Telus Launches Canada’s First Sovereign AI Data Centre
Telus has announced the opening of Canada’s first fully sovereign AI factory, located in Rimouski, Quebec. The facility represents a milestone in the country’s data centre and AI landscape, combining advanced Nvidia GPUs with HPE-designed infrastructure to deliver secure, high-performance computing for businesses, researchers and public institutions.
“Today marks a defining milestone for Canada's digital future. Indeed, with the launch of our nation's first fully Sovereign AI Factory in Rimouski, we are maximising Canadian autonomy over sensitive data,” says Darren Entwistle, President and CEO of Telus.
“Businesses, researchers and governments should not have to rely on foreign-controlled systems to advance their AI ambitions. Today, we are helping to achieve that: by delivering advanced compute power within data centres built, owned and operated by Canadians, Telus is safeguarding our data, protecting our sovereignty and empowering our economy.
“From Rimouski today and Kamloops tomorrow, we are creating the backbone for Canada's productivity, competitiveness and global leadership in the digital era. Telus' pioneering AI factories leverage the latest-generation technology from industry leaders like NVIDIA and HPE and are powered by the billions of dollars we have already invested in our world-leading PureFibre network.
“Importantly, Telus is providing the secure, sovereign foundation our country needs to create made-in-Canada solutions, accelerate growth and secure our place in the digital economy for generations to come.”
End-to-end AI infrastructure in Canada
The Rimouski data centre is designed to provide organisations with full capabilities to train, fine-tune and deploy AI models while ensuring Canadian data stays within national borders. Telus, the first North American service provider to join the Nvidia Cloud Partner network, offers access to Nvidia’s most advanced software and reference architectures, reducing both deployment time and costs.
“Telus' new sovereign AI initiative is a welcome addition to Canada's growing digital infrastructure,” says Evan Solomon, Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation.
“Expanding data and compute capacity here at home supports the government's vision for AI-driven productivity and competitiveness. By keeping data and compute within Canada, Telus is contributing to responsible innovation and strengthening our broader economic objectives – alongside the many other partners building critical data centres across the country.”
Technology partnerships driving performance
The Sovereign AI Factory has been developed with technology partners Nvidia and HPE.
“Sovereign AI infrastructure enables countries to innovate on their own terms while protecting their most valuable data,” says Ronnie Vasishta, Senior Vice President of Telecom at Nvidia.
“Telus is bringing this vision to reality in Canada, building a robust platform combining the most advanced NVIDIA AI technology with their world-class infrastructure in a truly sovereign environment. The AI factory will provide Canadian businesses with the capabilities to develop AI solutions, accelerate time-to-market and compete on the global stage.”
Trish Damkroger, Senior Vice President and General Manager of HPC & AI Infrastructure Solutions at HPE, adds: “To accelerate AI innovation and drive a positive societal impact, nation states and public entities will need a purpose-built sovereign solution that delivers the scale, performance and governance to unlock growth while protecting data and IP.
“Telus' investment in a Sovereign AI Factory will empower Canada's public and commercial sectors to innovate in the era of AI and we are honoured to collaborate with them on delivering the critical infrastructure and services to advance their missions.”
Supporting Canadian enterprises and researchers
The factory will also host solutions from League, Accenture and OpenText. League will use the infrastructure to deliver AI-powered healthcare services, storing sensitive patient data within Canada. Accenture will develop industry-specific solutions for highly regulated sectors, while OpenText will provide enterprise-grade AI cloud services to more than 1,600 Canadian organisations.
Valerie Pisano, President and CEO of Mila – Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute, says: “Canadian AI research has always been world-leading, but access to truly sovereign, high-performance computing infrastructure has been a critical gap.
"Telus' Sovereign AI Factory provides the Canadian AI community with the computational resources needed to advance breakthrough research while keeping our work within Canadian borders. The sovereign infrastructure enables us to translate Canadian AI innovations into real-world applications that benefit our economy and society.”
Green by design
The Rimouski facility operates on 99% renewable energy and delivers three times greater energy efficiency than industry average. Its natural cooling systems reduce water consumption by over 75%, demonstrating how advanced compute facilities can combine environmental sustainability with large-scale AI capabilities.
“It’s very good to see both the public sector and large enterprises embracing the need for sovereign cloud and AI systems,” notes Benjamin Bergen of the Council of Canadian Innovators.
With Rimouski now live and further expansion planned in Kamloops, Telus is positioning sovereign AI data centres at the heart of Canada’s digital economy, ensuring security, sovereignty and scalability for the future.
