Canada is chasing AI investments, so it turns its eyes on the UAE and Saudi Arabia

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Toronto – The liberal government is in discussions with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia on AI to bring global capital from Canadian data centers and businesses to court, AI Minister Evan Solomon said logic.

“The mission here is to create a sovereign AI,” Solomon said. To achieve this, Canada said it would require “partnerships that lead to growth” and “building an industrial base.”

Prime Minister Mark Kearney has it Quote Just as Canada is trying to reduce its dependence on trade with the US, the data centers are already in the way his new liberal government wants to encourage commit $2 billion to expand Canada's AI computing power, and previously suggestion $15 billion to acquire a pension fund to assume interests and lend to data center operators.

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  • The liberal government wants Canada to secure sovereign AI assets, including businesses and data centers, but the country needs foreign capital and partners to realize its ambitions in this sector, Evan Solomon said logic
  • Canada is in discussions with the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, both of which have invested heavily in AI.

Amazon, Google, Microsoft has it all announcement The plan is to build a Canadian computing infrastructure to take advantage of AI demand. The US cloud giant is important, but according to Solomon, Canada needs alternatives and building new facilities is very expensive. Openai has it Estimated A 1 Gigawatt data center could cost US$20 billion.

Canada needs to search for “capital pockets” around the world, Solomon said he cites a “constructive engagement process” between the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia.

Both governments are spending a lot of money on AI. Emirati company G42 related to condition building On a multi-billion dollar 5 Gigawatt campus in Abu Dhabi, he developed Compute Clusters with portfolio company tips Celebras. There is also MGX supported by Mbadara investment Data centers in the US.

The UAE is “a very sophisticated player along the entire value chain.” I met Last week with Foreign Minister Emirati Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al-Nahyan. Canada “we will absolutely be involved in such a partnership to broaden our base, as everyone does,” Solomon said, citing years of relationships between the UAE and countries like the United States and France.

Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia has It is reportedly We have committed up to US$100 billion to expand the AI ​​sector. Last month, Kingdom's public investment fund Release A new AI company called Humain, which builds data centers and develops AI models and tools.

The debate with both countries is still in its early stages, Solomon said.

Relationship with Canada uae and Saudi Arabia They are nervous about commercial and human rights issues, respectively. Solomon said the Liberal government is involved in both countries and AI, with their eyes wide open. He also cited opportunities to work with other countries such as France, Germany, the UK and India, which are trying to diversify economic ties. “My appetite for partners and investments in Canada is higher than ever,” he insisted.

Canada is trying to secure ownership and control of AI within its borders, but Solomon acknowledged that it still needs hardware and capital from other countries. “Sovereignty is not solitude.”

Some Canadian hardware companies have it Expression The advantage of Ottawa's calculation strategy is concerns that it mainly flows to US chipmakers. First major in the program award It will use Toronto-based Cohere's $240 million and federal funding to purchase capacity at a new Canadian data center built with Nvidia chips by New Jersey-based CoreWeave. It's owned by a homemade cloud company It was criticized choice. Telus is the same use New data center strategy for nvidia hardware, Bell lease The first new facility is located in its own AI computing push to San Francisco-based chipmaker Groq.

“We can't pretend we can surround Canada. logicTherefore, the businesses and governments here must be able to cooperate freely with foreign companies.

Cohere may use American-made chips, but its headquarters and intellectual property are in Canada, as are many of its workers and investors, Solomon said. “We want them to stay,” he said.

The federal government is also planning to use its own expenditure to help grow Canadian AI companies, but its technology will make public services more efficient. “Procurement will definitely be an important tool,” Solomon said. This is because businesses can use government contracts to find new customers and raise private funds.

The Liberal Party is committed to moving quickly to plug in the gap between AI programs and policies, so the country is holding more businesses and building sovereign infrastructure.

Solomon warned that the results take time for them to come to fruition and that Canada is not the only country to chase these investments and industries. “It's very competitive,” he said.



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