Promise Tracker
A conservative public register for the six pillars, official outcome targets, and explicit key actions in Canada's National AI Strategy. Strategy promises are commitments, not proof of delivery.
Promise Tracker
Four lanes translate the official strategy register into a public-accountability view. Each lane opens the same promise register with the existing filter contract.
Official commitment or policy work exists, but delivery proof is not yet public.
Open laneActive15promise rowsFunding or program machinery is visible; outcome evidence still needs watching.
Open laneDelivered2promise rowsA launch or current public baseline is visible. This is evidence, not a final outcome claim.
Open laneNeeds Evidence34promise rowsThe strategy promise exists, but the tracker needs a separate progress source.
Open laneWatch next
Commitments where the next public document or report would most directly improve the tracker.
Support applied AI research, testing, and deployment for fraud prevention, cyber defence, threat detection, and data protection.
Work on transparency measures such as watermarking so Canadians can identify AI interactions and content.
Create a certification program to help Canadians identify trustworthy AI products in the marketplace.
Coordinate with frontier AI companies and international partners to protect Canadians and critical systems.
Numeric targets are shown with baselines only when a public metric exists.
70promises trackedOutcome targets plus every explicit key-action commitment from the full strategy.
36source-backed status rowsRows with an official target, policy stage, funding, launch, or baseline source attached.
34progress evidence gapsRows where the strategy promise exists but delivery evidence is not wired yet.
Evidence atlas
Select any non-zero cell to filter the promise register. The matrix shows evidence status, not delivery proof.
| Pillar | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Protecting Canadians | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | |||
| Empowering Canadians | 0 | 0 | 19 | ||||
| Adoption | 0 | 12 | |||||
| Sovereign AI | 0 | 0 | 10 | ||||
| Canadian champions | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | |||
| Partnerships | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
Current public measurements
These are baseline or adjacent public measurements. They help ground the strategy, but only a current value that matches a stated target is treated as progress evidence.
Statistics Canada's narrow current-use measure covers businesses using AI to produce goods or deliver services in the previous 12 months, up from 12.2% in Q2 2025.
Planning to use AI over the next 12 months is a demand signal. It is not adoption already achieved and is not added to the current-use rate.
This is an experimental exposure estimate for job transformation risk and complementarity. It does not predict actual job losses or gains.
This static count comes from the public Open Government CSV. It shows disclosure activity, not a complete inventory or quality rating.
A federal public-service lighthouse project gives a measurable adoption example, but it is adjacent context rather than proof that the new national strategy has delivered.
1 of 5 public measurements currently line up with an official strategy target. The rest are context signals, not scorecard points.
Targets and measurable signals
A bar appears only when a public latest value can be compared with a stated target. Pending rails mean the tracker needs delivery evidence before it can show progress.
Share of Canadian businesses using AI to produce goods or deliver services
32% of stated target value using the latest public value.
The tracker shows latest divided by target, not a claim that the strategy is 32% delivered. Statistics Canada's Q2 2026 release is the latest official current-use measure.
New jobs through AI adoption
Measurement pending
This is an official outcome target. No public measurement series is wired yet for jobs attributable to AI adoption.
Youth work opportunities, student reach, and educator training
Delivery evidence pending
The strategy gives public reach targets, but this tracker needs delivery counts before showing progress.
Sovereign compute capacity and access
Delivery evidence pending
Funding and target language are public. Delivery needs procurement, capacity, access, pricing, and usage evidence.
GDP gains from labour productivity and AI commercialization/application
Attribution method pending
This is an economic-impact ambition, not a directly observed public metric. It should be tracked through productivity and adoption evidence over time.
Trusted partnerships and alliance milestones
Milestone evidence pending
The tracker treats alliances as milestones until public joint work, procurement, standards, or investment outputs can be verified.
Evidence gaps
Ranked by unresolved rows, not editorial severity.
Evidence that would close rows:
Evidence that would close rows:
Evidence that would close rows:
Promise register
Filter the register by pillar, evidence model, status, or target year. The table keeps official promises separate from public progress evidence.
Accountability pipeline
These lanes translate the detailed status matrix into a reader-facing accountability flow. They show what kind of evidence is visible, not whether the strategy has succeeded.
These cards update with the same filter state as the matrix and register.
Help create new jobs through AI adoption across the Canadian economy by 2031.
Support a 3% increase in GDP through labour productivity and AI commercialization/application in key sectors.
Help SMEs assess readiness, identify use cases, understand impacts, and connect to support.
Strengthen AI adoption among entrepreneurs through the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Development Program.
Evidence gap shortcut
34 matching commitments need a separate public progress source in this view.
When do the promises come due? Only 6 of 70 commitments carry a stated target year.
| Evidence note | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Create up to 250,000 AI-adoption jobsHelp create new jobs through AI adoption across the Canadian economy by 2031.Measurable target | Adoption | Needs public evidenceofficial target | Up to 250,000 jobsTarget year: 2031 | This is a target, not a measured jobs series. Attribution will be hard and should be disclosed.ISED overviewISED full strategy |
Unlock nearly $200B in GDP gainsSupport a 3% increase in GDP through labour productivity and AI commercialization/application in key sectors.Measurable target | Adoption | Needs public evidenceofficial target | 3% GDP / nearly $200B | Economic impact is not directly observed from the strategy alone; methodology is required.ISED overviewISED full strategy |
Develop AI literacy and adoption assessment toolHelp SMEs assess readiness, identify use cases, understand impacts, and connect to support.Program milestone | Adoption | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Online readiness and adoption resources | Tool delivery needs launch, accessibility, usage, and referral evidence.ISED full strategy |
Target AI support for entrepreneursStrengthen AI adoption among entrepreneurs through the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Development Program.Program milestone | Adoption | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Targeted entrepreneur support | Program delivery requires public terms, recipients, and outcomes.ISED full strategy |
Launch sector-specific Workforce AlliancesCoordinate skills gaps, talent pipelines, and workforce transformation across six priority sectors.Program milestone | Adoption | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Six sector alliances | Alliance launch and work plans should be tracked separately from outcomes.ISED full strategy |
Accelerate federal AI procurement and deliveryUse the Office of Digital Transformation to procure and deliver AI solutions across federal government.Policy milestone | Adoption | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Federal AI procurement acceleration | Delivery needs procurement records, deployment disclosures, and responsible-use assessments.ISED full strategyGC public-service AI strategyFederal AI register |
Launch Prime Minister's Innovation Fellows ProgramRecruit technical talent to help government procure, evaluate, and deploy AI systems effectively.Program milestone | Adoption | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Innovation Fellows Program | Program launch, hiring, placements, and project outputs are needed.ISED full strategy |
Anchor homegrown foundation models in CanadaSupport Canadian foundation-model capabilities at home and help them grow in export markets.Program milestone | Canadian champions | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Canadian foundation-model anchoring and export support | Anchoring should be evidenced by contracts, compute, research, export, and Canadian governance conditions.ISED full strategy |
Support safe Canadian foundation-model researchSupport research in Canadian foundation models with safety at their core.Program milestone | Canadian champions | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Safe-by-design Canadian model research | Track research programs, safety evaluations, publication, and commercialization pathways.ISED full strategy |
Free AI literacy for CanadiansProvide all Canadians with access to free AI literacy training and practical learning resources.Program milestone | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial target | Access for all Canadians | The commitment is public; the page needs participation and availability evidence before showing delivery.ISED overviewISED full strategy |
Reach 1 million post-secondary studentsReach 1 million entry-level post-secondary students with AI literacy content.Measurable target | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial target | 1,000,000 students | A numeric target exists, but no public progress count is wired yet.ISED full strategy |
Train more than 3,000 educatorsDouble K-12 teacher training so more than 3,000 educators receive AI learning kits for classrooms.Measurable target | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial target | More than 3,000 educators | The strategy names a prior reach example and a target. National delivery counts are still needed.ISED full strategy |
Trusted AI agents for post-secondary studentsEnsure all post-secondary students have access to trusted personal AI tools.Program milestone | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial target | All post-secondary students | Access, safeguards, institutional opt-in, and uptake need separate public evidence.ISED full strategy |
Create up to 90,000 AI-related youth opportunitiesCreate AI-related jobs and work-placement opportunities for young Canadians through Student Work Placement, Canada Summer Jobs, Skills for Success, Mitacs ADOPT, and AI+X by 2031.Measurable target | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial target | Up to 90,000 opportunitiesTarget year: 2031 | Official target; the named program channels are part of this same promise, not a separate commitment row. No public cumulative AI-specific count is wired yet.ISED overviewISED full strategy |
Create National AI Literacy InitiativeOffer entry-level AI training accessible to all Canadians.Program milestone | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | National AI literacy training | Availability, accessibility, and uptake need public reporting.ISED full strategy |
Reach students and educators with AI literacy kitsReach 1 million entry-level post-secondary students and train more than 3,000 educators.Measurable target | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial target | 1M students / 3,000+ educators | Numeric reach target exists; latest delivery count is not yet wired.ISED full strategy |
Provide trusted AI agents to studentsPut capable, personal AI tools in the hands of post-secondary students.Program milestone | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | All post-secondary students | Track procurement, safeguards, and access rather than assuming availability.ISED full strategy |
Bring AI literacy through libraries and communitiesUse public libraries and community organizations to reach rural, remote, northern, and local communities.Program milestone | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Community delivery network | The strategy names partners; delivery needs location and reach evidence.ISED full strategy |
Assess and scale mid-career AI upskillingAssess training offerings and scale employer-led AI skills training, including skilled trades and applied college partners.Program milestone | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Scaled mid-career upskilling | Assessment and scale-up need public design, funding, and training-output evidence.ISED full strategy |
Support AI adoption in female-dominated sectorsUse the Women's Program to accelerate adoption in exposed female-dominated sectors and address AI-fueled online abuse.Program milestone | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Targeted sector support | Track program design, recipients, sector coverage, and safety outcomes.ISED full strategy |
Support Indigenous-led AI initiativesSupport Indigenous-led AI work that reinforces cultural expression and linguistic vitality.Program milestone | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Indigenous-led AI initiatives | Delivery should be tracked through Indigenous-led governance, funding, and project evidence.ISED full strategy |
Protect and promote French-language AI toolsAdopt tools that protect and promote French in Quebec and Francophone minority communities, with equal government performance in both official languages.Policy milestone | Empowering Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Official-language AI performance | Language performance needs testing, procurement requirements, and public service standards.ISED full strategy |
Use Trade Commissioner Service for AI marketsAttract AI investment, showcase Canadian champions abroad, and open markets for Canadian firms.Program milestone | Partnerships | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Trade and investment support | Trade activity should be tracked through missions, deals, investment, and firm outcomes.ISED full strategy |
Lead public-interest open-source AI effortLead a global multi-stakeholder effort to invest in and sustain open-source AI development in the public interest.Program milestone | Partnerships | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Global public-interest open-source AI effort | Track coalition, funding, governance, repositories, maintainers, and public-interest use.ISED full strategy |
Create open-source AI access inventory and shared librarySupport responsible open-source AI adoption with transparent, adaptable, secure tools aligned with Canadian needs.Program milestone | Partnerships | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Inventory and shared library | A library should be assessed through content, governance, maintenance, security, and user adoption.ISED full strategy |
Advance AI transparency and watermarkingWork on transparency measures such as watermarking so Canadians can identify AI interactions and content.Policy milestone | Protecting Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Transparency capabilities | Track concrete standards, rules, pilots, and adoption rather than intent.ISED full strategy |
Work with frontier AI companies on cyber and national securityCoordinate with frontier AI companies and international partners to protect Canadians and critical systems.Program milestone | Protecting Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | AI safety and cyber coordination | Coordination is hard to measure publicly; watch for formal agreements and public outputs.ISED full strategy |
Create Canada Trusted AI CertificationCreate a certification program to help Canadians identify trustworthy AI products in the marketplace.Program milestone | Protecting Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Trusted AI certification program | Certification requires criteria, governance, assessment bodies, product listings, and enforcement.ISED full strategy |
Accelerate AI security research with law enforcementSupport applied AI research, testing, and deployment for fraud prevention, cyber defence, threat detection, and data protection.Program milestone | Protecting Canadians | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Applied security deployments | Public evidence may be partial because security work can be sensitive.ISED full strategy |
Build a world-leading public supercomputerBuild a sovereign public supercomputer for researchers and SMEs by 2031.Program milestone | Sovereign AI | Needs public evidenceofficial target | Public supercomputerTarget year: 2031 | The target is public; the implementation row for a public supercomputer is part of this same promise, not a separate commitment.ISED overviewISED full strategy |
Expand high-capacity fibre and satellite connectivityBuild resilient network infrastructure with sovereign capabilities across Canada.Program milestone | Sovereign AI | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Diverse high-capacity connectivity | Connectivity delivery requires project, capacity, region, resilience, and completion evidence.ISED full strategy |
Enhance chip design and fabricationStrengthen Canadian chip design and fabrication capabilities, including work around NRC's Photonics Fabrication Centre.Program milestone | Sovereign AI | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Enhanced chip design/fabrication capacity | Track institutional changes, fabrication capacity, project awards, and industry access.ISED full strategy |
Reinforce secure government digital systemsBuild and secure government systems for sovereign cloud, AI, cyber, and quantum needs.Program milestone | Sovereign AI | Needs public evidenceofficial strategy only | Secure sovereign government systems | Security and infrastructure progress may be partially disclosed; public milestones still matter.ISED full strategyGC public-service AI strategy |
Strengthen AI institutes and expand AI ChairsStrengthen the national AI institute network and increase Canada CIFAR AI Chairs from 130 to nearly 200 researchers.Measurable target | Sovereign AI | Needs public evidenceofficial target | Nearly 200 AI Chairs | A clear count target exists, but the latest post-strategy count should be verified before showing progress.ISED full strategyCIFAR AI strategy |
Help create new jobs through AI adoption across the Canadian economy by 2031.
Support a 3% increase in GDP through labour productivity and AI commercialization/application in key sectors.
Help SMEs assess readiness, identify use cases, understand impacts, and connect to support.
Strengthen AI adoption among entrepreneurs through the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Development Program.
Coordinate skills gaps, talent pipelines, and workforce transformation across six priority sectors.
Use the Office of Digital Transformation to procure and deliver AI solutions across federal government.
Recruit technical talent to help government procure, evaluate, and deploy AI systems effectively.
Support Canadian foundation-model capabilities at home and help them grow in export markets.
Support research in Canadian foundation models with safety at their core.
Provide all Canadians with access to free AI literacy training and practical learning resources.
Reach 1 million entry-level post-secondary students with AI literacy content.
Double K-12 teacher training so more than 3,000 educators receive AI learning kits for classrooms.
Ensure all post-secondary students have access to trusted personal AI tools.
Create AI-related jobs and work-placement opportunities for young Canadians through Student Work Placement, Canada Summer Jobs, Skills for Success, Mitacs ADOPT, and AI+X by 2031.
Offer entry-level AI training accessible to all Canadians.
Reach 1 million entry-level post-secondary students and train more than 3,000 educators.
Put capable, personal AI tools in the hands of post-secondary students.
Use public libraries and community organizations to reach rural, remote, northern, and local communities.
Assess training offerings and scale employer-led AI skills training, including skilled trades and applied college partners.
Use the Women's Program to accelerate adoption in exposed female-dominated sectors and address AI-fueled online abuse.
Support Indigenous-led AI work that reinforces cultural expression and linguistic vitality.
Adopt tools that protect and promote French in Quebec and Francophone minority communities, with equal government performance in both official languages.
Attract AI investment, showcase Canadian champions abroad, and open markets for Canadian firms.
Lead a global multi-stakeholder effort to invest in and sustain open-source AI development in the public interest.
Support responsible open-source AI adoption with transparent, adaptable, secure tools aligned with Canadian needs.
Work on transparency measures such as watermarking so Canadians can identify AI interactions and content.
Coordinate with frontier AI companies and international partners to protect Canadians and critical systems.
Create a certification program to help Canadians identify trustworthy AI products in the marketplace.
Support applied AI research, testing, and deployment for fraud prevention, cyber defence, threat detection, and data protection.
Build a sovereign public supercomputer for researchers and SMEs by 2031.
Build resilient network infrastructure with sovereign capabilities across Canada.
Strengthen Canadian chip design and fabrication capabilities, including work around NRC's Photonics Fabrication Centre.
Build and secure government systems for sovereign cloud, AI, cyber, and quantum needs.
Strengthen the national AI institute network and increase Canada CIFAR AI Chairs from 130 to nearly 200 researchers.
All matching commitments are visible.
Source notes
Official strategy pages establish what was promised. They do not prove money was spent well, programs reached people, or outcomes changed.
Overview of Canada's National Artificial Intelligence Strategy: AI for All
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada · June 4, 2026
High-level public outcomes, six-pillar framing, and plain-language strategy context.
A strategy overview is not delivery evidence. It states intent and headline targets.
Open sourceCanada's National Artificial Intelligence Strategy: AI for All
Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada · June 5, 2026
The controlling source for outcome targets and explicit key-action commitments.
Official commitments are not independent proof that programs have launched, reached users, or delivered outcomes.
Open sourceBusinesses using AI to produce goods or deliver services
Statistics Canada · June 16, 2025
Narrow, official baseline for businesses using AI in goods or services.
Does not capture informal employee use, pilots, or broader generative-AI experimentation.
Open sourceCanadian Survey on Business Conditions, second quarter 2026
Statistics Canada · May 27, 2026
Current business AI-use measure and comparison against Q2 2025 and Q2 2024.
The Canadian Survey on Business Conditions is scheduled for its final collection cycle in summer 2026, so the tracker may need a successor series.
Open sourceBusinesses planning to use AI
Statistics Canada · August 27, 2025
Businesses planning to adopt AI and reported reasons for non-adoption.
Plans are not delivered adoption and should not be added to the current-use rate.
Open sourceExposure to artificial intelligence in Canadian jobs: Experimental estimates
Statistics Canada · September 25, 2024
Context for workforce adaptation, training, and job-transformation commitments.
Experimental estimates use 2021 census and O*NET-based exposure methods; they do not show actual job losses or gains from AI.
Open sourceAI Strategy for the Federal Public Service 2025-2027
Government of Canada · March 2025
Federal public-sector AI governance, delivery, and responsible-use context.
Does not measure whole-of-government AI adoption or delivery outcomes.
Open sourceAI Strategy for the Federal Public Service 2025-2027: Year in Review
Government of Canada · May 25, 2026
Public-service AI adoption, training, transparency, and lighthouse-project context.
Federal public-service progress is not the same as delivery of Canada's whole-of-economy AI for All strategy.
Open sourceAlgorithmic Impact Assessment and federal AI register
Government of Canada · Ongoing
Public disclosure of some federal automated decision systems and assessment artifacts.
Registry coverage is not a complete inventory of all government AI use.
Open sourceGovernment of Canada AI Register (Minimum Viable Product)
Open Government Portal · April 28, 2026
A public transparency count for registered federal AI systems.
The MVP register is not a complete inventory of every federal AI use and should not be used as a whole-government adoption rate.
Open sourcePan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy
CIFAR · Ongoing
Research-network and AI-chair context that sits behind the strategy's talent commitments.
Useful program context, but not a full delivery tracker for the new strategy.
Open sourceReading rule: an official commitment row means the promise exists in the public strategy. A progress row needs a separate public source such as legislation, funding awards, procurement notices, program reports, Statistics Canada releases, registry entries, or partnership outputs.