Canada’s AI strategy, data centre pushback, is there enough jet fuel? and more

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The question isn't whether AI will transform our lives, it will. The question is will it improve the lives of all Canadians or benefit only a few?

A promise and a warning. Prime Minister Mark Carney has revealed his government's plan for Canada's AI future. He says the technology will help businesses compete globally, but admits it comes with risks to privacy, to online safety, and to employment.

In some cases we're seeing hundreds of acres of land required for a single data center.

Welcome to your world tonight. I'm Martina Fitzgerald. This is Thursday, June 4th, coming up on 6 p.m. Eastern. Also on the podcast.

It's incredibly hard to prove what the face value of the individual ticket was.

Mm-hmm.

The difficult task of trying to crack down on overpriced resale tickets.

Whatever you think about artificial intelligence, the Prime Minister wants all Canadians to get on board. He's outlined a new national economic strategy. It aims to take the current level of AI adoption twelve percent up to sixty percent in less than a decade. But as Marina von Stackelberg tells us, there are still a lot of questions from Canadians about reliability, privacy, and jobs.

I use AI as uh as many do. It's uh it's very powerful.

Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada's new plan to deal with artificial intelligence will ensure the technology is built with safety, reliability, and sovereignty in mind.

Question isn't whether AI will transform our lives, it will. The question is, will it improve the lives of all Canadians or benefit only a few?

The strategy commits more than two billion dollars in spending to help the country adopt and adapt to the emerging technology. Part of it looks to ease some of the distrust around AI. The federal government promises free training for Canadians on how to use and understand it, and protections against AI generated disinformation and images. But Conservative Deputy Leader Melissa Lanceman says the strategy does little to tackle safety concerns.

There is no details in this strategy about privacy, about security, about how to keep Canadians safe.

Well I think if we waited this long we really did need more detail.

Michael Geist, an expert in privacy law, agrees. He says after a six month delay, the new strategy feels like a first draft.

Yeah.

There's clear recognition that one of the ways to ensure that there's greater trust in AI is to ensure that we've got updated, modernized privacy rules that can address some of the real challenges and concerns that are out.

Along with trying to improve trust, the strategy also lays out how Ottawa plans to keep up with AI. It says Canada will create its own supercomputer. That is one of the most time sensitive measures, according to Rosalie Wanch, a researcher and economist with the C.D. Howe Institute.

Data centers are certainly controversial. They use a lot of energy. There's environmental concerns. But at the same time, they're the necessary infrastructure if Canada wants to be globally competitive in AI.

The strategy also tries to manage changes AI will make to the labor market. It aims to get the majority of Canadian businesses to adopt AI within the next eight years and create two hundred and fifty thousand new jobs. A senior government official, though, would not say if they have an estimate of how many jobs could be lost to AI. The NDP's Don Davies calls the strategy reckless and inadequate.

I don't believe that mass adoption of AI will create jobs. I think it'll cost jobs. And until there's um measures that that are in place that will address that, uh I I don't think the strategy is is complete.

Right now, experts say there is very little data on how AI is already impacting the labor market, employment, and the entire Canadian economy. Marina Von Stackelberg, CBC News.

As you just heard in Marina's story, data centers are controversial. More AI means more large scale data centers will be needed. Right now Canada has five, but almost one hundred more are in development, mostly in Alberta. As Kyle Bax reports, that big opportunity comes with big pushback.

A construction site just north of Calgary where dozens of workers are building a new data center. It's the third facility in Alberta by Montreal-based developer eStructure, founder Todd Coleman.

is Alberta's first truly hyperscale, large-scale data center at ninety megahertz.

What?

It may be the first and many more are coming. A wave of new, more powerful facilities are being developed. New research from Toronto's York University points to a dramatic shift in data centers in the country. The ones being built now have ten times the capacity of what's come before.

In some cases we're seeing hundreds of acres of land required for a single data center.

Researcher Lindsay Rolheiser says Alberta is at the heart of this all, a province with available energy, streamlined regulations, and open arms. Right now, Alberta only has about ten percent of the country's data centers, but that number is about to soar.

That ratio flips quite dramatically when you start looking at the pipeline of data centers. So we see into the future that about ninety percent of these pipeline data centers are being cited in Alberta.

for today's session.

Despite the promise of jobs and increased tax revenue, there are growing concerns in many parts of the country. At a recent open house in the Alberta community of Olds near Red Deer, residents push back.

It's uh unacceptable to endure the possibility of a natural gas power generation plant and a data center that is gonna be the largest in Canada to be proposed.

And many feel there's a lack of information about noise levels, water use, impacts to traffic levels, and property values.

There are a number of people I know who are preparing or have listed their homes. There are businesses who I know are looking to relocate out of town.

Some in the industry say change is already underway, such as new technology in data centers to reduce water and electricity needs. Matt Milton is president of Microsoft Canada.

We will pay our share for energy and we will ensure that electricity rates do not go up for Canadians.

For e structures Todd Coleman, the sector has to be more open with communities.

Whether it's misinformation or even the right information, the questions just haven't been answered. It's on all of us to get out there and take their questions, address them openly, make sure we're working towards solutions.

And there is urgency to get it right for an industry where growth is not slowing down, but accelerating.

Coming up, a ceasefire agreed to and rejected. Hezbollah says the fighting will not stop in Lebanon until Israel withdraws. And the jet fuel shortage that wasn't. Airlines that warned about the consequences of running out now say there's no need to worry.

Okay.

Later, we'll have this story.

Ahead of next week's World Cup, Ontario is cracking down on ticket resellers hoping to cash in on the world's biggest sporting event.

want the average person to be able to go to venues, sports venues, concerts without getting gowned.

But with the face value of tickets already sky high, there are doubts it will make any difference, and some say it may make things even worse. I'm Jamie Strash in Toronto. That story coming up on your world tonight.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky has written a rare open letter to Vladimir Putin. It proposes a face to face meeting with the Russian president. The two nations have been at war since Russia invaded in twenty twenty two. In the letter, Zelensky says the U.S. is fully focused on Iran, and he suggests Ukraine and Russia resolve the conflict directly. U.S. President Donald Trump says it would be great if the two leaders met.

That is the sound of Lebanon's ceasefire today. As Israeli shelling and fighting by Hezbollah militants continues, no sign of the promised pause for peace as Israel continues occupying southern Lebanon. No end to casualties either, as the UN says one peacekeeper was killed nearby, and Lebanese media reports five villagers dead.

كل مرة بيقولوا لنا واقف وطلق نار منه بوسط عود

They always say it's a ceasefire and we rejoice, says displaced villager Deeb Muhammad Awad, but we are stuck in the same place with Israeli strike. It's supposed to lay a path for a suspension of fighting in Lebanon in a conflict between Israel and Iranian proxy Hezbollah. that was reignited when the US and Israel attacked Iran three months ago. Iran now says there can be no peace deal there until fighting stops in Lebanon.

الإعلام هو خارطة طريق

Reject.

The ceasefire until Israel withdraws entirely from Lebanon in a statement on Lebanese TV. In the meantime, northern Israel lives under the threat of Hezbollah rocket fire and drone attacks, say Israelis in Nahariya and other towns near the border, like Gershon. We want peace. ستكون هناك. ستكون هناك. ستكون هناك. ستكون هناك.

יחד עם שר הביטחון, הנחיתי הצעה לתקוף מטרות טרור בביאור.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Atanyahu has taken a tough stand against Hezbollah. He faces reelection this year and needs a clear military victory. He's even resisted efforts by US President Donald Trump to rein him in. A ceasefire in Lebanon isn't impossible, says Aaron David Miller, a former Mideast negotiator for the US. But it's up to outside forces to make it happen.

Iran is prepared to squeeze his bowl up to stand down. And Trump is prepared to pressure Netanyahu to do so. It's not unimaginable that you could get a prolonged period of quiet. But that situation has not happened yet.

And the quiet seems far from arriving in Lebanon. Sasha Petrasik, C BC News, Toronto.

Donald Trump is lashing out at four Republicans who join Democrats on a vote to stop military action against Iran. As Paul Hunter explains, it's the latest in a string of political setbacks for the U.S. President.

On this vote, the yays are 215 and the nays are 208. The vote on Capitol Hill this week was a rare rebuke of the U.S. President. Remarkable because it included a handful of Republicans. Siding with Democrats against Donald Trump in efforts to force an end to the US war in Iran. For Republicans, to be exact, enough to pass the resolution, even if it was merely symbolic, with no real chance of actually coming into effect.

You either follow the law or you change the law. Mm-hmm. You can't violate the law, that's not an option.

And here's fellow Republican Tom Barrett.

Congress alone declares war, that's something that we have to be, you know, certainly protective of.

Today Trump himself lashed out at them on social media, calling them grandstanders who should be ashamed of themselves. After more than a year in office for Trump, where his party was seemingly in lockstep with whatever he did, lately though, a string of actions by Trump have left some Republicans mystified if not angry at him.

Never be another building like this.

continues to face challenges in court and then there's the Kennedy Center.

So

Right the Kennedy Center. It needs a lot of work. We're gonna fix it, make it beautiful.

That's Trump last year. But now after it was renamed the Trump Kennedy Setter, that's That's been turned back by the courts as well, and the list goes on. As Republicans increasingly worry, Trump's actions will sting the party big time in the coming midterm elections. On that, say some Consider Trump's recent comments on whether he feels pressure to end the war because of the midterms and the cost of living issues, said Trump in part.

It's got the midterms. I don't care about the midterms.

Trump allies insist he is absolutely focused on the midterms, but it's been a complicated couple of weeks for him, as the November elections now draw ever closer. Paul Hunter CBC News, Washington.

Trump's former national security advisor, John Bolton, has agreed to plead guilty to one count of retaining classified information, that according to multiple US media reports. Bolton served in the White House during Trump's first term before being fired in twenty nineteen. He faces eighteen charges connected to how he handled sensitive information while writing a book critical of Trump.

First Nations groups in Alberta are again voicing concerns about a potential separation referendum in that province. The Treaty eight First Nations of Alberta are critical of the lack of formal consultation about the planned vote. As Aaron Collins reports, they say the province is inviting a constitutional conflict with the

It's uh clear that the UCP is here to uh accommodate the separatist.

Treaty eight Grand Chief Trevor Mercury clear there can be no talk of Alberta separation without first consulting with First Nations, and Mercury says that duty to consult is being ignored by Premier Danielle Smith.

Courts have determined time and time again our rights. Yet we have a premiere that seems to think that our rights don't matter, that treaty rights don't matter, that our people don't matter.

Mercury says Alberta must stop all attempts to hold a referendum on independence until that consultation happens, a point raised in an exchange between the premiers of Manitoba and Alberta last week.

But we want to make sure that we have a very clear understanding of what the duty to consult really means and what it doesn't mean. And I think at at the moment there's a lack of clarity on that.

And you've talked a lot about it.

I'd I'd like to respond. Um so I I think we know that that that is not correct a lot of what you just said there, Premier Smith.

Manitoba Premier Wab Canoe reacting to the move by Alberta's Treaty eight in Winnipeg today.

I think it's great that First Nations and Alberta are trying to stop the referendum. There's no need for uh separation uh referendum.

An Alberta court threw out the sovereignty petition last month over a failure to consult with First Nations. The Alberta government is appealing that decision, and in a statement today, the Premier's office wrote that the referendum question doesn't trigger any duty to consult. We must trust that Albertans will freely and openly debate this question and and ultimately make the right decision for our province.

All right.

Alberta's sovereign tests have long claimed to have support among the provinces' First Nations. This exchange comes from a separatist town hall held this week.

My question to you is Can indigenous people sell the resources under their feet?

Thank you.

That's an excellent question. So you are an indigenous man? And what do you feel about this event tonight?

I love it. I got the hat.

Meanwhile, opposition to Alberta's sovereignty is organizing.

Are you going to let this happen? I cannot

Мобілизінь волонтерів. Chief Mercury says he will encourage his members to vote to keep Alberta in Canada and doesn't rule out other acts of civil disobedience if their voices aren't heard.

Separation is not happening. Separation of Alberta from the Canadian Federation is not happening.

Canada's First Nations leading the fight to keep the country together. Aaron Collins, CBC News.

It's been three months since a crucial Middle East oil shipping route was effectively blocked because of the US led war in Iran. Canadians have seen the price at the pumps spike for drivers and dire warnings about jet fuel supply for air travelers. But now, as Anis Hidari reports, there's a surprising message from some major airlines, including Air Canada.

I have never seen an air carrier come out, uh, particularly at the start of the busiest season and say don't worry about fuel.

Jet fuel shortage? What jet fuel shortage? Rick Erickson was a little surprised to see an Air Canada email explicitly saying everything's fine.

In other words, please please don't cancel your flights or please please keep continuing you think about going uh to to to Europe.

He's an independent airline analyst in Calgary and says he thinks Air Canada wants to make sure its customers keep flying on profitable routes. The company recently emailed customers saying, quote, there is no fuel shortage affecting our operations, including across your

I suspect part of the reason they're coming up with this message right now is they have seen a downturn in what they had expected.

For its part, Air Canada told C B C News demand is still strong for Europe. It's also not the only airline publicly dismissing concerns about fuel supply. German giant Lufthansa also said. It's confident there's enough fuel for the summer, though it did cancel thousands of flights back in April. Ryanair, which carries the most passengers in Europe, recently told investors there are almost zero concerns over fuel supply.

So what they're trying to do is get that buzz going, hey look, it's not a big concern that we thought it might be or the industry thought it would be.

Carl Moore is an aviation expert and management professor at McGill University in Montreal.

And don't forget that Air Canada and Left Hanza are uh big partners. And so they would be aware of each other's move. They would talk to each other and say, Hey, how did it work for you guys?

Part of why there may be more European jet fuel available than predicted, producers around the world shifted, at least temporarily. Jet fuel blocked from exiting the Strait of Hormuz has been replaced by sources from Nigeria and the United States.

É definitivamente...

Matt Smith is director of commodity research with analytics firm Kepler. He says redirecting supplies from Africa and North America won't replace millions of barrels that can't exit the Persian Gulf.

We already know that there's this massive hole in terms of the supplies. It's when those inventories start getting uh to really critically low levels. That's when there is perhaps the aha moment. And when we get that it's going to be too late and we really could see prices ripping higher from here.

So while airlines are saying, don't worry, we have fuel in Europe, some are also saying it's still too expensive, with flight cancellations continuing in parts of North America over the cost. Anis Haidari, CBC News, Calgrid.

A Canadian will be part of the comeback for tennis great Serena Williams. The forty four year old Williams is coming out of four years of retirement to play at the Queen's Club Championship, which opens next week in London. Victoria Mboko confirmed today she is Williams doubles partner. Mboko is a star in Canadian tennis. She's ranked as the number one singles player in this country and ninth worldwide.

It's an experience, it's coming to Canada so yeah, looking forward to it.

In Toronto's Nathan Phillips Square with the World Cup one week away, anticipation is high. But many realize seeing a game in person is unlikely.

I'm not holding my breath um because I don't think they'll they'll drop to be honest but uh if they do that'll be great.

All right.

Tickets for the world's premier sporting event aren't cheap. For games in Toronto, the province is promising to protect fans from sky high prices on the secondary market. Premier Doug Ford says Ontario will increase fines for ticket resellers like Stubhub and SeatGeek from ten thousand to twenty five thousand dollars for selling tickets above face value.

We want the average person to be able to go to venues, sports venues, concerts without getting gouged.

But for the World Cup it won't be easy, or in many cases even needed. Take for example Canada's opening game in Toronto. Like most World Cup tickets, the face value is exorbitantly high. On FIFA's official site, the cheapest ticket about$2,300. On a number of secondary sites, tickets are listed between six hundred and a thousand dollars. Ford acknowledges FIFA can charge what it wants.

They can dictate the cost of the game. I have no problem with that. So if one game is more important than the other and they put up the prices, that's the market.

David Clement, Policy Director of the Consumer Choice Center, a consumer advocacy group, calls the province's plan performative. Clement says the face value of a World Cup ticket is nearly impossible to pin down based on a number of factors including what source it was purchased from and when as FIFA released so called dynamically priced tickets at different times.

I don't foresee a scenario where anybody is fined. In a nutshell, the law sounds like a symbolic win. It sounds like it's benefiting consumers, but all it has done is entrench the monopoly for live events.

Clement also points out sites like StubHub at least offer buyers and sellers protection against fraudulent tickets and transactions, something not considered by this legislation.

players in the secondary market, and that creates a huge risk in terms of consumer fraud.

The fine increase goes into effect June 11th, the day before Canada plays its first game. Jamie Strash in CBC News, Toronto.

Finally tonight.

For many years a community has been defined by enslavement. And that enslavement has created a a reference point that, you know, um people are are reticent to share their history.

400 years of that history now on display in a traveling exhibit titled We and the Sea. It tells the stories of African Nova Scotian seafarers that had long been largely absent from historical accounts. Its first stop, Birchtown, Nova Scotia. where the CEO of the Black Cultural Center, Russell Gross, hopes to bring that history to the forefront.

Things like this create an opportunity where we can turn that page and show that, you know, through the atrocities of enslavement, um, there were contributions made to society.

Andrea Davis is executive director of Birchtown's Black Loyalist Heritage Center, where the exhibit launched. She's an eighth generation Black Loyalist descendant and calls this moment historic.

This exhibit is all about recognizing and storytelling about the African-Nova Scotia fisherman. A story that's not told, a story that I didn't even know much about myself.

Olympian Marjorie Turner Bailey is also a descendant of black loyalists. She says she didn't know much about her history growing up in the only black family in Lockport, but came to know more as she traveled for sports.

Young people have to be taught. I don't care what color you are, I don't care anything like that. They have to be taught about people and history. It's important and it makes us better.

Yeah.

Thank you for being with us. This has been your world tonight for Thursday, June fourth. I'm Martina Fitzgerald. Have a good night.

For more C BC podcasts, go to cbc.ca slash podcast.