Black in AI Canada
A national Black-led capacity strengthening intermediary organization bringing together Black researchers, practitioners, policymakers, legal experts, community organizers & advocates to shape a Canadian AI ecosystem that works for Black communities.
The Gap
Canada has positioned itself as a global leader in artificial intelligence, with world-class research institutes, a national AI strategy and significant public investment. What it does not have is a dedicated national organization ensuring that Black Canadians are meaningfully represented in building, governing and shaping that future.
The consequences are visible. AI systems deployed in Canadian public policy, policing, immigration, healthcare, social services and other areas of life produce documented disparate outcomes for Black communities. Canada’s AI governance conversations proceed without the structural presence of Black expertise.
Black in AI Canada exists to change that
By the Numbers
Less than 2% of AI leadership positions in Canada are held by African, Caribbean, and Black (ACB) Canadians, despite representing 4.3% of the population.
Less than 1% of venture capital for AI startups reaches Black-founded companies in Canada.
Our Approach: Seven Domains. One Council. National Reach.
Black in AI Canada is structured around the full landscape of AI: research and technology, policy, governance, law, ethics, and the adoption decisions that determine how AI actually affects communities. We convene Black expertise across all seven domains.
AI Research
Applied AI
AI Safety
AI Ethics and Critical Studies
AI Policy and Governance
AI and Law
AI Adoption
Community voice and lived experience is woven through every domain.
Structure: National Advisory Council
A founding council of Black experts: researchers, practitioners, policymakers, legal scholars, and community organizers & advocates drawn from across Canada and representative of the seven domains of the AI landscape.
One seat per domain, ensuring the full landscape is represented across research, practice, policy, law and ethics.
National representation, with members from across Canada reflecting regional diversity.
Mixed expertise, bringing academics, practitioners, policymakers, and legal experts to the same table.
Community accountability, rooted in Black Canadian communities and the people most affected by AI systems.
Programming: Domain-Led Action
Each domain area will develop programming suited to its community and context. Early directions include:
Research and Talent: Connecting Black students with AI research opportunities and mentorship at Canadian institutes.
Policy and Advocacy: Coordinated submissions to federal and provincial AI consultations; policy briefs centring Black Canadian communities.
Community Education: AI literacy programming designed for and with Black communities; accessible and culturally grounded.
Legal and Rights: Supporting legal challenges to AI discrimination; connecting affected individuals with resources.
Convening and Network: Annual national gathering; working groups; peer connections across domains and regions.
Distinctly Canadian
Black in AI (US) is a global inspiration. Canadian AI policy, Canadian institutions, Canadian legal frameworks, and the specific experiences of Black communities in Canada, including African, Caribbean, and Black Canadians from across the diaspora, require a dedicated national presence. Canada’s federal AI strategy, its federal and provincial human rights codes, its distinct systems, its national research institutes, and its private and public sector all require engagement that only a Canadian organization can provide.