Prime Minister Mark Carney and Artificial Intelligence Minister Evan Solomon on Thursday unveiled Canada’s new AI strategy, which includes proposals for the building of “large-scale” data centres, restrictions on controversial surveillance pricing, and a plan to ramp up use across industry, government and individuals.
“Artificial intelligence, the defining technology of our era, is here,” Carney said at an event in Toronto.
Five key sectors of the economy were identified as targets for expanding AI adoption. These are health and life sciences, energy and natural resources, transportation, agriculture, and manufacturing and robotics.
Conservative deputy Leader Melissa Lantsman called the strategy “a very ambitious plan which lacks a lot of details,” a criticism shared by some experts who spoke to Global News after its release.
“The safety and the security that was promised in this is nowhere to be found in the documents, certainly no details,” she said.
She added Conservatives doubt the government’s claims of robust job growth in the strategy, including the projection of 90,000 new jobs for young Canadians over the next five years.
“We also have deep concerns about the unemployment that already exists,” she said.
“We don’t believe the Liberals when they say that they’ll create 90,000 jobs when we have lost more than 112,000 jobs just since January in this country,” she added.
NDP Leader Avi Lewis called for “strong regulations to safeguard workers, youth, privacy, and our water and energy supply.”
“Before rushing ahead, with no brakes, we need a robust regulatory framework. Every other industry in this country, from forestry to banking, is regulated,” Lewis said.
The strategy has no concern for the consequences of widespread AI adoption on jobs, Lewis said.
“It proposes a massive boost to business adoption of AI, with no concern for the consequences this will have for workers, especially young workers who are already watching careers vanish before their eyes,” he said.
What is in Canada’s AI strategy?
The new AI strategy outlines six “pillars” or areas of focus, with the first pillar of the strategy aimed at “protecting Canadians and safeguarding democracy.”
“Canada will introduce online safety laws to protect Canadians in the digital age, ensuring citizens, children, and customers are safeguarded,” the AI strategy says.
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The federal government said it will modernize privacy and online safety laws to catch up to AI-powered harms such as deepfakes and synthetic media, the document says, adding that it will also put in place measures to protect Canadians against AI-generated disinformation that can affect elections, public discourse and trust in institutions.
Canada will table consumer privacy legislation that “ensures AI systems safeguard children’s information from exploitation and harm,” Carney said, adding that Ottawa will make “the development of child safety standards a priority” at this month’s G7 summit.
“Under our strategy, the government will introduce new legislation, regulations and standards to protect your data, your privacy, your children,” Carney said.
Canada’s privacy laws will be updated to “ensure that Canadians’ personal information is not used inappropriately, including for surveillance pricing,” the document says.
Ottawa will also spend $50 million to “expand the capabilities of the Canadian AI Safety Institute” to study the emerging risks and dangers of AI as well as work to strengthen Canadian cybersecurity to protect critical systems from cyber-attacks from advanced AI systems.
The AI document identified a lack of trust in AI among Canadians as a key barrier to adoption. To address that, the federal government will create a “Canada Trusted AI Certification” program, that will identify “trustworthy AI products in the marketplace.”
What does AI strategy say about jobs?
During a technical briefing held by Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED), officials were repeatedly asked whether the federal government had an estimate for how many jobs would be lost in the process of AI adoption, and they did not answer.
The AI strategy projects there will be 250,000 new jobs through the adoption of AI by 2031, noting the government commits to 90,000 “AI-related jobs and work placement opportunities for young Canadians to start their careers and support SMEs and nonprofits” by that time.
In February, Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem warned that AI adoption may already be reducing the number of entry-level jobs available to young people in Canada.
The AI strategy does not provide an estimate for how many jobs would be lost because of AI adoption or the scale of the layoffs, but it lays out a “National AI Literacy Initiative” to offer entry-level AI training for all Canadians.
Ottawa’s AI literacy content will also be delivered to post-secondary students, with “more than 3,000 educators with AI learning kits in their classrooms.”
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The federal government will also offer training and upskilling programs for mid-career workers and “assess the societal, labour market, and economic impacts of AI,” the document says.
Will business adopt AI?
Canada has a “major adoption gap” when it comes to AI, with only 12 per cent of Canadian businesses using AI between mid-2024 and mid-2025, the document said.
The AI strategy aims to bring this up to 60 per cent by 2034, with a focus on helping micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) adopt AI.
This includes a $500 million spending package from the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) to “help Canadian SMEs access financing to incorporate AI tools in their operations.”
This will be done through the BDC’s Lead with Innovation and Focus on Technology, or LIFT, program. The AI strategy also lays out the development of a “AI Literacy and Adoption Assessment tool” that will help small business assess their AI-readiness and needs.
Building ‘large-scale’ data centres
According to a recent report from the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project, three U.S. tech firms – Amazon, Microsoft and Google – own 85 per cent of public cloud market share in Canada.
The federal government is looking build a “sovereign AI foundation” in Canada. This includes the building of a “world-leading public supercomputer” in Canada and the construction of large‑scale AI data centres “that can scale to at least 100 megawatts.”
The AI strategy says these “partnerships are being finalized” with an aim to providing 850 MW of computing capacity by 2030.
“Sovereign AI starts with sovereign infrastructure. Canada needs domestic data centre capacity and cloud services,” the document says.
While the government aims to build a “sovereign AI foundation” for Canada, the AI strategy also says it aims to “attract FDI” or foreign direct investment into Canadian AI.
“Canada will expand the newly formed Sovereign Technology Alliance to enable secure and interoperable AI capabilities and open procurement opportunities for domestic champions,” it adds.
Canadian data as a ‘strategic national asset’?
The data of Canadians should be treated as a “strategic national asset” that is “responsibly stewarded,” the AI strategy says.
“AI is only as powerful as the data it can access,” the document says, adding that “enormous volumes of valuable data across health, energy, transportation, agriculture, natural resources, and other critical sectors” is “precisely the kinds of assets that AI capabilities increasingly depend on.”
However, it said the data is “siloed” and the federal government will spend $100 million on standardizing disparate health information data sets.
The federal government will add $500 million to the Canadian Tech Growth Fund to help AI startups access capital needed to scale up.
“This will help them attract private capital, compete globally, retain talent and intellectual property, and remain anchored in Canada,” it said.
While the document does not clarify whether this “private capital” will be Canadian or foreign investment, it adds that Canada will “leverage” its new Sovereign Wealth Fund “where appropriate.”
It added that the federal government will help domestic AI startups “export their solutions globally.”
I’m sure data centers will burn…just sayin.
We need to get rid of the Liberals ASAP! This will not be good for Canada at all. Now you know why he wants to monopolize the power grid and expand it. The NEW WORLD ORDER a la Cornhole Carney and his W E F cult.
There is no intelligence with the Liberals.
What an empty announcement. Notice how green imperatives have taken a backseat since AI power hungry data centres showed up making money? The emphasis on sovereignty basically means a bunch of unnecessary regulation trying to force data residency in Canada. Which automatically precludes adoption of various innovative tools only available elsewhere especially during early adoption. All this job creation, why? They don’t say what solutions Canada will export to the world. Businesses must basically bend to government deployment constraints. Guaranteed ineffective bureaucracy.
We should be killing AI not promoting it. Just more proof Carney is with the oligarchs.
According to research, the average ai data centre requires the equivalent electricity required to power around 150,000 to 350,000 homes.
This policy makes no mention of power or carbon output, nor does it consider any need for more generating output while simultaneously putting forth projects in provinces that still use coal and other fossil fuels to sustain their needs.
To confirm, the highlight of this video is to assert that the AI strategy they are putting forth just happens to include legislation they have tried to pass numerous times unsuccessfully that just conveniently found their way into totally unrelated legislation.
But now they have an undemocratic, unelected majority, so good-bye democracy.
Its like a raincoat that tells you you are wet when it fails to protect you from rain.
Sigh. The pitiful consideration for security revolves around misuse of AI they can only deem illegal after the offensive act has already been committed.
Golf clap.
1984 style government surveillance center? like the Chinese? Here in Canada? Hell no!
We are being force-fed technology that is unnecessary & leads to the destruction of all living things. We don’t “need” it. I’d rather go back to no-internet days or curtail the need for AI/robotics/automation. Time we stopped serving corporate interests from over-grown, wannabe Luke Skywalker, billionaire juveniles.
I honestly do not agree with using AI. Why do we need artificial intelligence?
I am so tired of everything AI, I liked the time when things were real not generated by a computer.
Once we have a Super Computer ( + Grok ) who needs the Government ! ? !
AI in China is open source (free) and China has passed a law that businesses are not allowed to replace and employee with AI.
AI data centres “suck in” water and electricity from community facilities and the communities end up paying for this.
Canada, stay away.
EVERYONE EVERYWHERE WE NEED TO FIGHT THE CONSTRUCTION OF THESE DATA CENTERS.
Hi Global News, funny how all the article about attacks on the Jewish community are the only ones that don’t allow comments. Coincidence?
The Government of Canada should stay out of the data center business
They cant even pay the countries bills as it is
In Canada we never miss an opportunity to throw away money. Just like we invested heavily in an already declining EV market we are now racing to get in on the top of an AI bubble where companies have already been starting to show signs of reduced investment and pulling back to wait and see if AI actually becomes profitable. Of course we always remeber to make the contracts and deals top secret cabinet confidential so experts cannot weigh in on if its a good idea, we dont need experts, we have a banker right ! Like I was about to get my triple bypass heart surgery and then this guy comes in and says “Hey dont worry I am a doctor and trained surgeon” WHAT YOU SAY ! I got up, flipped the table and placed out and told them to make me an appointment when you find someone competent like a Banker to do the job, I dont want some hack whos only job his whole life has been a surgeon lile get a real job in the corporate world if you want to operate on my ticker guy
Environmental issues ….. Noise, water, electricity… not worth it
I guess climate change, and the environment don’t matter anymore.
this is the continuation of the end of freidum. i fear for my kids what a world they are building. dont know if alberta will be any better but we need to try, for the kids.
Why is the government building Data Centers? The private sector will do it if there is a market for it. I recall all the money wasted on building vaccine factories and not one was ever finished.
“Large-scale” data centres“
We are the Borg, you will be assimilated, resistance is futile.”
Evil ideas, as usual.
Bad for everyone, just about. Everyone knows too. Our leaders are morons. I’d fire you, as well millions would.
No! Canada is being short-sighted in the rush to join in AI. Data Centers bring severe & lasting damage to the environment. I do not see any controls or studies being conducted in the rush to build. If it was a pipeline everyone would be strongly against it even though there are only POSSIBLE risks associated with it. With a Data Center the damages are 100% guaranteed. But we must hop on the wagon & join the rush? It makes no sense, especially since we do not know of all the possible harms associated with AI. We do know the harms associated with Data Centers. Build one in your own backyard & study it first before you force it on the rest of the country!
We need to ensure jobs are protected. Between AI and automation, we are going to be in a huge unemployment crisis – bigger than we have now.
Better than having our data stored by foreign companies like the US and having a dictator leader use it to push its Banana Republic ideology.
More government oversight. Disastrous.
We don’t want or need it! Shove it!
From what has been leaked, it seems like Carney is putting all of our eggs in the AI basket without any regulation.
AI is far more detrimental to the environment and pocketbook than a human workforce.
I am surprised by the rapid adoption by business. They are going to replace half their workforce with AI only for the AI companies to jack their prices and laugh all the way to the bank. It will be worse than a workforce unionizing.
Evan Solomon is totally useless. He was canned from CTV for taking payola.