Goolsbee Turns AI Data Centers Into a Fed Reaction-Function Test

Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee said on September 21, 2026 that policymakers should watch whether AI data-center construction is spilling beyond its sector and pushing aggregate output above capacity. The significance is not that the Fed is targeting AI, but that AI capex is now being discussed as a possible demand shock with implications for inflation and interest-rate policy.