Page 88 - InvestAlberta-EDA-2025

SMART CARE
How AI is transforming the
future of medicine in Alberta
BY CAITLIN HART
AS THE ARTIFICIAL intelligence (AI) boom
continues, Alberta’s health-care entrepreneurs and
researchers are discovering new ways AI can support
doctors, nurses and surgeons with tasks from treatment
to completing paperwork.
There’s a great deal of AI research happening
in the province, not just in the universities, but in
organizations like the Edmonton-based Alberta
Machine Intelligence Institute (Amii), one of Canada’s
three AI research institutes named in the Pan-Canadian
AI Strategy. Calgary and Edmonton, Alberta’s two major
cities, are quickly becoming technology and innovation
hubs, thanks to their proximity to research universities,
government investment in technology companies and
one of the lowest corporate tax rates in North America.
Add to that the province’s supportive intellectual
property laws, streamlined business registration
processes and access to top-tier talent, it’s no wonder
companies are choosing to set up shop here.
“Alberta’s tech ecosystem may be smaller
compared to our Canadian counterparts, but it
delivers outsized global impact. Local success stories
like Jobber, SamDesk and Artificial Agency showcase
our ability to build world-changing AI companies,”
says Cam Linke, CEO, Amii.
“Our global reputation as a powerhouse in
reinforcement learning continues to attract companies
eager to tap into this thriving ecosystem.”
Amii operates with funding from governments
and private industry partnerships, including Alberta
Innovates, a provincial funding agency that supports
researchers and innovators committed to improving fields like health,
agriculture and clean resource technologies.
With funding from Alberta Innovates through its new Enabling Better
Health Through Artificial Intelligence program, more than $9.5 million has
been distributed to universities and private companies to explore how
AI can improve health outcomes and augment the work of health-care
professionals. AI could soon play a role in preventing, diagnosing and
treating everything from overdoses to hospital-transmitted infection
outbreaks. This technology holds particular promise for identifying patterns
in data and preventing adverse outcomes in patients, thanks to AI’s ability
to detect things that humans can’t.
“The future of health care needs to be more predictive,” says Tim
Murphy, vice president, Health at Alberta Innovates. “Health care needs to
be more personalized.”
Murphy says the province has “winning conditions” for this field,
pointing to Alberta’s entrepreneurial spirit, high venture capital
investment, thriving tech industry and two major research universities.
“THE TECHNOLOGY ADDRESSES CRITICAL PROBLEMS OF
WORKLOADS AND BURNOUT FOR HEALTH CARE PROVIDERS
AND WILL ALSO HELP IMPROVE CARE FOR ALBERTANS.”
— KYLE NISHIYAMA, CEO, MIKATA HEALTH
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