Feds and Québec Invest $16 Million to Establish AI Computing Cluster in Laval

The governments of Canada and Québec have allocated $16 million to establish an AI computing cluster at Université Laval. This funding aims to facilitate the acquisition of the necessary computing infrastructure for hosting the Pan-Canadian AI Compute Environment (PAICE) platform at the university. Under this initiative, the federal government is contributing $9.6 million from the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy (PCAIS), while Québec is adding $6.4 million to support the project.

The PAICE platform will be collaboratively developed with Mila, the Digital Research Alliance of Canada (DRAC), and Calcul Québec.Canada recently fell from fourth to fifth place in global rankings assessing artificial intelligence (AI) readiness, partly attributed to the country's limited access to computing power. According to The Globe and Mail, Canada's performance in global computing infrastructure rankings, both in terms of investment and raw power, has been subpar, contributing to brain drain.

"We still have one of the greatest talent concentrations in AI in the world. But we are in danger of losing it because now there’s so much money being invested in these large systems, mostly in the US, that the brain drain is probably coming back," remarked Yoshua Bengio, the scientific director of the Mila AI Institute, in an interview with The Globe.The Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy (PCAIS) was launched by the federal government of Canada in 2017 with the goal of positioning Canada as a global leader in artificial intelligence (AI) research and innovation. With an initial investment of $125 million over five years, the strategy aimed to support research and development initiatives, foster collaboration between academia and industry, and attract and retain top AI talent in Canada.

The PCAIS has played a significant role in fueling the growth of AI research hubs across the country, including the Vector Institute in Toronto, the Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms (Mila) in Montreal, and the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute (Amii) in Edmonton. These research institutes have become hubs of excellence in AI, attracting leading researchers and fostering groundbreaking research in areas such as deep learning, natural language processing, and computer vision.

In addition to supporting research activities, the PCAIS has focused on fostering partnerships between academia, industry, and government to drive AI innovation. Through collaborative initiatives, such as the Next Generation AI for Health program and the AI for Climate Solutions program, the strategy aims to harness the power of AI to address pressing societal challenges and drive economic growth.The second phase of the PCAIS, launched in 2022, represents a renewed commitment to advancing Canada's AI ecosystem. With a mandate of $443 million, the second phase aims to accelerate the commercialization of AI technologies, establish standards and best practices for AI development and deployment, and attract and retain top AI talent from around the world.

Overall, the PCAIS has been instrumental in establishing Canada as a global leader in AI research and innovation. By investing in research, talent development, and collaboration, the strategy aims to ensure that Canada remains at the forefront of the AI revolution and reaps the economic and social benefits of this transformative technology.

The federal government's investment in the Université Laval AI computing cluster is part of a broader initiative within the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy (PCAIS) aimed at enhancing Canada's computing capacity for AI research. This specific allocation of $40 million underscores the government's commitment to providing researchers across the country with the necessary computational resources to advance AI innovation.

François-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry, emphasized the importance of this investment in strengthening Canada's digital infrastructure and maintaining its leadership position in the field of AI. By supporting the development of advanced digital research infrastructure, the government aims to harness the potential of artificial intelligence to drive technological progress and economic growth in Canada.

The investment in the AI computing cluster at Université Laval reflects the government's recognition of the strategic importance of AI research and its commitment to fostering a thriving AI ecosystem in Canada. By providing researchers with access to state-of-the-art computing resources, the government aims to accelerate AI innovation and ensure that Canada remains at the forefront of this rapidly evolving field.George Ross, CEO of the Digital Research Alliance of Canada (DRAC), expressed satisfaction with the organization's role in providing the necessary computing capacity to support the national AI computing cluster. He emphasized the importance of this funding in enhancing DRAC's capacity to support AI research initiatives across Canada.

Ross's statement underscores DRAC's commitment to facilitating collaboration and innovation in the field of artificial intelligence. By providing essential computing resources, DRAC aims to empower researchers and institutions to pursue cutting-edge AI research projects. This collaboration between DRAC, Université Laval, and other stakeholders exemplifies the collective effort to advance AI research and drive technological innovation in Canada.