Justin Trudeau unveils $1.8 billion package for Canada’s AI sector
Canada has yet to pass a law to regulate AI. The Artificial Intelligence and Data Act was introduced in 2022, but is still being discussed by parliamentarians.
By Mathieu Dion
Canada is launching a fund to boost its artificial intelligence sector and create a new AI safety institute, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau continues to roll out spending announcements ahead of a new budget.
The government on Sunday unveiled a US$2.4 billion ($1.8 billion) package of measures related to artificial intelligence. The centerpiece is $2 billion for “computing capabilities and technology infrastructure” that can accelerate the work of AI researchers, startups and other companies, according to a statement.
Other money will be allocated to accelerate AI adoption in sectors such as agriculture and healthcare, the statement said. The funds “will help realize the full potential of AI so that Canadians, especially young Canadians, can get good-paying jobs while increasing our productivity and growing our economy,” Trudeau said.
Benjamin Bergen, head of the Council of Canadian Innovators, said his group was looking for more clarity on how companies can access the computing power and infrastructure the government plans to make available. “If this gives Canadian companies the tools to compete globally, today’s announcement is a step in the right direction,” he said.
The Prime Minister made the announcement in Montreal, one of a number of AI hubs that have sprung up in Canada. Quebec’s largest city has developed expertise in fundamental research, partly due to the presence of renowned AI researcher Yoshua Bengio. Last year, he signed a letter with Elon Musk and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak calling on developers to hit the pause button on training powerful AI models.
Bengio said at the event in Montreal that many researchers are “very concerned about the trajectory of AI.” He praised the proposed Canadian AI Safety Institute, which the government announced with a budget of C$50 million. “Canada is putting itself on the right side of history with this announcement.”
Canada has yet to pass a law to regulate AI. The Artificial Intelligence and Data Act was introduced in 2022, but is still being discussed by parliamentarians.
More than 140,000 people in Canada were known to be active AI professionals last year, according to the government. By 2022, nearly 30% of all venture capital activity in Canada, or approximately C$8.6 billion, was related to AI.
Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne told Bloomberg News in March that it will soon be mandatory for the government to receive advance notice when non-Canadian companies plan to invest in key technology sectors such as AI and quantum computing. The notice would give the government time to consider the national security implications of the investment – a move seen as aimed at controlling the flow of Chinese money into Canadian entities.
Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will announce her budget plan for the 2024-2025 financial year on April 16, but the government has organized a series of events to release parts of it.
First print: April 8, 2024 | 00:00 IST