“Don’t just focus on technological development
Research must include social and ethical aspects”
“Government funding for AI research development
Policy needed to address digital illiteracy”
Canada is considered one of the world’s leading artificial intelligence (AI) powers. It may feel somewhat unfamiliar that Canada, known for maple syrup and autumn leaves, is a pioneer in cutting-edge industries. How did Canada become a leader in the field of AI?
During the AI Expo held in Samseong-dong, Seoul from the 1st to the 3rd of this month, we met Steve Jacob Obvia, Chief Scientist at OBVIA located within Laval University in Quebec, Canada, Simon Chapdelaine Ponia, CEO of PhonIA, and Luke Vincent Ivado, CEO of IVADO. OBVIA is an AI ethics research institute located within Laval University in Quebec, receiving budgets from the federal and provincial governments. PhonIA is a startup with technology to assist people with language disorders through AI. IVADO is an AI research consortium in Montreal, Canada.
“Even if we only focus on Quebec, one of the provinces that make up Canada, it ranks fifth in the world in AI research. Quebec is ahead of the UK, Germany, and Israel. Why is that? Quebec’s AI development involves developers and researchers monitoring the social impact of AI together. Quebec places great importance on the ethical and social aspects of AI. The Montreal Declaration, an AI ethics charter established in 2018 with diverse stakeholders, demonstrates Quebec’s values. Awareness of the social responsibility of technological innovation is increasing. In Quebec, technological development without considering ethical and social impacts is not allowed.” (Chief Scientist Jacob)
Jacob’s statement indicates that by conducting research that not only focuses on technological development but also comprehensively considers social impacts, the achievements of Canada’s AI research have gained more universal and authoritative influence.
IVADO’s CEO Luke Vincent mentions that government support has played a significant role.
“In 2016, when the deep learning revolution began, IVADO received substantial funding from the government. Although the Canadian government has been steadily investing in the AI industry, the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy was officially implemented, leading to more AI research institutions receiving research funds. We recently received new funding of 125 million dollars. Such funding has been a tremendous catalyst for AI research and development within Canada.”
While the AI industry in the US is led by companies aiming for profit, Canada’s AI industry, led by universities and national research institutes funded by the government, is seen as conducting more value-oriented research. It is also noteworthy that Ilya Sutskever, the OpenAI Chief Scientist who led the coup at OpenAI in November last year, is from the University of Toronto.
Ponia, the CEO, attributes Canada’s strong talent pool in AI to the background of its status as an AI power.
“Montreal, where a vast AI ecosystem has been formed, can combine various perspectives of different compositions. From the perspective of our company, which develops AI technology to help overcome language impairments, we needed experts in four areas: clinical research, technology development, science, and speech-language pathology, and Montreal is just the place where such talents are mixed.”
So, what is the government’s role in fostering the AI industry? Chief Scientist Jacob stated that it is the country’s duty to ensure that more people can benefit from AI.
“Most national governments view AI policies from an economic development perspective. Over the past few years, several countries have adopted national strategies to encourage AI development. Analyzing these, most of the incentives are for companies, and policies to increase digital literacy are not well highlighted. Especially, ethical issues are hardly addressed.”
CEO Vincent’s thoughts were not much different. “In recent months, AI safety and alignment have been the main topics. It is crucial to control the system to ensure that AI complies with universally shared values while preventing attempts to contradict them.”
The task of aligning AI systems with human-intended goals, preferences, and ethical principles is highlighted.