Tech Roundup
Aug. 25, 2026

Data centres

• Alberta's technology minister, Nate Glubish, faced angry questions and profanity at a town hall on AI data centres, held in Redwater on Aug. 20. About 150 attendees raised concerns about strain on water, land, and electricity from Meta's proposed $13-billion data centre project in Sturgeon County, which will eventually be powered by a $4.6-billion natural gas plant. Glubish, who is also the MLA for Strathcona-Sherwood Park, defended the project's economic benefits, citing the expected creation of 300 jobs. Premier Danielle Smith is to join him at a virtual town hall on Aug. 27.
• Mark Plamondon, executive director of Alberta's Industrial Heartland Association, said the public pushback against AI data centres has been surprising, noting that up until now, there has been "very strong community support and social licence" for industrial development in the area.
• BetaKit reported that Anthropic has posted job listings for a Canadian compute lead and an Alberta-based community engagement manager, signalling the AI company is looking to build data centres in Canada with a particular focus on Alberta. The compute lead role would be "ultimately responsible for bringing gigawatts of compute online in Canada," according to the posting.
• Digital Journal analyzed the approach different provinces take when approving data centres. Alberta prioritizes projects that bring their own power, Quebec raises rates for large new facilities, B.C. rations power through a capped bidding process, and Ontario proposes a premium rate. All four aim to make data centres pay their own power costs, but none has a common framework.
• CBC answered reader questions about the surge in AI data centre development in Canada, covering energy and water use, health concerns for nearby residents, and data sovereignty. With 159 hyperscale data centres planned or under construction across the country, communities from Ontario to Alberta have pushed back against the rapid pace of development. The article noted that most proposed projects are in Alberta, and if all are built, Alberta's share of total data centre capacity in Canada would rise from 3% to 93%.

ASTech Awards

• The organizers of the ASTech Awards have begun announcing finalists for its 37th annual awards, with the gala slated for Nov. 6 in Edmonton. The gala will be preceded by opening ceremonies in Calgary on Sept. 18.
• Among the finalists in advanced manufacturing and smart cities are Daniel Kamau of SketchDeck AI, Ying Hei Chui of the University of Alberta, Harpal Mandaher of Sarcomere Dynamics Inc., and Sunil Vedula and Sriraj Meenavilli of NTWIST, as well as Calgary's LE Robotics and a team from Mount Royal University.
• Among the ASTech finalists in aerospace, defence, and dual-use is Thomas Jones of Jones Microwave Inc., as well as two finalists from the University of Calgary and representatives from Landing Zones Canada, Technalogix, and VizworX.
• Among the ASTech finalists in agriculture and agrifood are Hubert Lau of Alberta Food Security; Samuel Mugo and Mohammed Elmorsy of PimaSens; Tanay Kumar of Aqtiva; and Marleny Doris Aranda Saldaña of the University of Alberta, as well as representatives of the Canadian Angus Association and Olds College.
• Among the ASTech finalists in the digital, AI and quantum technologies category are John P. Davis of Zero Point Cryogenics and Adam White of RLCore, along with the people behind OrbSurgical, BigGeo, QuantaSense at the University of Calgary, SuperQ Quantum Computing, and Ultimarii.
• Among the ASTech finalists in energy innovation are Ahmad Raza Khan Rana of Integrity Products; Roland Lee of MacEwan University; a team from the Consortium for Distributed and Passive Sensing; and two groups from the University of Alberta: Tariq Siddique, Ania Ulrich, and Hao Wang, as well as Mohamed Gamal El-Din and his team. The other finalists are from Paterson Consulting and the University of Calgary.
• Among the ASTech finalists in health, medical, and life sciences are Michael Wilson of DrugBank, Khaled Barakat of Thoth BioSimulations, and Kevin Bainey of the University of Alberta, as well as two finalists from the University of Calgary and representatives of OrbSurgical, Zymedyne Therapeutics, and Novus TX Devices.
• Among the ASTech finalists in the hydrogen, sustainability, and cleantech category are Xiaolei Wang of the University of Alberta and Roland Lee of MacEwan University, along with representatives of CarboMat, Canadian Pacific Kansas City, the University of Calgary, and Eximius Environmental Solutions.
• Among the ASTech finalists in social and education innovation are Sandra Stabel of Intellicube, Sherif Elbarrad of Dominarlo Publishing, the University of Alberta's Megan Strickfaden in human ecology and Tara McGee in earth and atmospheric sciences, as well as finalists from 10Alytics and the University of Calgary.

More headlines

• ELIXR Simulations is running a playtest of a student-made augmented reality experience applied to Busyrawk Azure Dragon of the East mural in Chinatown on Aug. 29. "The mural transforms, where you actually see the dragon come to life and then moving throughout the space," ELIXR's CEO Andrea Urbina told Taproot. The project was funded by a $140,000 grant from the province's Northern and Regional Economic Development Program to advance ELIXR's tech and train young talent; the next intake for the program opened on Aug. 24 and closes on Nov. 19.
• Shani Gwin, founder of pipikwan pêhtâkwan and wâsikan kisewâtisiwin, discussed building an Indigenous public relations agency and an AI-driven technology company as a Métis entrepreneur on the Women in Leadership and Entrepreneurship podcast.
• Zylotex founder Lelia Lawson will pitch at EchoHer, a virtual event for female founders on Aug. 27. Zylotex turns underused plant fibre such as industrial hemp into advanced cellulose materials with applications in textiles and beyond.
• Nanostics co-founder Catalina Vasquez shared that she completed the NEXT Founders program from NEXT Canada. She said the program pushed her to think about scaling, product-market fit, and building a company with global impact, as Nanostics works to expand its ClarityDX Prostate AI tool internationally.
• Game Con Canada organizer Chris Meilleur said the inaugural North American Games Industry Summit resulted in seven Canadian developers landing publishing deals, adding that next year's event will expand from 55 to 250 booths. The 2026 con drew 34,000 unique attendees — up from 15,000 in 2024 — and signed a contract to stay in Edmonton through 2031. The hosts of the Good Game Edmonton podcast said the convention has been compared to high-profile events such as the Montréal International Game Summit and the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco.
• Trust Science has received a U.S. patent for a machine-learning-driven identity system that builds a continuous profile of a person using partial or evolving data from multiple sources. The Edmonton-based fintech company said the technology supports applications from credit decisions and fraud prevention to document recovery.
• Future Fields has partnered with the University of Alberta to host an evening of panels and networking focused on sustainable research labs on Sept. 24 during Life Sciences Week. The event is open to researchers, industry leaders, policymakers, and students.
• Shawn Thomas, an EV ambassador with Toronto-based Plug'n Drive, told the EcoLife podcast that electric vehicles perform well in Alberta winters, citing vehicles with nearly 800 kilometres of range. He also noted Alberta lacks off-peak charging rates, which he said would help grid health and encourage owners to charge overnight. The EVs are for EVeryone tour will be at the Alberta Motor Association in south Edmonton until Aug. 30.
• Heidelberg Materials has paused the carbon-capture project at its northwest Edmonton cement plant after reduced carbon pricing ambitions at both the federal and provincial level have undermined the economics of the $2-billion project. The project was once billed as the world's first full-scale CCS system at a cement plant, but it has since been lapped by a Heidelberg plant in Norway.

Jobs and opportunities

• The University of Alberta is accepting applications until Aug. 31 for a Startup & Investor Speed Dinner during Edmonton Startup Week 2026. Eight founders who are raising capital or preparing to do so will be selected for a "speed dating" dinner with investors and ecosystem leaders.
• The Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute is hiring a machine learning resident to work with Calgary-based OpenCycle.
• Edmonton Unlimited is hiring a program manager for its Experts on Demand program, which connects high-potential tech companies with advisors who can help identify and remove barriers to growth.

Happenings

Here are some events coming up soon:

• Aug. 25: Mass Impact: A Fireside Chat with Ray Muzyka and Kristina Milke starting at 2:30pm at Edmonton Unlimited
• Aug. 26: Tech For Good Alliance Working Group starting at 4pm at Arcadia Brewing Co.
• Aug. 26: Tech Wednesdays starting at 5:30pm at The Pint Public House
• Aug. 27: Plug'n Drive starting at 10am at Alberta Motor Association (Edmonton South)
• Aug. 27: Startup TNT Happy Hour starting at 6pm at Pub 1905
• Aug. 27: Data Centre Virtual Town Hall starting at 6pm online
• Aug. 29: Stories in Motion: Chinatown AR Showcase & Community Feedback Weekend starting at 2pm at Mah Society of Edmonton

And here are more to keep in mind:

• Sept. 9: Bioeconomy Guild Night at MKT Fresh Food | Beer Market
• Sept. 15-17: Carbon Capture Canada at Edmonton Convention Centre
• Sept. 21-25: Life Sciences Week

Visit the Taproot Edmonton Calendar for many more events in the Edmonton region.