Announcements

Accelerating AI and Brain Research  

From Left to Right: Dr. Guillaume Dumas; Dr. Kohitij Kar; Dr. Viviane Poupon, President and CEO of Brain Canada; France Chrétien Desmarais Chair of Brain Canada’s Board of Directors; Sonia Sidhu Member of Parliament for Brampton South; Dr. Tristan Glatard; Dr. Blake Richards.

Pan-Canadian Consultation Report Identifies Immediate AI and Neuroscience Research Investment Opportunities 

After meeting with Parliamentarians in Ottawa, Brain Canada today published a pan-Canadian consultation report highlighting a series of immediate AI and neuroscience research investment opportunities.  The report reflects feedback received from eight AI brain research roundtables hosted by Brain Canada across the country with over 75 Canadian experts in these fields. 

The report describes this as a defining moment for Canada. We have world-leading scientists that stand ready to contribute. With our globally recognized strengths in both fields, we can lead the world in harnessing artificial intelligence to accelerate brain research and deliver transformative impacts for health, innovation and economic growth.”

Dr. Viviane Poupon, Brain Canada President and CEO. 

Based on the report findings, Brain Canada proposes an immediate investment of $38.9 million over five years to support four components of an interim AI brain research strategy: 

  •          US recruitment 
  •          Dedicated research teams 
  •          Strategic capacity building 
  •          Platform support 

Canada’s AI leadership began with understanding natural intelligence. Geoffrey Hinton earned the Nobel Prize for neural networks inspired by brain architecture. This heritage positions us uniquely.  We can be the first nation to fully integrate brain science into AI policy as these systems reshape human cognition.”

Dr. Pamela Kanellis, Brain Canada Chief Research and Programs Officer. 

The recently approved federal budget allocates over $900 million over the next five years to enhance Canada’s AI capabilities and ensure secure access to AI compute resources for research.  Canada’s AI Strategy Task Force recently submitted reports to the federal government to inform a renewed AI strategy to position Canada at the forefront of this revolution.

 “AI was built by mimicking the brain. Now it’s reshaping how we think, remember, and decide. AI therapy bots now serve Canadians with limited clinical oversight. The difference between harm and help depends on understanding how these tools affect developing minds. We look forward to working with federal, provincial and private agencies to start seizing the opportunities identified by expert Canadians in this report,” says Dr. Poupon. 

A full copy of Brain Canada’s Roundtable Report to the federal government is available here.

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