Last week, Canada's AI Strategy Task Force gave Ottawa a series of recommendations to shape our country's approach to
. This is not just another political debate; This is about Canada's economic future, and the stakes couldn't be higher.
AI is poised to create the most significant competitive gap in two centuries. More than industrialization, automation or robotics. The Coming Quantum Leap in
will be so significant that the world will quickly divide into those who will implement AI and those who will not. There will be no middle ground.
To put it bluntly: we will either build an owner-adopter economy or be relegated to the subcontracting arm of the global AI ecosystem.
It's about speed
The evidence for moving fast is overwhelming.
A study by Forum IA Québec found that if the province significantly increased its adoption of AI,
could grow by as much as 14 percent by 2035. An Accenture report projects that generative AI could generate $180 billion in annual productivity revenue for Canada by 2030.
Today, however, less than 1 in 10 Canadian companies classify their AI adoption as advanced.
It's more than just automation and efficiency, we do more. It's about mastery: each person does more on their own, with greater capabilities. That's why Canadian companies need to move beyond pilots and research projects and focus on achieving real business results. Our standard of living depends on this.
The need to industrialize artificial intelligence across Canada
Canada's contribution to the science of artificial intelligence is undeniable. Our country has pioneered basic AI research, and today 10 percent of the world's top AI researchers are located here in Canada, the second-largest country by concentration. However, we were unable to monetize these contributions.
For Canada to reap the benefits of the technology it helped create, we must focus on applied artificial intelligence, the most effective way to begin industrializing artificial intelligence.
This approach is based on the development of a sovereign domestic infrastructure that is not isolationist. A national AI network accessible to everyone and designed to be powerful, scalable, fast and repeatable. In short, it is a utility that every enterprise, every SMB, every research institution, every hospital and every government agency can connect to and use.
Think of it as the vast railway network that Canada built over 150 years ago. At that time we had no idea how much prosperity would come. But we knew that Canada would not be the country it is today if the railroad had been built by foreign interests. We realized that power over innovation infrastructure means control over our economic destiny.
Today, thanks to artificial intelligence, Canada is experiencing a similar turning point in its history. The infrastructure we control—or fail to control—will determine Canada's economic future.
Adoption, talent, procurement
But infrastructure alone will not drive transformation. As a country, we also need to drive adoption across the economy; double the number of top talent to help Canadian companies implement artificial intelligence to create competitiveness and increase value for Canadians.
Canada's strong talent pool is undeniable. However, as the race for artificial intelligence intensifies, we need to do a much better job of creating, attracting and retaining talent. Why? Because the biggest barrier to AI adoption is the lack of technology and applied AI expertise within our businesses and institutions. The AI transformation requires people who understand the technology inside out.
For too long, we have allowed foreign multinationals to recruit our best minds, even while they work on our soil. It is critical that we create strong incentives for our best talent to work for Canadian companies and build their careers here at home.
Moreover, if Ottawa is serious about putting Canada at the forefront of the artificial intelligence revolution, the government will have to adopt bold and pragmatic policies to match its ambitions. The government can't just defend AI—it must lead with concrete action. Our federal government spends billions every year on IT, but anyone who has spent hours on the phone with a government agency knows that significant improvements are needed.
For example, by prioritizing the purchase of artificial intelligence technologies from domestic firms, the government could simultaneously modernize its own operations and expand our domestic artificial intelligence industry. Using national security and national interest exceptions to prioritize Canadian companies in AI (a practice already used in other strategic sectors) would be a powerful first step.
This would create a virtuous cycle: Ottawa improves service delivery, our AI companies acquire key customers, and we create an ecosystem that keeps intellectual property, talent, and profits in Canada, and then we can export that model.
The time is now
Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation
laid out this government's ambitions when it comes to AI. He articulated this vision in response to the enormous opportunity that the adoption of AI represents for Canada and Canadians.
By focusing on the industrialization of artificial intelligence, investing in commercial adoption, creating strong incentives to attract top talent, and implementing “
“I am confident that we can translate this vision into a prosperous economic future.
One of my engineering professors once told me, “Get beyond the technology fad. Provide effective solutions!” Canada needs it, and urgently.
Louis Tetu is the executive chairman of Coveo Solutions Inc. and member of the Canadian AI Strategy Working Group.
