Overview of Canada's National Artificial Intelligence Strategy: AI for All

Canada launched its "AI for All" national strategy to transition the country from a leader in AI research to a practical application of the technology that benefits citizens, businesses, and public services. The six-pillar plan aims to protect Canadians from AI risks, provide free AI training, boost business adoption from 12% to 75%, and generate nearly $200 billion in economic gains by 2031. The strategy focuses on building sovereign AI infrastructure, scaling Canadian AI companies, and creating up to 250,000 new jobs while ensuring democratic control over AI governance.

Canada’s AI moment Canada helped lead the world in AI research. Now the challenge is turning that strength into real benefits for Canadians. AI for All is Canada’s plan to make sure AI serves people, strengthens businesses and communities, and gives Canada more control over its future. It is a practical strategy for a fast-changing world: protecting Canadians, creating opportunity, helping more businesses and public services adopt AI, building Canadian controlled infrastructure, and supporting Canadian AI companies as they grow. How the strategy is organized The full strategy includes detailed actions across six areas: protecting Canadians, building skills, driving AI adoption, strengthening sovereign infrastructure, scaling Canadian companies and working with trusted partners. AI for all AI should not be something that happens only in research labs or large technology companies. It should help doctors and nurses spend more time with patients. Help small businesses become more productive. Help workers and young people build new skills. Help governments deliver faster, better services. And help Canadian companies grow here at home. AI for All is about making sure Canadians can use AI with confidence, benefit from its opportunities and trust that strong protections are in place. It is also about making sure Canada has the infrastructure, talent, companies, rules and partnerships to make its own choices about how AI is built, governed and used. The pillars of the strategy Pillar 1: Protecting Canadians and safeguarding our democracy - AI will only deliver on its promise if Canadians trust it. That requires modern privacy and online safety laws, strong national AI safety capabilities, and secure government systems. Pillar 2: Empowering Canadians - Canada must become an AI skills nation, where AI creates good jobs for Canadians, by giving access to AI training and education for all Canadians and by representing and including Canadian voices, languages and culture. Pillar 3: Powering AI adoption - The gains of AI will come from putting it to work across the Canadian economy and developing pro-worker, industrial AI technologies. AI for All will support accelerated adoption among small and medium-sized businesses and transform public service delivery for Canadians. Pillar 4: Building the foundation for Canadian sovereign AI - AI for All will support the building of sovereign compute infrastructure at scale—resilient, sustainable and under Canadian governance—and grow Canada's exceptional pool of AI researchers and talent. Pillar 5: Scaling Canadian champions - AI for All will help Canada’s top AI companies get more funding and use the government as a key customer so they can grow faster, compete globally and ensure trusted and reliable AI tools are available to Canada and Canadians. Pillar 6: Building trusted partnerships - Canada will work with reliable partners to develop and share standards, invest together in innovation, and help Canadian AI companies reach global markets—all while staying true to our democratic values. Results for Canada By working together, supporting new ideas and teaming up with partners, we can strengthen Canada’s sovereignty, make our workplaces more productive and help Canadian businesses succeed around the world. By 2031, Canada’s new AI strategy will: - help keep Canadians—especially children—safe from AI risks and online dangers by protecting their personal information and making AI more open - provide access to free AI training for everyone in Canada - help create up to 250,000 new jobs, including jobs providing hands-on learning and skills training for young people and workers to help small businesses use AI - help Canadian businesses use AI more, raising adoption from about 12% to 75%, with a focus on important industries - boost Canada’s economy by nearly $200 billion through better productivity, including by advancing AI use and commercialization in key sectors - build strong partnerships with other countries so Canada can rely more on its own skills and technology Learn more In 2025, more than 11,000 Canadians and 28 AI Strategy Task Force members participated in a consultation, sharing their ideas to help shape the next chapter of Canada's AI leadership /site/ised/en/public-consultations/next-chapter-canadas-ai-leadership . Read the full report /site/ised/en/public-consultations/engagements-canadas-next-ai-strategy-summary-inputs for an analysis of the input received.