Things might all appear chaotic and unstable in the world right now, but Alberta is proving to be a bedrock of economic activity in Canada. The province may only be home to around 12% of Canada's population, but it accounted for 15.4% of GDP in 2023. Quite what is going to happen to the world's economy as a result of Trump's tariff turmoil is anyone's guess, but with a strong digital economy, Alberta might weather the storm better than other regions.
Canada's productivity has been trailing that of other countries, but Alberta has invested in the digital transformation and could be the poster boy (or girl) of what might be achievable for the nation if policymakers and industries follow suit. It is about investment and innovation. The province's productivity rates were way above the national average, and its information and technology (ICT) sector was among the most productive.
Resilience and innovation
The province has demonstrated real resilience and continues to be one of the country's key contributors to economic growth. It is one of Canada's most productive regions. While the oil and gas industry continues to be the key driver of economic output, the Albertan government has been keen to diversify as, sooner or later, the energy transition will diminish that sector. This has led to high-value technology-intensive industries receiving investment and support.
Alberta's digital economy has been transformed in recent years, and significant growth has occurred in all sectors. Over 60,000 jobs have been created, and the sector employs a third more people than before the pandemic. While the push has been to move reliance away from oil and gas, environmental campaigners have expressed concern that the digital economy can also be incredibly power-hungry if not developed in a sustainable manner.
Data centres and resources
Data centres need water, digital infrastructure and electricity. Canada has the advantage that its cold climate means less cooling is required, and up to 85% of Canadian electricity is renewable and non-emitting. However, Alberta has been focusing on luring IT giants based on the near-term electricity supply powered by a combination of new gas and renewable power plants.
Amazon has invested in a major data centre in Calgary to establish a cloud computing hub in the region. Montreal-based eStruxtures Data Centres are building a new $750-million AI facility in Rocky View County. Alberta has a deregulated electricity sector, meaning developers can negotiate directly with the private generators like Capital Power or TransAlta to tailor electricity supply solutions.
Artificial Intelligence is everywhere
Data centres and AI processes are becoming vital to almost every industry. Delegates at recent conferences covering industries from online gambling to communications, risk management and fashion all reported that there were more round-tables on AI than just about anything else. It all has a bit of a feeling of the Metaverse hype of a few years back. How can anyone forget how we were all going to be doing everything in an alternative world, running around but without any legs?
However, AI and digital services are much less alien, and many of us already use them without necessarily even realizing it. It is integrated into most online platforms and services.
Industries grounded in a digital world
Some industries are entirely digital and would not exist without data centres, cloud computing, IT and electronics—online entertainment and casinos are a case in point.
Canadians are voracious gamblers and love to play online slots or take a punt on the outcome of a sports fixture. Compared to other nations, a very high proportion of Canadians engage in gambling activities. Alberta is now looking to open its gambling market to commercial companies to regulate the industry and capture revenue which is currently flowing out of the province. A regulated market helps keep players safe as only reputable operators, like those reviewed and recommended on Casino.org Alberta, will be granted a license.
Putting their money on a regulated market
Alberta had hoped to get its commercial gambling market operational last year but encountered a few problems. While it was keen to replicate Ontario's successful model, it had some unique issues to overcome. Ontario had simply wanted to bring all players over from offshore sites to its new regulated market. Alberta already had a regulated gambling website but wanted to introduce commercial operators without cannibalizing the one run by the Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission, which already delivered welcome revenue to the provincial coffers.
New legislation had to be drafted in an attempt to bring more players to the hybrid legal system and add consumer protections. The goal is to add self-exclusion and gambling harm avoidance tools and keep the gambling revenues, according to Dale Nally – Alberta's Red Tape Reduction Minister. The legislation, tabled in March called the iGaming Alberta Act, would create a new corporation. Alberta's iGaming corporation would be a market overseer, with the ALGC in charge of regulation.
Nally says they are doing this due to popular demand from citizens keen to see something modelled on the Ontario system. Nally said,
"Albertans have said to us, why don't you do the same here? Why don't you put in place safety measures? Why don't you stop the money from leaving the province, and keep some of it in Alberta?"
While he acknowledges that gambling always contains risk, he wants to reduce it as much as possible. Online digital gambling is potentially more risky than its land-based counterpart because some websites never had any intention of being anything other than scam sites. Those will almost certainly try and continue to market their "services" to Albertans, but they should be much easier to spot.
Keeping the faith
Whatever storms are raging with tariffs and trade, Alberta's Premier has welcomed the pause in their immediate imposition. However, there is still concern that many workers and businesses of all sizes are going to feel the pain. Opposition leaders have been quick to point out on social media that tariffs are not good for Canada or the world.
Article edited by Jerry Chen