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'No one asked for this': Canadians aren't happy about Carney's new AI plan

Isabelle Docto
Isabelle Docto
|
Jun 5 2026, 4:15 pm
'No one asked for this': Canadians aren't happy about Carney's new AI plan
@MarkJCarney/X

Prime Minister Mark Carney recently launched the federal government’s artificial intelligence (AI) strategy, and many Canadians are expressing their disappointment online.

Carney announced the “AI for All” strategy on Thursday, which aims to help Canada catch up globally with AI use.

According to the government, Canada is among the slowest countries to adopt AI at scale, which Carney says “risks undermining public trust, driving Canadian talent and startups abroad, and leaving critical parts of our AI ecosystem under foreign control.”

“AI is here. The question is whether it will improve the lives of all Canadians or benefit only a few,” the prime minister said in a statement. “AI can shorten our emergency room wait times and make a small business more competitive, if it is governed by Canadian values with a clear goal of improving the lives of all Canadians.”

According to the government, the strategy will introduce new legislation, investments, and programs that “ensure AI is adopted responsibly.”

It aims to grow the economy by $200 billion, create 250,000 new AI-related jobs over the next five years, and increase AI adoption from just over 12 per cent to 60 per cent by 2034. The strategy also promises to provide up to 90,000 AI-related jobs and work placement opportunities for young Canadians.

Carney says the “AI for All” plan is guided by three principles: building trust, creating opportunities, and reinforcing Canadian sovereignty.

To build trust, the government plans to modernize legislation to prioritize trust and safety and reduce the risks that come with AI. This includes strengthening protections for Canadians’ personal information against practices like deepfakes and surveillance pricing, and introducing an “online safety regime” to protect social media and chatbot users.

carney ai

Henry Saint John/Shutterstock

The federal government plans to establish a National AI Literacy Initiative that will offer entry-level AI training for all Canadians, to create opportunity. It also promises to provide access to trusted AI agents for every post-secondary student, help small and medium-sized businesses adopt AI, and provide training and upskilling opportunities for mid-career workers.

The strategy’s plan to reinforce sovereignty includes building the foundations of sovereign Canadian AI, building a world-leading public AI supercomputer and expanding Canada’s AI talent base.

“Canada’s new AI for All Strategy is about putting artificial intelligence to work for Canadians,” stated Minister of AI Evan Solomon. “It will give people the confidence to use AI safely, help businesses adopt it, and ensure more of the value is created here at home.”

Canadians react to Carney AI plan

Many Canadians aren’t happy with the new AI strategy.

“This is all f**king wild like we don’t want ai!!!!!!” reads one post on X.

“No one asked for this; we asked for regulation, for protections for workers, to prevent the slopification of our lives,” agreed another X user.

One Canadian cited an Angus Reid poll that found 68 per cent of Canadians would oppose a large AI data centre built within a few blocks of their home. That number goes up to 73 per cent for rural Canadians.

“Why don’t our opinions matter?” reads their post on X.

Some pointed out that Carney is missing the mark when it comes to providing Canadians with what they really need.

“Canadians need food, housing, and jobs first; all things you’ve taken from them, Carney!” reads one X post.

“WE DESPERATELY NEED HOUSING AND FOOD. NO NORMAL PERSON WANTS AI,” echoed another X user.

Politicians chimed in, including NDP leader Avi Lewis.

“This government is imposing a world-changing technology on all of us without any public debate,” he shared on X. “Instead of putting in place strong regulations to safeguard workers, youth, privacy, and our water and energy supply, they prefer to ‘move fast and break things’ as the Silicon Valley motto goes.”

Premier of Manitoba, Wab Kinew, said that the province is saying no to a data centre “because there are big threats to the environment and not much benefit to the economy.”

To learn more about Canada’s “AI for All” plan, check out the government’s overview.

What do you think about the Liberal government’s AI strategy? Let us know in the comments or email us at trending@dailyhive.com.

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