Feds & TELUS partner on sovereign AI data centre plan

The Canadian Government and TELUS are advancing a large-scale sovereign AI data centre expansion in British Columbia as part of Ottawa's push to expand domestic AI computing infrastructure.

Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation Evan Solomon said the project would increase Canada's sovereign computing capacity and support researchers, universities and businesses that need large-scale AI processing. The work falls under the "Enabling large-scale sovereign AI data centres" initiative to bring a limited number of large commercial AI data centres online in Canada.

The announcement makes TELUS one of the proponents Ottawa is engaging after a call for proposals earlier this year. The process, which ran from mid-January to mid-February, sought projects that could help build large-scale domestic computing resources for artificial intelligence.

No funding has been committed or distributed. So far, the federal approach has focused on identifying promising commercial projects and discussing them through non-binding memoranda of understanding.

The proposed British Columbia sites include expanding its existing Kamloops data centre and developing two new Vancouver facilities. The project is intended to strengthen what Ottawa describes as sovereign AI capacity: compute infrastructure in Canada available to domestic users.

While the Kamloops AI Factory will come online later this year, the facility in Vancouver's Mount Pleasant neighbourhood will open at the end of 2026 and scale through 2028, and the 150 West Georgia facility will come online in 2029. TELUS added that the cluster's total capacity would reach over 150 MW by 2032.

The government says local data centre capacity is becoming increasingly important as companies, researchers and public institutions seek access to advanced AI systems without relying entirely on foreign facilities.

Budget 2025 outlined a plan to identify a small number of large-scale sovereign commercial AI data centre projects. It also authorised the government to engage industry, negotiate MOUs with selected proponents and explore ways to support the construction of such facilities in Canada.

"Canada cannot compete in the AI economy without the infrastructure to back it up. By advancing this project with TELUS, we are taking concrete action to build sovereign AI capacity here in Canada, so Canadian innovators, researchers and businesses have access to the compute they need, while keeping Canadian data, intellectual property and economic advantage on Canadian soil," said Solomon.

TELUS has already been expanding its AI data centre infrastructure in Canada. Darren Entwistle, the company's president and CEO, pointed to strong demand for an existing facility in Rimouski, suggesting domestic appetite for AI compute is outstripping current supply.

"The unprecedented demand that completely sold out our first AI factory in Rimouski proves that Canadian innovators want cutting-edge AI infrastructure built right here on Canadian soil. We are sending a clear message to the world: Canada will lead the AI revolution with uncompromising technological power and unparalleled climate leadership," he said.

For now, the project is an early sign of how Canada plans to expand domestic AI infrastructure through partnerships with private-sector operators, even as the funding model and formal commitments remain unsettled.