At the end of May of 2025, the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce announced the AI x Construction Engineering Strategy—a powerful collaboration between AI and construction leaders to solve real-world challenges in housing, infrastructure and innovation.

The initiative, which has been built by over 20 partners across industry, education, and government, is about more than growth. It’s about creating new jobs for Albertans, as well as building better, faster, and more sustainably for future generations of Canadians. The Construction Innovation Centre at the University of Alberta was recognized during the press release as a key enabler of this initiative, with Carry Steel’s general manager Jim Kanerva, a member of both the CIC’s Strategic Advisory Committee and Executive Management Committee, stepping forward to provide information about the University of Alberta’s many contributions to the sphere of Construction Engineering in Edmonton.

The strategic goals of the initiative include advancing and sustaining Edmonton’s advantage through leadership and collaboration, developing a future-ready workforce for innovation and productivity, building and activating infrastructure to accelerate adoption, expanding capital access and scaling high-growth companies, and establishing Edmonton as the global hub for AI x CE research and innovation excellence.

Edmonton Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Doug Griffiths is quoted as saying that: “If we want to address labour shortages, stagnant productivity, housing delays and global competitiveness, we can’t wait for change. We have to address this together. This strategy lays the foundation, but it’s up to all of us, builders, tech leaders, engineers, tradespeople, researchers, and yes, government as well, to take the next step.”

Although concrete timelines and investment costs have not yet been revealed, the strategic plan document that the Chamber of Commerce has released outlines first steps as establishing an Artificial Intelligence and Construction Engineering (AI x CE) cluster organization comprised of industry and affiliated professionals to guide development of the hub, which the chamber has offered to house at its office. Following this step, the group will aim to secure operating support from various levels of government, followed by the establishment of an AI x CE venture lab to foster collaboration and innovation in the field to be housed at Edmonton Unlimited.

Edmonton’s AI x CE Cluster has been described as a “collaborative group of companies, suppliers, service providers, and institutions in the Edmonton region working together to solve the [construction] industry’s major challenges and build competitive advantages”. The driving force behind the initiative is to allow Edmonton-based companies to compete and win in the global marketplace, gaining a unique advantage by coming together to work on technology-based solutions aimed at creating competitive advantages for organizations in the Edmonton area.

According to the release circulated by the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, the initiative’s vision is to make Edmonton the global leader in construction engineering innovation, “offering unparalleled economic advantages to businesses, professionals, and trades based in Alberta”. And the mission for the AI x CE Cluster is to “promote innovation and collaboration between industrial and technology companies to advance economic growth, solve industry challenges, and create unique advantages for those located in the Edmonton region.”

The full document detailing the strategy can be found here: https://www.edmontonchamber.com/assets/pdf/AIxCEStrategyDigital/

A recording of the press release can be found on the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce’s Instagram account here: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DKNIXtOA4ca/?utm_source=ig_web_button_share_sheet

The Edmonton Journal’s article on the new strategy can be found here: https://edmontonjournal.com/news/edmonton-aims-to-create-an-ai-and-construction-engineering-cluster