Overview

• The government is shifting from caution to proactive adoption by integrating Canadian-developed AI tools into public services and encouraging private sector uptake.
• Ottawa has already budgeted $2 billion to expand AI computing capacity and plans further multi-billion-dollar investments in domestic data centres and quantum infrastructure.
• Cohere secured a $240 million commitment to acquire compute capacity at CoreWeave’s new Canadian data centre in a landmark infrastructure deal.
• Homegrown AI startups such as Cohere and Ada will receive government contracts to validate their technologies and attract global investment for dual-use applications.
• A federal Quantum Advisory Council proposal outlines a DARPA-style benchmarking initiative that could award applicants up to US$316 million each by 2033 for industrial problem-solving.