Cipher uses AI to track, monitor, and classify disinformation that fuels Canada’s unity crisis.
Ask a dozen Albertans why Western separatism is at this juncture, and you’ll get a few answers. It includes everything from Western alienation to anger over equalization payments and oil and gas development to grudge wars between some Albertans and Laurentian elites.
But what if there’s another reason why Alberta’s brand of separatism seems to be getting a lot of attention these days? It might not have much to do with Albertans.
“We are in an arms race with malicious actors targeting Canada, and we don’t have the AI systems to counter them.”
Cipher AI is a Canadian startup co-located in Edmonton and Regina. The company, which was spun out of the University of Regina’s Center for Artificial Intelligence, Data and Conflict (CAIDAC), uses AI to track, quantify, and ultimately counter online disinformation and foreign influence that its founders say is fueling the conversation around Alberta’s modern-day separatist movement.
Disinformation, as defined by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), is the deliberate dissemination of false or misleading information aimed at deceiving or manipulating, often with a specific purpose in mind. It is often a key element in efforts by foreign states and actors to influence public opinion or amplify tense domestic issues.
Cipher sells its AI platform as a tool, not as a replacement for humans and organizations already doing the job of monitoring disinformation. Its AI explores the internet, ingesting and analyzing vast amounts of digital information with the help of its proprietary large-scale language models (LLMs). The platform uses pattern recognition to identify suspicious new narratives and signs of coordination behind those narratives. You can then track the evolution of disinformation narratives over time and create a roadmap for what disinformation is being amplified, when, where, and under what circumstances. That data is then converted into ratings that clients can review and use.
Cipher’s AI relies on a “human-involved” system that leverages the expertise of vetted experts, like Marcus Korga, who runs the watchdog group Disinfowatch, to inform the algorithm and review its output.
Fight AI with AI
Disinformation has long played a role in geopolitics, but the rise of social media has further expanded its reach and allowed it to bypass organized fact-checked sources. Today, advances in AI technology are increasing its reach and specificity, further blurring the lines between what is trustworthy and what is not, said Cipher co-founder Brian McQuinn.
“We’re in a new world right now,” said McQueen, an associate professor at the University of Regina and co-director of CAIDAC. “[They’re] We can now do things that we couldn’t do six months ago… We’re in an arms race with malicious actors targeting Canada, and we don’t have the AI systems to counter them. That’s ultimately what Cipher AI is and what we’re building towards. ”
McQuinn founded Cipher in October 2025 with Matthew Taylor, a professor of computing science at the University of Alberta and fellow at the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute (Amii), and Cody Vantein from the University of Maryland. The idea was to bring the platform from academia to the commercial realm to further address the rapid pace of online misinformation.
“There are some things you can’t do in a research center,” McQueen says. “We have one foot in academia and one foot in the commercial side, so we can be a little more nimble.”
Early last month, Cipher co-authored his first report as a commercial venture. The May 6 report, a joint venture with Disinfowatch, tests the company’s technology against the Alberta separatist movement.
Cipher’s report was clear. Disinformation did not create the moment of separatism that is occurring today. Although Western dissatisfaction with Ottawa has erupted intermittently since the province first entered the Union, Alberta’s independence movement began to take shape in the 1970s. The issue has flared up over the years, most prominently during both Trudeau governments. Despite its long history, less than three in 10 Albertans support leaving Canada, according to an Angus Reid poll.
“We believe strongly in democracy and in having a public debate about secession,” McQueen said. “It’s important. It’s part of our democratic process. What matters is whether that debate is being manipulated or artificially amplified. That’s where we step in.”
And those arguments are manipulated. According to the report, separatism in Alberta has become a tipping point for both Russian and U.S. disinformation. Russia has a long track record of covertly using disinformation to heighten tensions in other countries, but Mackin said the bulk of Alberta-related disinformation currently comes from the United States.
“This report showed that while Russian secret intelligence has remained constant, American public intelligence and the underlying MAGA-aligned ecosystem are now rapidly becoming…the most important source of disinformation targeting Canada,” McCuin said.
danger and opportunity
McQueen said much of the infrastructure the Canadian government uses to monitor disinformation is outsourced to American carriers. He believes so much U.S. disinformation is coming into Canada that there are major concerns about whether these carriers can still be trusted.
“Are U.S.-based companies that track disinformation going to blame their own administration given the nature of this administration and its seemingly punitive approach?” asked Mackin.
This is also a business opportunity for newly established companies. Last March, the federal government issued a Directive on the Management of Communications and Federal Identity, which included a requirement that all federal departments develop strategies to combat disinformation. Cipher wants to be part of that strategy, as a domestic alternative to U.S. security providers. mcqueen said beta kit The company is reportedly considering pilot projects with both government and commercial organizations. The company did not disclose which organizations or at what stage the discussions took place.
Who decides the truth?
Clifton van der Linden is a professor of political science at McMaster University. He is also Director of the Digital Society Lab, an interdisciplinary research center investigating how digital technologies are transforming society and democracy. Van der Linden’s lab is also working on an algorithmic disinformation detection platform, and he shares McQueen’s concerns about America’s shaky credibility. He also acknowledges that traditional efforts to fight disinformation have not kept up, especially amid the explosion of AI. Still, van der Linden is not convinced that AI or commercial organizations are a silver bullet.
“We strongly believe in democracy and the people having a debate about secession.”
Brian McQuinn, Cipher AI
“We are wary of the centralization of power in technologies that are seen as adjudicators of truth claims,” van der Linden said. “These are not neutral algorithms…because an algorithm always depends on its programming and parameters, and those parameters are set by humans.”
That leaves these types of AI detection tools open to potential vulnerabilities and biases, regardless of who is controlling them, van der Linden said.
“If they are being set by a for-profit company or a company that is under some degree of government influence, we don’t know if those parameters will be set in a way that is in the public interest,” van der Linden said. “It’s not that we can’t do anything. We need to do something. But we need to think about both technology and how that technology is implemented, how it’s managed, and how we remain accountable to our citizens.”
BetaKit’s Prairies report is Partly funded by YEGAFa non-profit organization dedicated to amplifying Alberta’s business story.
Feature image courtesy of Unsplash. Photo by Kim McKinnon.
