Artificial intelligence cooperation is accelerating: the EU and Canada signed a significant agreement

The European Union and Canada signed a memorandum of understanding in Montreal on Monday, which strengthens the countries’ cooperation in the development of artificial intelligence. The aim of the agreement is to promote reliable artificial intelligence solutions that respect fundamental rights and support trade, investments and economic growth.

The cooperation covers, among other things, artificial intelligence standards, regulation, competence development and the introduction of technology. The parties commit to sharing best practices to accelerate the adoption of artificial intelligence in strategic sectors such as healthcare, manufacturing, energy, culture, science and public services. Special attention is paid to supporting SMEs.

According to the agreement, the EU and Canada cooperate in the development of large artificial intelligence infrastructures and ensure that industry and the research community have access to sufficient computing capacity. In addition, the countries are exploring opportunities to deepen scientific cooperation in basic artificial intelligence research and the development of advanced models for purposes serving the public interest, such as combating climate change and monitoring extreme weather events.

The parties will also start a structured dialogue about data spaces, which are of central importance in the development of large artificial intelligence models.

Council of Digi Partners

At the first Digital Partnership Council held in Montreal, the EU and Canada confirmed their common goals to improve competitiveness, innovation and economic resilience. Both emphasized the need to support companies, especially SMEs, with reasonable regulation.

The Council is chaired by the Vice-President of the EU Commission Henna Virkkunenresponsible for technological sovereignty, security and democracy, and Canada’s Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation Evan Solomon. They expressed their satisfaction with the progress of the cooperation and set an ambitious program for the coming months. In addition, the EU and Canada agreed to explore cooperation opportunities with other like-minded partners.

Another memorandum of understanding was also signed on Monday, which concerns digital competence certificates and trust services. The goal is to establish a forum that promotes testing of digital competence certificates, pilot projects and information exchange. The countries are developing joint pilots to improve the interoperability of digital identity wallets and identification data and trust services.