The government is poised to spend as much as $1 billion to build public computing infrastructure for Canada’s artificial intelligence sector, money that is part of a $2 billion commitment outlined by the Trudeau government’s latest federal budget.
The Canadian Sovereign AI Compute Strategy details how the government intends to deploy the funding previously promised for artificial intelligence computing power.
Supercomputing infrastructure will soon be made available to businesses and researchers across the country, a government official told media outlets on the condition of anonymity.
According to the official, the government intends to issue a call for proposals in the coming months to select a partner in building the infrastructure.
The Trudeau government claims this strategy “will meet the short-term, medium-term, and long-term compute needs” of domestic players as they conduct AI research and develop AI products locally.
Of the funding earmarked for the project, $200 million will be allocated to sites in Canada that already have publicly funded capacity.
Additionally, the government will allocate $300 million to launch a fund for small and medium-sized Canadian businesses to procure affordable computing power later this spring.
Academics and industry projects and others will also receive around $700 million to put towards building commercial AI data centres through the AI Compute Challenge, with priority given to projects that offer sustainability and a high return on public investment.
A government press release noted that there “will be an application process for these funds, with priority given to Canadian projects that can demonstrate high rate of return on public investment, sustainability, and other markers of success.”
Minister of Innovation, Science, and Industry François-Philippe Champagne described the strategy as “a major step toward securing Canada’s place as a global AI leader.”
“We’re proud to be a driving force in the worldwide ecosystem, and by increasing access to domestic and secure compute capacity, we will help businesses, innovators and researchers boost the Canadian economy and stand out on the world stage,” said Champagne in a statement.