Driving Detroit Forward: Insights from Mayor Mike Duggan

• Duggan highlighted the need for vast data warehouses and substantial energy resources to remain competitive in high-demand sectors like AI.
• Effective collaboration between the Mayor’s office and the City Council contributes significantly to Detroit’s success.

View the full session recording below.

Closing the main programming of the 2025 Detroit Policy Conference, Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan sat down with Paul W. Smith from WJR NewsTalk 760 AM to discuss strong partnerships and what he has learned from Silicon Valley and other regions to make Detroit a more desirable place to work and live. 

The Lessons Learned From Other Regions 

The two kicked off the conversation by discussing the steps being taken to attract companies and retain young talent.  

Duggan shared insights into his visits to Silicon Valley, where he learned that many tech leaders admire Detroit’s turnaround –a success driven by cooperation between the government and private sectors. He also emphasized that while places like Miami pose strong competition, Detroit must also focus on staying ahead of cities like Pittsburgh, Chicago, and Columbus, which are much closer and have assets that residents want. 

“This city has no future if our residents can’t get a good paying job,” he said. “That’s why we have to make Detroit the easiest place in America to put a manufacturing plant.” 

Duggan also discussed the advancements in AI and the need for vast data warehouses and substantial energy resources to remain competitive. However, he posed an important question: is the state prepared to meet this challenge today? Pointing out similarities with the historical “brain drain” of the 1990s, when many graduates left Michigan for Chicago, Duggan keeps that in mind when working to ensure  Detroit remains a desirable place to live, work, and play. 

“A lot of [young people] didn’t see the opportunities here,” he said. “We set out in Detroit to have a place where you want to live when you graduate college … and we have tons of young people moving into the city.” 

Strong Cooperation Moves Detroit Forward 

The discussion concluded with Duggan emphasizing his efforts to maintain a robust partnership and cooperation between his office and the Detroit City Council. He said that by maintaining cooperation and strong relationships with the City Council, major progress can be made in the city, such as the Michigan Central redevelopment. 

“I’ve been very fortunate that City Council has had the courage to stand up and say ‘no, we are going to reuse these buildings’ … because it’s the right thing, and Detroit’s benefited enormously,” he said. “I haven’t vetoed a single action from the City Council [in] 12 years. It’s been a great partnership.” 

This session was sponsored by Comcast Business.