Trudeau announces AI spending plan to bolster Canadian infrastructure, computing capacity and safety - The Globe and Mail | Canada News Media
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Trudeau announces AI spending plan to bolster Canadian infrastructure, computing capacity and safety – The Globe and Mail

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5 months ago

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The federal government will spend $2.4-billion to bolster access to critical artificial intelligence infrastructure, build domestic computing capacity and create safeguards against the potential downsides of AI technology, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Sunday.

The reveal was the latest in a series of near-daily pre-budget announcements, in which the government has been unveiling its spending plans ahead of the release of the full federal budget on April 16.

Canada is home to world-leading AI researchers, but in recent years the country has fallen behind in providing the infrastructure needed for the growing field, particularly the advanced computer chips crucial for building and running AI models. The shift has led many to call for more government intervention.

Although Mr. Trudeau offered few details at his announcement, which he made during a news conference in Montreal, many in the industry celebrated the promised investment. Others said past experience with government spending announcements had left them skeptical of Ottawa’s ability to execute on the new promises.

Money to build and make accessible more computing power will make up the most significant portion of the new spending.

In a news release, the government said $2-billion will be shared between two new initiatives. One of them, an AI Compute Access Fund, is intended to give “near-term support” to the industry and researchers. The government provided no further details, but one way of providing this support could be by facilitating access to computing power from foreign tech giants. The other initiative, a Canadian AI Sovereign Compute Strategy, is intended to speed up the development of Canadian-owned and located AI infrastructure.

“Access to computational power and capital are two of the largest barriers to developing new AI models or applications,” Mr. Trudeau said.

The government did not specify how much of the $2-billion would go to access and how much would go to building domestic computing power.

A Finance Department official told The Globe and Mail the money would be spent over five years, and that more details would be released in the budget next week. The Globe is not identifying the official because they were not permitted to discuss detailed spending plans.

Mr. Trudeau’s announcement on AI spending follows more than a week of other funding announcements in areas including child care and housing, totalling tens of billions of dollars in new federal loans and spending. Until the budget is released next week, it will remain unclear how the new spending will affect the federal government’s bottom line.

Without accounting for the new spending announced so far, last year’s budget projected that the federal deficit for 2024-25 would be $35-billion. At his news conference, Mr. Trudeau was asked about his government’s spending and about Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre’s call for the government to find a dollar of cuts for every new dollar spent.

“We’re investing responsibly,” Mr. Trudeau said, adding in French that “a confident country invests in itself, invests in its citizens, and that’s exactly what we’re doing today.”

The government’s news release said it will also spend $200-million to help accelerate AI adoption in critical sectors and help startups bring new AI technologies to market. Another $100-million will help small and medium-sized businesses scale up and increase productivity through AI, the government said, while an additional $50-million will provide new skills training for workers displaced by AI.

A further $50-million will create a new Canadian AI Safety Institute, and $5.1-million will be set aside for the enforcement of the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act, legislation aimed at regulating AI that was tabled in 2022 and has not yet passed the House of Commons.

The announcement was broadly endorsed by one of the leaders of AI research, Yoshua Bengio, whose role in developing the technology has earned him (along with two others) the nickname “godfather of AI.” He is a professor at the Université de Montréal, and founder and scientific director of Quebec’s AI institute, which is called Mila. He was among the speakers at Mr. Trudeau’s announcement.

“The government of Canada is acting responsibly and is positioning itself on the right side of history with this announcement,” Prof. Bengio said.

Speaking in French, he said such investments are critical for economic development and an essential tool for addressing national security and geopolitical challenges. Countries that don’t have AI computing infrastructure risk being left behind, he said.

He also said the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, where he co-directs the Learning in Machines and Brains program, has been mandated to create the safety institute. The scientific questions the institute will address are existential and absolutely need to be figured out, he said.

“How do we build future AI systems that may be even surpassing human intelligence, that are also safe? That will not turn against humans? We don’t know how to do that,” Prof. Bengio said. “It’s urgent to invest in this.”

AI systems require immense computing power, and that need is expected to increase as the technology becomes more prevalent and as new applications for it are developed.

Canada is ranked fifth in the world for its AI capacity, according to the Tortoise Global AI Index, which measures countries based on a variety of factors. But when ranked on AI infrastructure alone, Canada falls to 23rd.

Some experts said they aren’t convinced Ottawa’s announcement will lead to a material improvement.

Jim Balsillie, a former co-chief executive of BlackBerry Ltd, described the plans as a good idea. But he said the government “has not demonstrated the ability to competently design or implement such investments.”

Others, including Own Innovation founder Jim Hinton, said they were concerned that the federal announcement didn’t address intellectual property issues related to AI.

Mr. Hinton, whose firm supports technology companies on intellectual property strategy, said he is skeptical of the future of the new initiative, considering the fact that past government innovation initiatives have been cancelled or postponed.

“I am afraid that this is just another announcement without execution or substance,” he said. “Call me when there are results and globally competitive Canadian AI companies at scale, or more likely, call me when the program is wildly unsuccessful.”

The Conservative Party said in a statement that it does not believe the government is competent enough to execute the announced plan.

With a report from Sean Silcoff

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The #1 Skill I Look For When Hiring

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2 days ago

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September 17, 2024

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File this column under “for what it’s worth.”

“Communication is one of the most important skills you require for a successful life.” — Catherine Pulsifer, author.

I’m one hundred percent in agreement with Pulsifer, which is why my evaluation of candidates begins with their writing skills. If a candidate’s writing skills and verbal communication skills, which I’ll assess when interviewing, aren’t well above average, I’ll pass on them regardless of their skills and experience.

 

Why?

 

Because business is fundamentally about getting other people to do things—getting employees to be productive, getting customers to buy your products or services, and getting vendors to agree to a counteroffer price. In business, as in life in general, you can’t make anything happen without effective communication; this is especially true when job searching when your writing is often an employer’s first impression of you.

 

Think of all the writing you engage in during a job search (resumes, cover letters, emails, texts) and all your other writing (LinkedIn profile, as well as posts and comments, blogs, articles, tweets, etc.) employers will read when they Google you to determine if you’re interview-worthy.

 

With so much of our communication today taking place via writing (email, text, collaboration platforms such as Microsoft Teams, Slack, ClickUp, WhatsApp and Rocket.Chat), the importance of proficient writing skills can’t be overstated.

 

When assessing a candidate’s writing skills, you probably think I’m looking for grammar and spelling errors. Although error-free writing is important—it shows professionalism and attention to detail—it’s not the primary reason I look at a candidate’s writing skills.

 

The way someone writes reveals how they think.

 

  • Clear writing = Clear thinking
  • Structured paragraphs = Structured mind
  • Impactful sentences = Impactful ideas

 

Effective writing isn’t about using sophisticated vocabulary. Hemingway demonstrated that deceptively simple, stripped-down prose can captivate readers. Effective writing takes intricate thoughts and presents them in a way that makes the reader think, “Damn! Why didn’t I see it that way?” A good writer is a dead giveaway for a good thinker. More than ever, the business world needs “good thinkers.”

 

Therefore, when I come across a candidate who’s a good writer, hence a good thinker, I know they’re likely to be able to write:

 

  • Emails that don’t get deleted immediately and are responded to
  • Simple, concise, and unambiguous instructions
  • Pitches that are likely to get read
  • Social media content that stops thumbs
  • Human-sounding website copy
  • Persuasively, while attuned to the reader’s possible sensitivities

 

Now, let’s talk about the elephant in the room: AI, which job seekers are using en masse. Earlier this year, I wrote that AI’s ability to hyper-increase an employee’s productivity—AI is still in its infancy; we’ve seen nothing yet—in certain professions, such as writing, sales and marketing, computer programming, office and admin, and customer service, makes it a “fewer employees needed” tool, which understandably greatly appeals to employers. In my opinion, the recent layoffs aren’t related to the economy; they’re due to employers adopting AI. Additionally, companies are trying to balance investing in AI with cost-cutting measures. CEOs who’ve previously said, “Our people are everything,” have arguably created today’s job market by obsessively focusing on AI to gain competitive advantages and reduce their largest expense, their payroll.

 

It wouldn’t be a stretch to assume that most AI usage involves generating written content, content that’s obvious to me, and likely to you as well, to have been written by AI. However, here’s the twist: I don’t particularly care.

 

Why?

 

Because the fundamental skill I’m looking for is the ability to organize thoughts and communicate effectively. What I care about is whether the candidate can take AI-generated content and transform it into something uniquely valuable. If they can, they’re demonstrating the skills of being a good thinker and communicator. It’s like being a great DJ; anyone can push play, but it takes skill to read a room and mix music that gets people pumped.

 

Using AI requires prompting effectively, which requires good writing skills to write clear and precise instructions that guide the AI to produce desired outcomes. Prompting AI effectively requires understanding structure, flow and impact. You need to know how to shape raw information, such as milestones throughout your career when you achieved quantitative results, into a compelling narrative.

So, what’s the best way to gain and enhance your writing skills? As with any skill, you’ve got to work at it.

Two rules guide my writing:

 

  • Use strong verbs and nouns instead of relying on adverbs, such as “She dashed to the store.” instead of “She ran quickly to the store.” or “He whispered to the child.” instead of “He spoke softly to the child.”
  • Avoid using long words when a shorter one will do, such as “use” instead of “utilize” or “ask” instead of “inquire.” As attention spans get shorter, I aim for clarity, simplicity and, most importantly, brevity in my writing.

 

Don’t just string words together; learn to organize your thoughts, think critically, and communicate clearly. Solid writing skills will significantly set you apart from your competition, giving you an advantage in your job search and career.

_____________________________________________________________________

 

Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers “unsweetened” job search advice. You can send Nick your questions to artoffindingwork@gmail.com.

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Politics likely pushed Air Canada toward deal with ‘unheard of’ gains for pilots

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2 days ago

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September 16, 2024

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MONTREAL – Politics, public opinion and salary hikes south of the border helped push Air Canada toward a deal that secures major pay gains for pilots, experts say.

Hammered out over the weekend, the would-be agreement includes a cumulative wage hike of nearly 42 per cent over four years — an enormous bump by historical standards — according to one source who was not authorized to speak publicly on the matter. The previous 10-year contract granted increases of just two per cent annually.

The federal government’s stated unwillingness to step in paved the way for a deal, noted John Gradek, after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made it plain the two sides should hash one out themselves.

“Public opinion basically pressed the federal cabinet, including the prime minister, to keep their hands clear of negotiations and looking at imposing a settlement,” said Gradek, who teaches aviation management at McGill University.

After late-night talks at a hotel near Toronto’s Pearson airport, the country’s biggest airline and the union representing 5,200-plus aviators announced early Sunday morning they had reached a tentative agreement, averting a strike that would have grounded flights and affected some 110,000 passengers daily.

The relative precariousness of the Liberal minority government as well as a push to appear more pro-labour underlay the prime minister’s hands-off approach to the negotiations.

Trudeau said Friday the government would not step in to fix the impasse — unlike during a massive railway work stoppage last month and a strike by WestJet mechanics over the Canada Day long weekend that workers claimed road roughshod over their constitutional right to collective bargaining. Trudeau said the government respects the right to strike and would only intervene if it became apparent no negotiated deal was possible.

“They felt that they really didn’t want to try for a third attempt at intervention and basically said, ‘Let’s let the airline decide how they want to deal with this one,'” said Gradek.

“Air Canada ran out of support as the week wore on, and by the time they got to Friday night, Saturday morning, there was nothing left for them to do but to basically try to get a deal set up and accepted by ALPA (Air Line Pilots Association).”

Trudeau’s government was also unlikely to consider back-to-work legislation after the NDP tore up its agreement to support the Liberal minority in Parliament, Gradek said. Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre, whose party has traditionally toed a more pro-business line, also said last week that Tories “stand with the pilots” and swore off “pre-empting” the negotiations.

Air Canada CEO Michael Rousseau had asked Ottawa on Thursday to impose binding arbitration pre-emptively — “before any travel disruption starts” — if talks failed. Backed by business leaders, he’d hoped for an effective repeat of the Conservatives’ move to head off a strike in 2012 by legislating Air Canada pilots and ground crew to stick to their posts before any work stoppage could start.

The request may have fallen flat, however. Gradek said he believes there was less anxiety over the fallout from an airline strike than from the countrywide railway shutdown.

He also speculated that public frustration over thousands of cancelled flights would have flowed toward Air Canada rather than Ottawa, prompting the carrier to concede to a deal yielding “unheard of” gains for employees.

“It really was a total collapse of the Air Canada bargaining position,” he said.

Pilots are slated to vote in the coming weeks on the four-year contract.

Last year, pilots at Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and American Airlines secured agreements that included four-year pay boosts ranging from 34 per cent to 40 per cent, ramping up pressure on other carriers to raise wages.

After more than a year of bargaining, Air Canada put forward an offer in August centred around a 30 per cent wage hike over four years.

But the final deal, should union members approve it, grants a 26 per cent increase in the first year alone, retroactive to September 2023, according to the source. Three wage bumps of four per cent would follow in 2024 through 2026.

Passengers may wind up shouldering some of that financial load, one expert noted.

“At the end of the day, it’s all us consumers who are paying,” said Barry Prentice, who heads the University of Manitoba’s transport institute.

Higher fares may be mitigated by the persistence of budget carrier Flair Airlines and the rapid expansion of Porter Airlines — a growing Air Canada rival — as well as waning demand for leisure trips. Corporate travel also remains below pre-COVID-19 levels.

Air Canada said Sunday the tentative contract “recognizes the contributions and professionalism of Air Canada’s pilot group, while providing a framework for the future growth of the airline.”

The union issued a statement saying that, if ratified, the agreement will generate about $1.9 billion of additional value for Air Canada pilots over the course of the deal.

Meanwhile, labour tension with cabin crew looms on the horizon. Air Canada is poised to kick off negotiations with the union representing more than 10,000 flight attendants this year before the contract expires on March 31.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.

Companies in this story: (TSX:AC)

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Federal $500M bailout for Muskrat Falls power delays to keep N.S. rate hikes in check

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3 days ago

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September 16, 2024

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HALIFAX – Ottawa is negotiating a $500-million bailout for Nova Scotia’s privately owned electric utility, saying the money will be used to prevent a big spike in electricity rates.

Federal Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson made the announcement today in Halifax, saying Nova Scotia Power Inc. needs the money to cover higher costs resulting from the delayed delivery of electricity from the Muskrat Falls hydroelectric plant in Labrador.

Wilkinson says that without the money, the subsidiary of Emera Inc. would have had to increase rates by 19 per cent over “the short term.”

Nova Scotia Power CEO Peter Gregg says the deal, once approved by the province’s energy regulator, will keep rate increases limited “to be around the rate of inflation,” as costs are spread over a number of years.

The utility helped pay for construction of an underwater transmission link between Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, but the Muskrat Falls project has not been consistent in delivering electricity over the past five years.

Those delays forced Nova Scotia Power to spend more on generating its own electricity.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 16, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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