Aidan Gomez warns AI fearmongering could cost Canada its rare lead in the global AI race

Cohere chief executive Aidan Gomez told CBC News that the current wave of AI fear is "born from sci‑fi stories" and that the 10 per cent extinction‑risk figure quoted by Anthropic researcher Evan Hubinger is "not math".

Gomez says Canada is one of only a handful of nations – the United States, China and France – that hold a "ticket to the AI race" because of its early leadership in AI research.

He backs Prime Minister Mark Carney’s proposal for a global, non‑industry body to oversee AI safety, arguing that industry‑led oversight would add more fear rather than real protection.

According to Gomez, AI can bring concrete benefits such as lowering the cost of living for ordinary Canadians and speeding up medical discoveries that could save lives.

Canada is aiming to attract about $1 trillion in new AI‑related investment over the next five years. The plan includes a $14.5 billion data‑centre project near Medicine Hat, Alberta, and a combined $250 billion in financing pledged by major banks for infrastructure, some of which will support AI.

Gomez warns that if public narratives stay focused on worst‑case scenarios, policy makers may miss the economic opportunity, and Canada could forfeit the advantage it has built through early research.

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