Canadian AI News - October 2022

Welcome to the Ask AI news roundup where we highlight the latest innovations, investments, and breakthroughs in the Canadian artificial intelligence sector.

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Sustainability

🌲 Concordia partners with Ericsson Canada and other Montreal-based universities to improve 5G sustainability using artificial intelligence. Full story

😀 Ask AI Exclusive: How can AI make an impact in carbon-intensive industries? We asked Mark Speaker, Industry Solutions Executive at Microsoft Canada. Get episode

Governance & Society

🏙 UN-Habitat and Mila launch collaborative White Paper on the use of AI to support the development of people-centered sustainable cities and settlements. Full story

💲 Google Canada has announced $2.7M in Google.org grants to help Canadians build more inclusive economic opportunities for Indigenous communities. Full story

🦜 Researchers from McGill , MIT, and Cornell have developed an artificial intelligence system that can learn the rules and patterns of human languages on its own. Full story

😀 Ask AI Exclusive: Can AI help preserve indigenous languages? We spoke with Anna Kazantseva, Research Officer for Indigenous Language Technologies, NRC. Get episode

Healthcare

👩‍⚕️ Hamilton Health Sciences researcher Diana Sherifali is taking the first steps to develop a health coaching algorithm to help people with diabetes. Full story

😀 Ask AI Exclusive:How is AI accelerating the science behind pharmaceutical research?

We checked-in with Liran Belenzon, co-founder & CEO of BenchSci. Get episode

Business

💧 Carl Data Solutuions has relaunched as infinitii ai inc. and announced its product portfolio will be squarely focused on ML capabilities for smart utility infrastructure. Full story

🤝 US-based Q2 Holdings has announced its acquisition of Sensibill, a Canadian machine learning platform that enables financial institutions to suport small business and consumers. Full story

💲 NGen is launching a call for project proposals for AI-powered manufacturing and is targeting $50 million in combined investments. Full story

🔀 Nokia is spending $340 Million to expand its Ottawa R&D centre to improve its capabilities in 5G wireless internet, cybersecurity, artificial intelligence, and machine learning. Full story

🤑 VMware has launched a next-gen AI Research and Innovation Centre in Montreal to deliver a sustainable path to 5G+ and 6G technologies. Full story

😀 Ask AI Exclusive: How is applied (and responsible) AI impacting enterprise competitiveness? We spoke with Cory Janssen, Co-CEO at AltaML. Get episode

Natural Resources / Agriculture

🐋 Artificial intelligence being used to track North Atlantic right whales in real time to help implement protective measures for the endangered species. Full story

🥕 New $2.5M federal funding for the Global Institute for Food Security (GIFS) at the University of Saskatchewan aims to strengthen Canada's food production leadership. Full story

😀 Ask AI Exclusive: How is AI making greenhouse production more efficient? We met with Yves Daoust, Founder and CTO at Winter Farm who were awarded $2.9M to find out. Get episode

Robotics/AV/AR

🤖 UofT professor Angela Schoellig has earned an Arthur B. McDonald Fellowship from NSERC for autonomous robotics research. Full story

😀 Ask AI Exclusive: How will AI create immersive content for the metaverse? We asked Manal Siddiqui, CEO, and Pietro Gagliano, CVO, at Transitional Forms. Get episode

Public Sector

👍 University of Waterloo professors Wenhu Chen and Xi He of U Waterloo have been named as Canada CIFAR AI Chairs. Full story

🏆 Schmidt Futures is investing $148-million in nine global universities, including the University of Toronto. Full story

😀 Ask AI Exclusive: How does Canada’s NRC support artificial intelligence? Catch our interview with Dr. Carolyn Watters, Chief Digital Research Officer, NRC. Get episode

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