these features are already built in but often underused. And as Helen reminded me, more expensive doesn’t always mean better. Sometimes, it’s just a matter of taking 10 minutes to explore that new button you’ve been ignoring.

2. Don’t start with the tool; start with the problem

Digital strategist Kendra Ramirez, owner of KR Digital Agency, reminded me of something critical: You don’t need more tech. You need the right solution to the problem in front of you.

Are you struggling to keep up with content? Juggling customer emails? Spending too much time doing repetitive admin tasks? Start there. The right tool will emerge once you understand what you’re trying to fix. That mindset shift, problem first and tool second, keeps you from wasting time or money chasing the latest trend.

3. Use what you already have

Whitney Barkley, owner of Speakerazzi and a branding coach, sees a common trap: small businesses constantly stressing about creating new content when they’re already sitting on gold.

Webinars, podcasts, training videos, client testimonials are often collecting digital dust. Whitney suggests using tools like OpusClip to repurpose these into short, social-ready clips that can be used again and again. This kind of content works harder for you, especially if your team is lean or you’re a solo act.

4. Get comfortable with ChatGPT (or try a friendlier one)

Greg Goshorn, another local AI and marketing pro, recommends Magai for those who want to explore and leverage multiple large language models such as ChatGPT, Grok, Claude, and Perplexity for one low price.

Each tool has many of the current features, allow you to the everyday things such as emails, rewriting content, and data analysis, plus save conversations, group projects, and even create “personalities” for specific types of writing or content.

5. Don’t want to be on camera? Let an avatar handle it

Video continues to dominate online content, but not everyone loves being in front of the camera. Helen Todd recommended HeyGen, a tool that lets you create realistic AI avatars that speak your script. It’s perfect for onboarding videos, quick updates, or social content—without the time, equipment, or nerves required to film yourself.

This is especially helpful if you want to show up more consistently online but don’t have the time or team to produce polished video.

Final thoughts: You’re not behind. You’re just busy

If you’re a certain age and running a business, you’re already juggling more hats than most people realize. You don’t need to become a tech guru. You just need a couple of tools that make your life a little easier.

Start small. Identify one problem. Then solve all or part with an AI tool. 

You bring experience, grit, and business wisdom that no app can replicate. Let these tools meet you where you are and help carry some of the load.

So, what’s one thing you’d like to spend less time doing this month? Chances are, there’s a tool that can help with that.

Note: This article was developed with the support of AI tools. I used ChatGPT and Perplexity.ai to help inform the content. I also used Grammarly to review spelling, grammar, and clarity. These tools helped organize, refine, and strengthen the ideas presented, but every sentence was reviewed and shaped by me. The thoughts and conclusions are my own.

If you have an idea for a Community Voices column, email Meghan Goth at mgoth@linknky.com.

Click here to read more Community Voices columns.

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