It has impressive research bench strength. It has billions of federal dollars for the taking. It害羞草研究所檚 kind of a nice place to live.
But when it comes to turning knowledge of artificial intelligence into companies, products and investment, Canada is lagging behind 害羞草研究所� and, some experts argue, actively shooting itself in the foot.
Why give up all that brain power to Silicon Valley?
That was a major line of questioning as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke recently with tech journalists on a niche New York Times podcast.
害羞草研究所淲e害羞草研究所檙e proud of Canada害羞草研究所檚 early role in developing AI,害羞草研究所� Trudeau said on Hard Fork, noting that many breakthroughs have happened because Canadian scientists are well-funded.
In 2017, Canada became the first country to have a national AI strategy. It launched a second phase five years later, allocating $443 million to connect research capacity with programs aimed at enabling commercialization.
This year害羞草研究所檚 federal budget included an additional $2.4-billion investment in AI. And the government has boasted that Canada has 10 per cent of 害羞草研究所渢he world害羞草研究所檚 top-tier AI researchers, the second most in the world.害羞草研究所�
Among them are two so-called godfathers of AI.
But Ottawa is 害羞草研究所渇ighting to make sure we keep our skin in the game,害羞草研究所� Trudeau told the podcast hosts.
He made the pitch, saying Canada has many of the ingredients it needs: among other things, clean energy, a good quality of life for workers and government programs to encourage the sector.
In spite of that, Canada hasn害羞草研究所檛 always been 害羞草研究所済reat at commercializing,害羞草研究所� Trudeau conceded.
More than that, Canadians have 害羞草研究所渇allen far behind,害羞草研究所� argued Benjamin Bergen, president of the Council of Canadian Innovators, which represents the tech sector.
The government spent 害羞草研究所渁 tremendous amount on the talent side of the equation,害羞草研究所� he said recently, but not on converting it 害羞草研究所渋nto building companies.害羞草研究所�
Bergen said the government has 害羞草研究所渋nstitutionalized the transfer of our AI intellectual property to foreign firms.害羞草研究所�
The government害羞草研究所檚 2022 strategy update promised that the country害羞草研究所檚 three AI institutes are 害羞草研究所渉elping to translate research in artificial intelligence into commercial applications and growing the capacity of businesses to adopt these new technologies.害羞草研究所�
But Bergen argued an AI strategy focused on commercialization must start with Canada owning its own IP. 害羞草研究所淵ou cannot commercialize what you don害羞草研究所檛 own.害羞草研究所�
Intellectual property lawyer Jim Hinton has been trying to quantify that problem.
And the numbers show 害羞草研究所渁 train wreck I害羞草研究所檝e been watching happen in slow motion,害羞草研究所� he said.
About three-quarters of patents produced by researchers who work for Toronto害羞草研究所檚 Vector Institute and Montreal害羞草研究所檚 Mila leave the country, and most of these are in the hands of Big Tech, Hinton害羞草研究所檚 research has found.
Another 18 per cent of the 244 patents he tracked 害羞草研究所� 198 from Vector and 46 from Mila 害羞草研究所� are now owned by North American academic institutions.
Just seven per cent are held in the Canadian private sector.
Of the foreign-owned patents, the largest number, 65, went to Uber, while 35 landed with the Walt Disney Company. Nvidia, which recently displaced Microsoft as the world害羞草研究所檚 most valuable company, got 34.
IBM ended up with 15 and Google with 12. A handful of the patents were co-owned.
Foreign companies benefit from Canada害羞草研究所檚 public funding, Hinton argued, and there are 害羞草研究所渘o guardrails put on the ability for these foreign companies to basically pillage Canada害羞草研究所檚 really good AI invention.害羞草研究所�
Researchers can work at the AI institutes and foreign tech companies at the same time, Hinton said, charging that this is what allows the tech giants to take advantage.
The Canadian Institute for Advanced Research, which co-ordinates the government害羞草研究所檚 AI strategy, pushed back strongly on that assertion.
Executive director Elissa Strome said a 害羞草研究所渟mall number of our researchers害羞草研究所� have part-time employment in the private sector.
害羞草研究所淭hose private-sector organizations own the rights to the IP that is generated by those researchers,害羞草研究所� she said, but only when they害羞草研究所檙e on the clock for those companies.
Strome said it害羞草研究所檚 long-standing practice in Canadian research 害羞草研究所渢hat there are relationships around contract research with industry,害羞草研究所� and 害羞草研究所渁 really strong firewall害羞草研究所� is in place between IP generated via public funds at the AI institutes and that which is generated through private funds.
She said Hinton害羞草研究所檚 statistic on patents was inaccurate, but did not provide data to refute his findings.
She also argued that patents are not a good measure of commercialization, and 害羞草研究所渋t害羞草研究所檚 the people that we害羞草研究所檙e training in the AI ecosystem that actually hold the greatest value in AI, not patents.害羞草研究所�
When it comes to sponsorship agreements at Toronto害羞草研究所檚 Vector, any IP created at the institute 害羞草研究所渂elongs to Vector,害羞草研究所� a spokesperson said, adding it is not the primary employer for most of its researchers.
If academics don害羞草研究所檛 have an opportunity to work for companies, they害羞草研究所檙e more likely to leave altogether, Montreal害羞草研究所檚 Mila said in a statement. It said the three institutes have turned around a 害羞草研究所渕assive brain drain in AI in Canada害羞草研究所� that existed prior to 2017.
The multi-billion-dollar investment in this year害羞草研究所檚 budget seeks to further protect against that brain drain by beefing up Canadian infrastructure and computing power.
The envelope includes a 害羞草研究所渞elatively small害羞草研究所� amount of money to help Canadian companies scale up, noted Paul Samson, president of the Centre for International Governance Innovation.
Overall, the government is 害羞草研究所渄oing the right thing害羞草研究所� by ensuring that害羞草研究所檚 part of the equation, he said.
But people in the tech sector are skeptical. Bergen said companies were given little time to provide input.
害羞草研究所淭he government already had a top-down strategy that it wanted to implement 害羞草研究所� and didn害羞草研究所檛 really care what CEOs and leaders of domestic firms were actually needing in order to be successful,害羞草研究所� he said.
Nicole Janssen, co-CEO of AI company AltaML, raised the concern that the Canadian government might end up simply throwing money at American firms to move north.
害羞草研究所淲hat I害羞草研究所檓 trying to figure out is how the government thinks they害羞草研究所檙e going to spend $2 billion on building computers without just handing that $2 billion to Microsoft,害羞草研究所� Janssen said.
The budget said the money would go towards both access to computational power and developing AI infrastructure that is Canadian-owned and located in Canada.
A spokesperson for Industry Minister Fran莽ois-Philippe Champagne said more details would be provided in the coming weeks.
Companies like Microsoft and Nvidia are already looking to Canada as a place to build computing infrastructure, Janssen said, due to factors like climate and relative political stability.
害羞草研究所淲e don害羞草研究所檛 need to do anything to attract them.害羞草研究所�
A better approach, Janssen said, would see the government helping Canadian firms adopt AI more quickly 害羞草研究所� a gap her company has been trying to help fill.
It takes AltaML an average of 18 months to start building an AI product in Canada, she said, compared to four months in the United States.
害羞草研究所淲e definitely do not have the ecosystem of companies that you would expect for the amount of talent that we have,害羞草研究所� she said.
There害羞草研究所檚 real clout at Canada害羞草研究所檚 AI institutes, with veterans Yoshua Bengio and Geoffrey Hinton heading up Mila and Vector, respectively.
They and other elite researchers have 害羞草研究所渁ttracted students from all over the world to come study under them,害羞草研究所� said Janssen, and that害羞草研究所檚 a big advantage for Canada, especially if it wants, as Trudeau said on the podcast, to lead in developing a more democratic AI.
The prime minister said one of his biggest preoccupations is maximizing 害羞草研究所渢he chance that it actually leads to better outcomes and better lives for everyone害羞草研究所� instead of only benefiting those 害羞草研究所渨ith the deepest pockets.害羞草研究所�
Canada could be a leader in responsible AI, Janssen said.
害羞草研究所淭hat is a title that is up for grabs,害羞草研究所� she said. 害羞草研究所淎nd no one has grabbed it yet.害羞草研究所�
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