Alberta commits $100M to grow province’s AI sector

The Alberta government is committing $100 million over five years to attract more AI companies to invest in the province. Premier Rachel Notley announced an initial investment of $27 million to enable Edmonton-based Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute (Amii), a non-profit research institute, to develop a new program supporting companies looking to build their in-house AI capacity. Amii also will expand its presence and open a new Calgary office. The province’s investment — along with the federal government’s contribution of $25 million in 2017, through the $125-million Pan-Canadian AI Strategy delivered by CIFAR — is aimed at accelerating the impact of AI and machine learning on Alberta’s economy. Estimates from across the high-tech community suggest the funding will result in about 5,600 high-paid jobs and approximately $1.5 billion in overall value to Alberta businesses and Amii-affiliated startups. The funding will also support Alberta Innovates with work focused on company growth and acceleration, applied R&D, industry solutions and establishing a stronger global market presence for Alberta.

READ MORE: CIFAR unveils first cohort of AI chairs at Pan-Canadian AI Strategy annual meeting (December 5, 2018)