Tech Roundup
June 9, 2026
The federal government's new artificial intelligence strategy, called AI for All, contains $2.3 billion in spending, some of which the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute will share with its sister research institutes, Mila and the Vector Institute. The strategy includes funding for about 70 more research positions through the Canada CIFAR AI Chairs program, $50 million for the Canadian AI Safety Institute, and $130 million for the commercialization of AI research.
The strategy says Canadian AI adoption has been slow, with public sentiment about AI ranging from cautious to skeptical. Half of surveyed Canadians said they think AI is a threat to humanity, about a quarter of those surveyed have received AI training, and 12% of Canadian businesses used AI to produce goods and services between mid-2024 and mid-2025, the strategy indicated. Amii said it is helping to close Canada's deployment gap through its AI literacy and training programs. The next few years will shape the coming decades of AI, and Canada can't afford to wait, Amii CEO Cam Linke said in a statement responding to the strategy. "We are energized by this commitment and ready to deepen our work, cementing our nation's competitive edge and making AI work for everyone," Linke said. "The investment in this strategy secures our leadership in the global narrative, ensuring Canada isn't just reacting to the future of AI but actively shaping it."
The strategy aims to provide all Canadians with access to free AI literacy training, and the first pillar of its strategy is to protect Canadians from harm, but it faced criticism for lacking the regulations needed to do so. "When you look for concrete measures aimed at protecting young people, the strategy offers remarkably little beyond literacy initiatives and a supposed promise to put forth legislation to address online harms," critic Helen Hayes of McGill University told BetaKit.
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Headlines
- Finalists for the EY Entrepreneur of the Year Awards in the Prairies include Edmonton companies CarePros and Dr. Phone Fix, among many others from across the region. Regional winners will be announced in October.
- AltaML co-founder and CEO Cory Janssen joined the Business Council of Alberta's C-Suite Unplugged podcast to discuss AI entrepreneurship and Alberta's potential in the emerging AI economy. Janssen covered his journey from launching Investopedia as a student to building AltaML into one of Canada's leading applied AI companies.
- Edmonton's Madison Feehan, founder and CEO of Space Copy, discussed building 3D printing technology for extreme environments such as the moon on the Albertans in Space podcast.
- Areto Labs co-founder Jacqueline Comer spoke to the University of Alberta, her alma mater, about her path from sports writing to AI safety. The Edmonton startup's software defends people and brands against online hate, misinformation, and bot attacks by filtering harmful content in real time.
- University of Alberta computational linguist Ife Adebara is working to incorporate African languages into AI tools such as ChatGPT to make them more accessible to users worldwide.
- Amber Simpson, one of the University of Alberta's new Canada CIFAR AI chairs, explored how AI can speed up drug discovery and improve diagnostic imaging. She told Folio she was attracted to Alberta because of the chance to work with groundbreaking scientists such as Rich Sutton. "Amii has a lot of really clever AI people who have been put together really thoughtfully, who are trying to solve the hardest problems in artificial intelligence," said Simpson, who is the inaugural director of the Dianne and Irving Kipnes Health Research Institute.
- NorQuest College students have developed an app to help curators at the Royal Alberta Museum sort and catalogue specimens of eggs. Curators said identifying a single egg can take up to three hours, but the new app will help researchers narrow down potential matches.
- Shawn Kanungo hosted a Perplexity Computer meetup that drew about 60 participants to build apps in less than an hour. Winner Janak Alford, the deputy minister of technology and innovation for the Government of Alberta, created a video game based on the Alberta curriculum.
- Edmonton Unlimited posted takeaways from the CANSEC defence conference. Key themes included Canada's push for domestic innovation, growing attention on Arctic sovereignty, and new pathways for smaller companies to engage with defence procurement.
- Canadian municipalities announced the launch of a defence task force at the Federation of Canadian Municipalities annual conference in Edmonton on June 5. The initiative aims to improve coordination of infrastructure planning between military bases and their neighbouring communities. The task force will address challenges faced by military families, enhance urban planning, and promote dual-use infrastructure. Edmonton Mayor Andrew Knack highlighted Edmonton's strategic role in supporting Canada's defence posture, with its advanced infrastructure serving both civilian and military purposes.
- RCMP are conducting a pilot project in Alberta and British Columbia using AI to create police reports from body camera audio. Developer Axon's Draft One program converts body-cam audio into written reports that officers must edit by at least 10%. Calgary-based criminal defence lawyer Jillian Williamson said the AI-generated reports could complicate bail hearings, trials, and cross-examinations. The pilot ends in August.
- Albertans were the most likely Canadians to seek financial advice from AI tools such as ChatGPT, Claude, or Gemini, with 21% of surveyed Albertans doing so in the past year compared to 15% nationally, according to a poll by Money Mentors and Angus Reid. Experts warn the advice is unregulated, can be unsuited to individual circumstances, and carries risks including identity theft.
- Edmonton Unlimited, Edmonton Screen, Edmonton Global, and Explore Edmonton have clear and complementary mandates with no significant duplication, and they are delivering measurable economic outcomes, said a report to be presented to Edmonton city council's executive committee on June 10. While the ecosystem supports growth, there is a gap in mid-stage business retention and expansion support, the report said. A consultant recommended setting up a new economic agency to add scale-up supports for local businesses, but administration did not endorse that idea. Administration has also refreshed the city's economic development strategy to adapt to current and anticipated market realities.
ECSD Dual Credit program taps students' potential
Bee wasn't sure she'd finish high school. Now she's not only graduating, but she has also earned post-secondary credits and is on her way to a rewarding career through the Educational Assistant Dual Credit program at Edmonton Catholic Schools. If you have a young student in your life with untapped potential, this could be the program for them.
Jobs and opportunities
- Fleetworthy is hiring a platform engineer and a software engineer.
- The Alberta Motor Association is hiring a full-stack web developer and a senior infrastructure architect.
- The Alberta government is hiring a manager of architecture in the digital design and delivery division.
Happenings
Here are some events coming up over the next seven days:
- June 9: Deep Tech Showcase starting at 9am at Edmonton Unlimited
- June 9: Building Trust & Relationships with Investors: Insider Insights from a Top Investor starting at 1:30pm at Edmonton Unlimited
- June 10: Make the Most of NAGIS starting at 12pm online
- June 10: Bioeconomy Guild Night - Summer Social starting at 5pm at MKT Fresh Food | Beer Market
- June 10: Purchase with Purpose: Sustainable Procurement Network Event starting at 1:30pm at Fort Edmonton Park
- June 11: MNP Workshop Series: Cash Flow Management starting at 12pm at Edmonton Unlimited
- June 12: ScaleUP Breakfast Social starting at 9am at Edmonton Unlimited
- June 12: Bredin Centre for Career Advancement Employer Mixer starting at 1pm at Bredin Centre for Career Advancement (Spruce Grove)
- June 13: Virtual Business Model 101 starting at 10am online
- June 16: Defence Procurement Summit starting at 9am at World Trade Centre Edmonton
And here are some upcoming events to keep in mind:
- June 18-19: North American Games Industry Summit at the Edmonton EXPO Centre
- June 19-21: Game Con Canada at Edmonton EXPO Centre
- June 24: Tech For Good Alliance Working Group at Arcadia Brewing Co.
Visit the Taproot Edmonton Calendar for many more events in the Edmonton region.
This roundup was sponsored by Edmonton Unlimited.
Now is the time for us, Edmonton's innovators, and our city. Headquartered in Alberta's capital city, Edmonton Unlimited harnesses the power of possibility and brings the very best of Edmonton to the world.