Canada's Carney frames C$1.6B AI investment as national security necessity

Politico reports that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney presented the C$1.6 billion Ottawa is putting into AI company Cohere as a down payment on national security. He spoke in Montreal on Thursday, October 29, 2026, ahead of the Canada-EU summit. Carney said Canada is not willing to wait while the future of AI is decided elsewhere by people it does not know or trust, and that sovereignty now rests on dependable access to chips, minerals, payment systems, clean energy, vaccines, satellite communications and AI.

According to the article, Carney described the investment as commercial and made alongside private backers such as Nvidia, Bell and the German Schwarz Group. Cohere co-founder and chief executive Aidan Gomez announced the initial close of the company's Series E round the same day. The round targets up to C$7 billion at a valuation of C$35.7 billion. Gomez joined Carney at the Mila institute in Quebec and said Canadians should help build, shape and benefit from AI.

The piece adds that European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, speaking earlier in Montreal, cited an April multi-billion dollar merger between Cohere and Germany's Aleph Alpha as a key part of closer Canada-EU cooperation. She said the two sides would work together on safety and security issues around runaway AI and develop rules, standards and strong global governance. Talks on AI were due on Friday with her and European Council President Antonio Costa.

Politico notes that the summit takes place against economic threats from US President Donald Trump toward both partners. Carney dismissed the idea that it could prompt reprisals, saying the work serves Canadian interests and that the United States will ultimately recognize this.