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Jamie Thomas, Julia Clinch, Liam Whittington

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On 7-8 May 2026, the Forum of Federations, in collaboration with Publius: The Journal of Federalism, convened an international research workshop exploring the intersection of federalism and artificial intelligence (AI). The workshop gathered 17 experts from Brazil, Canada, Germany, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Spain, Switzerland, and the United States at Marquette University’s Les Aspin Center for Government in Washington DC for two days of conversations on emerging practice and common trends in federations.

In the context of the unprecedented advances in the technology, the need for greater understanding of government approaches to AI is pressing. Federal and multilevel countries have unique characteristics that provide both opportunities and challenges for AI governance that unitary countries do not. The specific dynamics of how AI is governed in federal systems is, however, currently underexplored. In this context, the workshop provided a venue for a multi-disciplinary group of academics, practitioners, and government officials to exchange knowledge on key issues of AI and federalism in different federal countries.

This report presents insights from the workshop discussions, highlighting the key roles that asymmetry, coordination, implementation gaps and AI politics are playing in the adoption and deployment of AI in federations.