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It’s Independence Day. That means fireworks, and Pittsburgh is promising its biggest display in decades, launched from the three rivers. Suburban communities including Dormont, Brentwood and Monroeville are launching explosives of their own ([link removed]) .

If you venture out today, remember to take precautions against the temperatures nearing 95 degrees and possible thunderstorms.

✍️ Newsletter written by Charlie Wolfson ([link removed]) ,

Public Source local government reporter & newsletter editor


** THIS WEEK’S STORIES
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Pittsburgh’s AI future depends on who controls the changing nature of work ([link removed]) — Local experts say automation may ease burnout and dangerous tasks, but its gains depend on training, labor power and employer choices.

Data centers could brown the landscape, or green the power sector ([link removed]) — A Western Pennsylvania environment shaped by 150 years of heavy industry now braces for the data center revolution. Rightsizing and the realities of the energy and water markets may change the AI industry’s plans.

UPMC’s profits return and executive pay increases as expansion efforts continue ([link removed]) — Looming federal cuts and recent layoffs point to challenges ahead, even as Pittsburgh’s biggest healthcare network expands into Ohio.


** ADVERTISEMENT
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Celebrate Rick Sebak’s 50 years in public television with your favorite programs all summer long! Every Thursday night and Saturday at noon on WQED-TV, tune in for Rick classics, including "Pennsylvania Road Show," "A Ride Along the Lincoln Highway," and "Right Beside the River" along with a new special, "A Few of Rick Sebak’s Favorite Programs." Get the full schedule. ([link removed])

‘Five years in AI is an eternity’: Inside Pittsburgh’s work to govern a technology moving too fast to predict ([link removed]) — The city’s catching up with its workers’ AI use, prioritizing getting staff up to speed with guidelines it hasn’t yet made public. Its decisions could ripple for decades.

Robotics built Pittsburgh’s tech hubs, but future success isn’t automatic ([link removed]) — Oakland-born tech has helped transform sites from the North Shore to Hazelwood Green. To build on that momentum through 2076, the city will need new business-building infrastructure.

Duquesne City School District prepares to merge with a neighbor ([link removed]) — The district, struggling financially and trailing academically, will be consolidated. State officials will render a decision by June 30.


** IN OTHER NEWS
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→ What exactly happened on July 4, 1776? ([link removed]) (TribLIVE)

→ What to know about the Giant Eagle and Kroger grocery and pharmacy merger ([link removed]) (WESA)

→ The largest digital camera ever built begins decade-long survey of the universe ([link removed]) (AP)


** TODAY IN HISTORY 📅
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Today is July 4.

66 years ago, 1960: The current 50-star U.S. flag was adopted. (AP)

124 years ago, 1902: President Theodore Roosevelt celebrated Independence Day in Pittsburgh (then spelled Pittsburg), delivering a speech to a “sea of faces and straw hats” in Schenley Park that one newspaper estimated at more than 300,000 people. (Pittsburg Post)

163 years ago, 1863: The Civil War Siege of Vicksburg, Mississippi, ended as a Confederate garrison surrendered to Union forces. (AP)

200 years ago, 1826: On the nation’s 50th birthday, former presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson both died. (AP)

250 years ago, 1776: The Declaration of Independence was adopted by delegates to the Second Continental Congress in Philadelphia. (AP)


** LOCAL EVENTS
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🎇 Pittsburgh Independence Day celebration ([link removed]) and fireworks 4 p.m. Saturday | North Shore, Point State Park and Grandview Park | Fireworks at 9:35 p.m. | Free

⚽ Riverhounds soccer game ([link removed]) 7 p.m. Saturday | FNB Stadium, South Shore | Includes view of city fireworks |

🏆 World Cup Fan Zone ([link removed]) July 4, 5, 9, 19 | Acrisure Stadium, North Shore | Free

🎻 Patriotic orchestra performance and drone show ([link removed]) 7:30 Sunday | Hartwood Acres Park Amphitheater | Free

🎸 Free retro rock concert ([link removed]) 7:30 p.m. July 10 | South Park Amphitheater | The Heavy Heavy

👋 Thanks for reading today’s newsletter! I hope you feel more informed about Pittsburgh and your community. For any questions or comments, feel free to email me at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .
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