National consortium will equip 125,000 students with AI literacy tools
Google Canada is investing $5 million through a Google.org grant to the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute (Amii) to help close Canada’s AI skills gap and prepare students for the future of work.
The funding will support the creation of a national consortium led by Edmonton-based Amii, bringing together 25 post-secondary institutions across Canada. The consortium will develop and distribute AI curriculum resources to faculty, making it easier to incorporate AI concepts into existing coursework and reach an estimated 125,000 students.
“Canada has an incredible opportunity to translate decades of AI research excellence into fundamental AI literacy skills for a generation of post-secondary students because of the generous support of Google.org,” said Cam Linke, CEO of Amii.
Participating institutions will span colleges, polytechnics, U15 research universities and Indigenous post-secondary institutes, with curriculum resources designed for a wide range of programs and disciplines.
Canada’s strong track record in AI research positions it well to benefit from AI-driven growth. According to Public First’s Economic Impact Report on Google Canada, generative AI could contribute $230 billion to the national economy and save the average worker over 175 hours annually. But despite its research leadership, the country trails in AI adoption—a gap this initiative aims to bridge by boosting AI education and confidence.
The same report found that 63 per cent of Canadian workers are interested in acquiring AI skills, with interest climbing to 72 per cent among youth.
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