Madam Speaker, I am thankful for the opportunity to speak to today's opposition day motion on behalf of the residents of my amazing riding of Davenport, in downtown west Toronto. It is not a surprise that I will not be supporting this motion when it comes to a vote. I want to talk about the work the Liberals are doing to strengthen the economy here in Canada and, more specifically, the investments we are making in artificial intelligence.

Today, I rise to highlight this government's achievements on artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence has incredible potential to transform the economy, improve the way we work and enhance our way of life. Over the last several years, our federal government has taken a number of actions to support our world-class researchers and innovators to ensure that Canada remains at the forefront of developing and adopting safe and responsible artificial intelligence.

When it comes to artificial intelligence, Canada has been ahead of the curve for many years. In 2017, Canada was the first country to launch a fully funded national AI strategy. Through the pan-Canadian AI strategy, we have helped build a vibrant AI ecosystem in Canada by working with key partners such as the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research; the three national AI institutes based across this country in Edmonton, Montreal and Toronto; and Canada's five global innovation clusters to build a base of world-class talent in AI, to advance research excellence and to drive the responsible adoption of AI across Canada's economy and society.

Through the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research AI chairs program, we have recruited over 120 of the best and brightest AI researchers in the world. These researchers are advancing research in a range of key areas such as science, health, energy and the environment. We are also training a strong cohort of next-generation AI leaders. Through the second phase of this strategy, we are building a strong research base with programs that are enabling AI commercialization and adoption.

The investments made by our federal government of over $440 million under the strategy have resulted in a research and talent ecosystem that is the envy of the world. We are seeing the positive economic impacts of investments in the growing number of AI start-ups and scale-ups across Canada that are taking world-leading positions in their fields. Canada now ranks among leading nations on the global AI index, as well as in start-up AI activity, venture capital investment in AI companies, talent growth and research publications.

Furthermore, in 2018, the federal government launched the global innovation clusters program, including Canada's AI-powered supply chains cluster, Scale AI, representing an ambitious co-investment with industry. Scale AI is creating collaborations across the country to promote intellectual property creation and commercialization and to ensure that Canada's AI business ecosystem remains one of the most vibrant in the world.

Julie Dzerowicz

$527,799.00