A data center CEO and scientist say Canadian-owned digital infrastructure could usher in an artificial intelligence industry.
How the Canadian government did it dedicated almost $1 billion for construction sovereign cloudCEO and scientist, believe this opportunity goes beyond giving Canada control of its digital future.
“[Canada has] research know-how. Now the question is about starting the economic and commercial engine.”
While the feds are still working on definitions, a sovereign cloud would use Canadian-owned infrastructure to store data and run applications, theoretically protected from foreign control. Hypertec Group CEO Simon Ahdoot and Simon Fraser University Vice President for Research and Innovation Dugan O'Neill say a Canadian government contract for such a project could bring economic benefits to domestic artificial intelligence (AI) companies if done right.
Ahdut, whose firm is one of Canada's largest data center operators, compared Canada's artificial intelligence industry to a lawnmower that starts when the Canadian government pulls on a string.
“We have tremendous power, so the capabilities are there. We have the research know-how. Now it's a question of starting the economic and commercial engine,” he said. The government's “Buy Canadian” strategy, under which it plans to prioritize Canadian suppliers for physical and digital infrastructure projects. by next year will help stimulate that engine and attract private capital, Ahdut argues.
Ahdut is set to discuss Canadian sovereign cloud at Canadian Science Policy Conference on Wednesday along with Simon Fraser University (SFU) President Joy Johnson, Bell AI Fabric CEO Jathan Reichel, SFU Vice President of Research and Innovation Dugan O'Neill and Photonic Strategic Director of Corporate Communications Leslie Duncan.
The conference, which runs from November 19 to 21 in Ottawa, will discuss Canada's science and innovation policies, with presentations from industry, academia and the public sector.
While Hypertec is counting on the huge economic benefits created by the AI industry, Ahdut says Canada should build domestic infrastructure and applications to act as “landlords” rather than “paying rent” to foreign companies to use their AI services. Part of this promotion will be to act as an “anchor client” for local companies.
The government should strive to make cloud sovereignty “as feasible as possible,” O'Neill told BetaKit. This will give the government more digital control while providing domestic firms with contracts and trust.
Canadian Sovereign Cloud Tutorial
While unpredictable US politics raise concerns about data sovereignty, Canadian politicians and companies are racing to make a Canadian cloud sovereignty a reality.
• Carney says new major projects office will help build 'Canadian sovereign cloud'
• Canada hopes to create a sovereign cloud to counter US dominance. It won't be easy
• Telus opens first Sovereign AI Factory in Rimovsky
• Mila partners with Hypertec and 5C to launch Sovereign AI Research Center in Montreal
• Canadian cloud providers team up to launch sovereign cloud offering for government
Digital sovereignty has become subject of conversation among Canada trade war with the United States. As the Canadian government sought to reduce its dependence on American digital providers, it created economic opportunities for domestic companies. However, large-scale data center construction also comes with environmental concerns as electricity demand is expected to increase. almost doubled by 2030.
Under US CLOUD Act and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA), there are circumstances in which data hosted on servers owned by U.S. companies, even if located in Canada, may be disclosed to U.S. law enforcement upon request.
According to the Canadian government official document on data sovereignty and the public cloud: “As long as a CSP operating in Canada is subject to the laws of a foreign country, Canada will not have full sovereignty over its data.” As for Hypertec, which operates in the U.S., Ahdut said it's “not a concern right now” but the company is “monitoring it very carefully.”
Founded in 1984 in Saint-Laurent, Quebec, Hypertec builds and operates data centers that offer cloud infrastructure and services to thousands of customers. In April, it spun off Hypertec Cloud and acquired US-based 5C, expanding its presence in the US.
Hypertec has We cooperate with domestic companies ThinkOn, Aptum and eStruxture will develop an independent cloud offering for sale to the Government of Canada. The firms say the partnership will allow the government and its ecosystem of software providers to run mission-critical workloads on a Canadian-controlled system. Ahdoot said Hypertec has been in contact with AI Minister Evan Solomon's office since the summer.
CONNECTED: Canada hopes to create a sovereign cloud to counter US dominance. It won't be easy
However, Solomon said he does not rule out Partners from the USA on the Sovereign Cloud Project as the government attempts to define “sovereignty” in legal and operational terms.
O'Neill acknowledged that in the short term, buying American-made equipment such as Nvidia GPUs may be inevitable, but government contracts will give Canada's artificial intelligence industry a chance to compete in the hardware market in the long term.
“Everyone is buying Nvidia,” O'Neill said. “They're not the only choice. They're just the dominant player. And we have some work to do to create markets where other companies can create things that can be even more efficient.”
O'Neill told BetaKit that Canadian researchers and companies will have an opportunity to carve out a niche in the development of efficient, special-purpose equipment. “I see absolutely no reason why we can't compete,” he said.
Image courtesy of Hypertec Group via LinkedIn.
