Canada’s AI strategy draws mixed reviews from across tech ecosystem

Prime Minister Mark Carney unveiled Canada’s AI strategy on Thursday morning, which promises to stimulate the country’s commercialization and adoption of the technology. 

“We need legislation, and then we need to enforce it.” 

Ritesh Kotak

Titled AI for All, it includes more than $2.3 billion in spending, the establishment of a tech growth fund, top-up funding for existing programs like the Compute Access Fund and Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative, and commits to creating new consumer privacy legislation in the future. 

The strategy is grounded in the principle that AI is already a part of Canadians’ lives—now the goal is to ensure all Canadians benefit. It was developed following consultations held last fall, which garnered 64,600 responses to questions from over 11,300 participants. A BetaKit analysis of those public consultations, plus recommendations from the specialized AI task force, revealed that Canadians were just as concerned about AI harms as they were excited about its economic benefits. 

To get a better sense of how well the strategy threaded that needle, BetaKit called, e-mailed, and scoured social media of business leaders, policy wonks, academics, and others from across Canadian tech. Most noted the strategy’s strong focus on AI adoption, but were divided on whether it was a good thing or a bad thing. What almost everyone agreed on, however, is the need to see clearer timelines and more details. 

Here’s some of what they said, in their own words.

The following responses have been edited for clarity. 

The strategy is heavily focused on AI adoption

“They have a very ambitious goal of 60 percent [business adoption] by 2034; that’s extremely ambitious, but the reality is that we are further behind other countries … If you don’t set really lofty goals, it’s going to be hard to reach lofty goals.”

—Arvind Gupta, University of Toronto professor and AI task force member

“The focus on AI literacy, skills development and support for business adoption are all positive steps that can help Canadians participate more fully in the AI economy while strengthening Canada’s competitiveness.”

—Melissa Robertson, CPA Canada’s AI and tech lead 

“It’s very encouraging. It’s beyond my expectations … I think it’s really focused on adoption of AI at the core to serve Canadians and making sure that at the same time it’s aligned with Canadian values.”

—Louis Têtu, Coveo Executive Chairman and AI task force member 

But adoption isn’t the be-all end-all

“What are we talking about adopting? Well, the stuff that exists already is stuff that’s being built elsewhere. So, I see that as ‘let’s train everyone to be good customers of the American mega brands.’”

“It’s us making official government policy out of this idea that we’re always going to, frankly, lose. It’s us going from a world of being AI inventors to a world of AI users. It drives me crazy when people talk about adoption in a country where we invented the god damned stuff.”

—Daniel Wigdor, co-founder and CEO of AXL

“This strategy takes it on faith that AI adoption will lead to productivity gains and economic prosperity, but it’s not totally clear what the economic value capture strategy is.”

“This document seems to be mostly interested in adoption, and then worrying about the tough stuff later.”

—Vass Bednar, managing director of the Canadian Shield Institute

“This is primarily a strategy to help Canada use artificial intelligence, with government in a main character role in framing public perception.”

—Lucy Hargreaves, Build Canada CEO

It aims to help companies commercialize 

“A federal strategy that includes a stronger role for government as an early customer, improved access to compute, targeted growth capital, and a renewed focus on talent are all important pieces of the scaleup equation. These are the conditions founders tell us they need.”

—Grace Lee Reynolds, CEO of MaRS Discovery District

And increase investment

“Done right, these measures can crowd in domestic private investment and help more of Canada’s best companies scale and succeed from here, while keeping more wealth and prosperity at home.”

—Ben Bergen, CEO of the Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association

But there’s a missing middle

“You’re skipping over this need and opportunity to actually figure out what the AI is good for, and we’re just assuming that startups, without any kind of assistance, are going to find those long-term solutions.” 

—Daniel Wigdor, co-founder and CEO of AXL 

It also falls short on privacy and trust 

“Canada’s national AI strategy begins by recognizing that Canadians don’t trust AI … Yet despite identifying this deficit, the government has failed to actually ask how AI systems should be governed, designed, or constrained. Instead, it largely asks how Canadians can be taught to use them.” 

—Helen Hayes, PhD Candidate, McGill University

“We do need amendments to PIPEDA. We need new legislation when it comes from a privacy perspective. Right now, we’re dealing with 21st-century problems with 20th-century frameworks.” 

—Ritesh Kotak, technology and cybersecurity analyst

“I wish that the government had actually delivered a draft version of the proposed privacy law, as part of the strategy release. They’re right that clear governance and meaningful oversight to prevent harms from AI is a key part of any serious adoption strategy, but until we actually see the law, we can’t know if the governance framework will be successful.”

—Vass Bednar, managing director of the Canadian Shield Institute

More on Canada’s AI strategy

• Canada’s AI strategy contains $2.3 billion in spending but few specifics on privacy
• Canada’s AI strategy promises to protect citizens. Critics say it still lacks teeth
• Canada’s AI strategy looks to shift government from startup supporter to stakeholder
• Canada’s AI strategy draws mixed reviews from across tech ecosystem

And lacks green commitments

“While the strategy mentions environmental concerns, the strategy falls short of proposing an actual vision to this matter – except for sustainable data centres. We would have hoped for more leadership from the federal government on this file.”

—Florian Martin Bariteau, professor at the University of Ottawa and director of the AI + Society Initiative

Its impact on young Canadians is mixed 

“I particularly welcome the absence of any language suggesting an upcoming ban of AI for youth or age verification; the strategy even promises to provide youth with trusted AI agents. This is in line with what many youth have been advocating for in the past months.” 

—Florian Martin Bariteau, professor at the University of Ottawa and director of the AI + Society Initiative

“The strategy places significant emphasis on providing students with access to ‘trusted AI agents.’ Yet it never defines what makes an AI system trustworthy in the first place. Trustworthiness is treated as an outcome of adoption rather than a characteristic that must be demonstrated through independent oversight and accountability. “

—Helen Hayes, PhD Candidate, McGill University

More details are necessary

“We need legislation, and then we need to enforce it.” 

—Ritesh Kotak, technology and cybersecurity analyst 

“While AI for All contains a number of promising ideas, it spreads its priorities broadly and does not yet provide a sufficiently clear roadmap for helping Canadian AI companies grow into globally competitive firms that create and retain economic value in Canada.”

—Laurent Carbonneau, CCI Vice President of Policy and Advocacy

“The really big question is, can we give it as fast as this technology is being developed? … how can we make sure the structures are in place, so we can take advantage of new ideas as they’re coming out?” 

—Arvind Gupta, University of Toronto professor and AI task force member

Feature image courtesy Unsplash. Photo by Jason Hafso.