MON AM News: Military capability falling short in some emerging tech, expert says; Judge stops some work on Line 5 reroute

May 18, 2026

— A defense contracting expert with Michael Best Strategies says U.S. military capability is falling short on some emerging technologies such as AI-based decision support.

Erik Berdy, who chairs the firm’s Defense & National Security Practice, was also special assistant for legislative affairs to the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff during the Trump and Biden administrations. He spoke during the recent American Economic Interest Summit, held by Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce in Brookfield.

When asked about gaps in capability for the U.S. Department of Defense, Berdy said he could think of at least 15 categories ranging from hardware that’s “required for the next-generation fight” to sub-components going into small-scale electronics.

“Where are we when it comes to AI and the application of AI for mission command and decision-making? That is, I wouldn’t necessarily call it a gap, but it’s something they’re working on very aggressively,” he said. “Speed up the decision-making cycle, the targeting cycle, etcetera.”

He also noted the role of AI in supporting autonomous military systems, as relatively cheap unmanned drones have played a major role in both the ongoing war in Ukraine and the more recent conflict in Iran.

“Where are we in autonomous capability? … Whether it’s air, surface or sub-surface, do we have that capability in hand? We are short on that,” Berdy said.

The discussion referenced the U.S. Department of Defense’s $1.5 trillion budget request for fiscal year 2027, as Berdy noted a $65 billion shipbuilding provision in the proposal contains a segment for autonomous systems.

“Could be a whole niche,” he said, adding “autonomous capability, with or without AI, probably two areas of pretty significant focus based on we’re coming up short in what we’re seeing from Iran.”

The U.S. engagement in Iran has reduced the military’s stocks of precision munitions, Berdy noted. He said efforts to replenish that inventory will get it “back to where they were supposed to be for … a kinetic fight with China” over Taiwan.

His comments last week came just days before President Donald Trump met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing, where the Chinese leader reportedly warned Trump of potential conflicts with the U.S. over Taiwan.

Meanwhile, Berdy told attendees that defense contracting ultimately comes down to “can you solve a problem” for the department while being competitive.

“Do you meet the requirement? If so, can you come in at cost or under? Do you underperform, or overperform?” he said.

See more coverage from the event.

— A judge has stopped some work on Enbridge’s Line 5 project after the latest challenge to the pipeline reroute by opposing tribal and environmental groups.

Iron County Circuit Court Judge John Anderson on Friday granted a partial stay to prevent the company from continuing work on certain waterway crossings for the project, while “substantially” denying much of the request from the Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa Indians and other groups.

Still, Bad River Band Chairwoman Elizabeth Arbuckle cheered the “quick and decisive action” and urged the court to keep the stay in place and “hear us out fully” in the weeks to come.

“This is a good day for Bad River and Lake Superior, both of which are in danger if the Enbridge reroute is allowed to proceed,” she said in a statement.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Enbridge notes the “important decision” for the re-route project still allows construction activities to move forward. State permits for the project were granted after an “exhaustive” four-year review by the DNR and later upheld by an administrative law judge, including 250 conditions and plans to address environmental impacts, the spokesperson said.

“Line 5 is critical energy infrastructure serving 10 refineries and propane production facilities – and continues to operate safely and reliably delivering critical, affordable energy to the Midwest and Great Lakes regions,” the spokesperson wrote in an emailed statement.

While much of the Canadian energy company’s work on the project can continue after the judge’s decision, Earthjustice Senior Associate Attorney John Petoskey says the partial construction freeze will protect the tribe from “further immediate harm” in the meantime.

“We trust the Court will agree that Wisconsin’s unlawful permitting decisions — which have ultimately put northern Wisconsin wetlands, waterways, and tribal nations at existential risk — deserve serious legal scrutiny,” he said.

See more coverage on the Line 5 project here.

— While declining cigarette use in Wisconsin is a “huge public health win” for the state, it also comes with fiscal implications as related tax revenues have plummeted over the last 15 years.

That’s according to the latest Wisconsin Policy Forum report, which shows revenue from the state’s cigarette tax dropped to $369.6 million over the 12-month fiscal year ending June 2025, marking a decline of 8.2% over the year. That’s fallen from $950.9 million in 2010.

Still, authors emphasize the “numerous” positive impacts of lower rates of cigarette use in the state, leading to longer life for former smokers and “sparing many state residents from life-altering chronic health conditions.”

Both of these impacts are tied to the broad decline in cigarette use among U.S. adults, which had fallen to 9.9% in 2024 based on the National Health Interview Survey, a decline of 4.1 percentage points over five years.

But at the same time, the use of nicotine vaping devices has also risen, reaching 7% of U.S. adults in 2024, according to a CDC survey. Over the same five-year period, that rate had risen by 2.5 percentage points, the report shows.

While those figures aren’t available at the state level, authors say other indicators suggest usage of cigarettes and e-cigarettes alike in Wisconsin “generally tracks” the national rate or is just above it.

“As our state increasingly trades cigarette tax revenues for vapor tax revenues, one implication is that the role of tobacco and nicotine excise taxes is dwindling as a contributor to the state’s general fund,” authors wrote.

While nearly $6 out of every $100 going into the state’s general fund in 2010 came from these taxes, that had declined to just over $2 by 2024.

WPF predicts cigarettes are “all but certain” to keep declining as a major revenue source for Wisconsin. And though revenues from other nicotine products are on the rise, authors note “since those products are taxed much less heavily, those revenues are not offsetting what is being lost.”

See the report.

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— Accuray has entered a 10-year “master research agreement” with the UW School of Medicine and Public Health, aimed at further developing precision cancer therapies.

“By leveraging our respective strengths, we aim to extend the curative power of radiotherapy so departments of all sizes around the world can benefit from advanced adaptive therapies,” Accuray President and CEO Steve La Neve said in a statement.

The agreement builds on an existing relationship between UW-Madison and the company, whose first radiation platform called the TomoTherapy System was invented at the university by Prof. Thomas “Rock” Mackie in the late 1980s. Since that time, the company says it’s boosted the system’s image quality and speed, along with other improvements.

The new research effort covers clinical research, education and training, along with efforts to develop “adaptive therapies” to improve cancer treatment.

Prof. Zachary Morris, chair of human oncology for the UW SMPH, says the agreement will “accelerate the process of translating research innovation into technologies that better serve patients.”

See the release.

— Xcel Energy is rolling out AI-enabled fire detection technology in northwestern Wisconsin, targeting areas near its power lines that are prone to wildfires.

The Minneapolis-based utility recently announced it has installed cameras made by a California company called Pano AI in nine locations in the state. In addition to the installations near Hayward, Luck, Spooner and Tomah, the company says it will add more cameras by year’s end in high-risk areas.

The Pano AI system includes cameras attached to tall, existing structures, also incorporating AI-based smoke detection and satellite data to constantly scan for smoke that could indicate a wildfire. Potential wildfires are verified by human analysts before fire officials are notified.

Xcel Energy says it had been using these cameras in Minnesota, Colorado, Texas and New Mexico before deploying them in Wisconsin.

See more in the release.

At least 12 data center proposals in Alliant territory, documents show

Judge halts some work on Enbridge’s Line 5 reroute in northern Wisconsin

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