Xiaofan Liang

Xiaofan Liang is an Assistant Professor of Urban and Regional Planning at Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, University of Michigan. Liang is also an affiliated faculty with Michigan Institute for Data & AI in Society and the UM Center for the Study of Complex Systems. Liang’s work focuses on two themes: 1) Urban Network: how network infrastructure (e.g., social, transportation, digital, etc.) plays a dual role to offer connectivity but also exclude locals at the same time, 2) Urban AI, exploring how data, technology, and AI can support, transform, or challenge planning practices and public services and the human agency to elevate the benefits and mitigate the harms. Recently, she is working on urban planning and social implications of data centers and smart ways to unpack zoning documents as a community power to govern the built environment.