Canadians are sending a mixed message to Ottawa about artificial intelligence—and the numbers tell a striking story of deep ambivalence.
A comprehensive analysis of federal government consultation data shows that public anxiety about AI harms is running almost neck-and-neck with excitement about the technology's economic potential, suggesting Canadians want innovation but not at any cost.
The federal government collected more than 64,600 responses from over 11,300 participants last year to inform Canada's upcoming AI strategy. When independent researchers crunched the numbers, they uncovered a telling pattern: mentions of economic growth appeared in roughly 35.6 per cent of submissions, while concerns about ethical harms showed up in 34.6 per cent—a razor-thin margin that speaks volumes about the national mood.
What Canadians Are Actually Saying
The consultation asked Canadians how the government should safely adopt AI, support Canadian AI companies, attract investment, build sovereign AI infrastructure, and maintain public trust. Respondents included entrepreneurs, researchers, workers, educators, students, public servants, and community advocates.
When researchers broke down the data by theme, the top four concerns emerged clearly: economic growth, ethical harms, environmental damage, and productivity gains. But the story wasn't in the headlines—it was in the nearly equal weight Canadians gave to opportunity and risk.
"The numbers suggest a pronounced tension within the Canadian public about AI's economic potential and the risks the technology could bring," according to the independent analysis.
The Government's AI-Powered Analysis
Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada (ISED) used an AI-driven classification system to process the massive volume of responses. The department deployed what it calls a "scalable, AI-enabled workflow" using multiple large language models to clean, categorize, and identify common themes across submissions.
The government claims it achieved at least a 90 per cent success rate in categorizing responses and used manual human review at several stages to ensure accuracy. However, details about which specific AI prompts were used, and how the government weighted different responses in its public summary, remain unclear.
When asked for specifics, ISED's office pointed to the published data and reiterated its commitment to better engaging underrepresented groups and regions in future consultations.
A Technology Debate That Matters to All Canadians
The consultation results reveal something important: Canadians aren't reflexively anti-technology, nor are they blindly optimistic. Instead, they're asking hard questions about how AI should be developed and deployed in Canada.
Concerns ranged from premature deployment of overhyped technologies, to job displacement, privacy risks, and environmental impact. At the same time, respondents emphasized the critical need to attract and retain top AI talent, and to position Canada as a global AI leader.
The narrow gap between enthusiasm and caution suggests that Canada's AI strategy will need to walk a careful line—fostering innovation while building robust safeguards, supporting economic growth while protecting workers and privacy, and developing cutting-edge technology while maintaining public trust.
As Canada moves forward with its AI strategy, these findings underscore a fundamental truth: the public wants both progress and prudence. The challenge for policymakers will be delivering on that demand.
Analysis based on data from Innovation, Science, and Economic Development Canada's 2024 AI public consultation. This reporting was informed by research published by BetaKit, Canada's technology news platform.