AI Compute Access Fund

3. If an application is successful but does not demonstrate strong benefits to Canada, the applicant may still be offered support in the form of a repayable contribution agreement.

1.4.3 Contributions will cover up to two-thirds of the eligible costs for Canadian AI compute services, and up to 1/2 of the eligible costs for non-Canadian AI Compute services.

1.4.4 Effective April 1, 2027, expenditures related to non-Canadian compute services shall no longer be eligible for offset under the Program. Only costs incurred through Canadian compute providers that satisfy the criteria set forth in Section 1.4.5 shall be deemed eligible. Recipients relying exclusively on foreign compute services will no longer be permitted to claim offsets for such expenditures following the aforementioned date.

1.4.5 To be considered a Canadian AI compute service provider, providers must be legally registered and incorporated in Canada and they must operate physical data centres located within Canadian territory, such that all computing infrastructure, data storage, and processing resources used to provide artificial intelligence-related computing services are hosted exclusively in Canada.

Note:

Note: Multinational companies that have Canadian registered entities and confirm that the infrastructure and data used resides and stays in Canada will be considered domestic. A mix of foreign and domestic use will also be considered. AI Compute Access Fund recipients will need to identify where their costs are incurred and would be eligible for reimbursement based on the location of incursion at a rate of 67% of eligible costs for costs incurred in Canada until March 31, 2028 and at a rate of 50% of eligible costs for costs incurred outside of Canada until March 31, 2027.

1.4.6 The maximum level of assistance from Canadian federal, provincial, territorial and municipal governments ("stacking") received by any Recipient for eligible activities must not to exceed 100% of eligible costs.

Eligible Activities are those activities related to assisting Recipients in developing, training, or operating their AI model(s):

1. Training: This may include Recipients using funding to access cloud-based compute services to train and refine their AI model(s) prior to commercial launch.
2. Inference: This may include, for example, Recipients using cloud-based service providers to provide inference services to ensure their customers can use their AI product or service.
3. Other related: This may include, for example, Recipients using cloud-based service providers to modify, improve, or otherwise fine-tune existing AI models.

1.5.1 Eligible Expenditures are those incurred by a Recipient and necessary to carry out the Eligible Activities to which they relate. Eligible Expenditures are incurred in the fiscal year in which contribution funding is provided.

1.5.2 Only costs incurred after the signing of the Contribution Agreement and deemed necessary to achieve the objectives for which program funding was awarded will be eligible.

1.5.3 Any costs incurred prior to signing of a Contribution Agreement would be incurred solely at the applicant's risk without obligation of payment by the Minister or equivalent.

1.5.4 On a case-by-case basis, the program may consider supporting the inclusion of Eligible Expenditures that an eligible Recipient incurred following the effective date of the Terms and Conditions of the program but no earlier than the date the proposal is received and approved by ISED, and prior to the signing of the Contribution Agreement within a funded fiscal year.

1.5.5 Recipients may use either domestic or foreign compute service providers, provided that such providers are not headquartered in, or operating from, a country or jurisdiction where Canada has imposed any sanctions, or where there are national security concerns or regulatory restrictions as per the Global Affairs Canada website.

1.5.6 Recipients using domestic compute service providers will need to provide supporting documentation to confirm that they meet the criteria described in section 1.4.5.

1.5.7 Eligible costs are payment(s) towards service contracts with AI compute services providers for the listed Eligible Activities in section 1.3, including:

1. Core compute expenses;
2. Storage costs;
3. Compute-specific licensing
4. AI/ML processing;
5. Operational monitoring;
6. Compute-specific security requirements.

1.5.8 Recipients may use quotes or invoices as part of their application but can only be reimbursed after incurring and paying for Eligible Expenditures within their own financial records.