On Tuesday, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced changes to his Cabinet, including the appointment of the first Artificial Intelligence (AI) Minister.
Former CBC/CTV journalist Evan Solomon has been sworn in to the position of minister for artificial intelligence and digital innovations. Solomon was elected in the Toronto Centre riding for the first-time in the election on April 28. Solomon was The Toronto Starreported that he had negotiated art deals with people he spoke to as a reporter, including Carney and Jim Balsillie, a former BlackBerry executive.
This is a significant change for AI which was previously under the purview of the industry minister. Melanie Joly, a former foreign affairs minister, now heads up the industry portfolio.
What Carney’s new government will do about AI in the future remains to be seen. The previous federal government had introduced a bill to regulate AI. However, it did not become law before the elections were called.
Carney, however, brought up AI in the election campaign and promised to invest in AI adoption, training, and commercialization. He also promised to improve government efficiency with AI.
Carney’s plans are not clear, whether he will bring back the previous legislation or introduce new legislation. The Liberal party platform did promise to make the distribution of non-consensual deepfakes an offence.
The Canadian Press
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