Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney unveiled a sweeping national artificial intelligence strategy on Thursday, aiming to bolster Canadian sovereignty, safeguard citizens’ data, and generate tens of thousands of jobs in the fast-expanding AI sector.
Carney warned that Canada’s heavy reliance on foreign technology infrastructure poses grave risks to both national security and economic competitiveness, reports Anadolu.
“We are highly dependent on foreign suppliers for the infrastructure that powers AI, from compute to cloud to data storage, that creates real risks that foreign entities could access Canadian data, deploy AI products that shape Canadian lives without reflecting our values, and tilt the playing field against Canadian firms,” he told a news conference in Toronto.
He cautioned that AI could be turned against Canada, much as other forms of cross-border integration have created vulnerabilities in the past.
“Prosperity and sovereignty in the age of AI belong to those nations that can build, adopt and govern AI on their own terms,” he said.
Carney outlined three guiding principles underpinning the new strategy: trust, opportunity, and sovereignty.
He pledged fresh legislation to modernise privacy laws and online safety rules, adding that his government would expand Canada’s AI Safety Institute to track emerging risks.
On the economic front, the strategy targets CAN$200 billion (£114 billion) in additional growth and 250,000 new AI-related jobs over five years, including up to 90,000 positions and work placements specifically for young Canadians.
The Carney government will also invest CAN$500 million through the Regional AI Initiative and add CAN$700 million to the AI Compute Access Fund, giving small and medium-sized businesses access to affordable domestic computing power.
A new CAN$500 million Canadian Tech Growth Fund will take equity stakes in promising AI firms to help them “succeed globally, while remaining proudly Canadian,” he said.
