SENATORS’ STATEMENTS — Impacts of Artificial Intelligence

Honourable senators, today I want to draw your attention to a global call to action issued by the World Federation of Engineering Organizations, which represents over 30 million engineers worldwide.

The call to action urges AI companies to gear their advances toward achieving sustainable development goals. AI is no mere technological innovation. It’s a lever of major transformational change, capable of reshaping our economies, our societies and our relationship to the planet.

Artificial intelligence, or AI, is not just another innovation; it is a force multiplier. AI can help close critical gaps in health systems, energy efficiency, renewable energy deployment, resilient infrastructure and sustainable food systems. Used wisely, it can strengthen our capacity to respond to interconnected crises, from climate change to biodiversity loss, to improve human health and safety.

Canada has recognized this reality. Last week, we launched a national initiative to build sovereign AI supercomputing capacity, acknowledging that computing power is now foundational to innovation, competitiveness and scientific leadership. Research, including work from the Stockholm Resilience Centre, shows that AI is already accelerating breakthroughs across disciplines and improving decision making in complex systems.

Yet, colleagues, we must be clear-eyed. AI also carries serious risks, like environmental costs, embedded bias, unequal access and growing threats to human security. In Alaska, during Arctic security discussions last week, concerns were raised about the rapid integration of AI into military operations, while governance frameworks lag behind. This gap is too dangerous.

Today, AI development is largely driven by private actors and guided by market incentives and voluntary commitments. While innovation is essential, voluntarism alone will not deliver the scale, the speed or the ethics required to ensure AI serves peace and human prosperity.

This is why the call is clear: We need public commitments from leading AI companies, alongside international mechanisms to ensure transparency, accountability and measurable progress.

As parliamentarians, we have a duty to ensure that AI aligns with the public interest, protects human security and advances equitable and sustainable prosperity.