Ontario Tech University AI Forum puts trust at the centre of Canada’s AI future

OSHAWA, ONTARIO — Today, Ontario Tech University brought together more than 200 leaders from academia, the business community, public policy and the next generation of skilled workers for its inaugural AI Forum, where speakers focused on a question shaping Canada’s future: how to build artificial intelligence (AI) systems people can trust.

Held under the theme Building Trust: The Strategic Advantage of Human-Centred AI, the forum positioned Ontario Tech as a leading academic voice in the national conversation about AI. The event examined how organizations can use AI to improve productivity, support growth and strengthen communities while keeping people, accountability and public confidence at the centre of the conversation.

“As Canada’s AI agenda continues to evolve, universities have an important role to play in advancing these conversations,” said Dr. Steven Murphy, President and Vice-Chancellor, Ontario Tech University. “This forum marked the first of many critically important generational conversations that will shape our society, economy and world.”

The forum reflected Ontario Tech’s broader leadership in the AI field. The university recently launched the School of AI and the Mindful Artificial Intelligence Research Institute (MAIRI), advancing talent development and research in this rapidly evolving space. The School of AI prepares students through interdisciplinary programs that build the knowledge and perspective needed to design and apply AI, while MAIRI brings together more than 50 researchers and partners across academia, industry and the community to explore its real-world applications and impacts of AI. Ontario Tech is also piloting an in-house AI Learning Agent in undergraduate and graduate courses, with a focus on trust, accountability and academic integrity.

Speakers and panelists examined how Canada can move from broad discussions about AI potential to practical action on governance, ethics and implementation. Throughout the event, they returned to a shared message: rather than slowing innovation, trust enables it.

Dr. Hossein Rahnama’s keynote, Perspective-Aware AI and the Rise of Human-AI Agents, explored how AI can work alongside people by understanding human perspectives and augmenting, rather than replacing, human capability. This people-first approach carried through the forum’s discussions on trustworthy AI, and AI across education and Canada’s critical energy sector, where speakers examined governance guardrails, workforce preparation, sustainability and the infrastructure demands created by AI systems that require significant computing power.

A keynote from Dr. Peter Lewis, Canada Research Chair in Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence and Director of MAIRI, reinforced the forum’s central argument by challenging audiences to think more carefully about what it means to trust AI and how that trust should shape the systems now being designed and deployed.

By convening diverse perspectives across disciplines, the forum demonstrated that AI is as much a human issue as a technological one, raising important questions for leadership, values and public confidence. The AI Forum reflects the university’s broader role as a connector and catalyst, bridging research, policy and practice to ensure AI is developed and deployed in ways that benefit society.

As AI continues to evolve, Ontario Tech remains committed to leading with a human-centred approach, one that ensures innovation is guided by what is possible and responsible.

Ontario Tech University is Canada’s leader in responsible AI innovation. Discover more at ontariotechu.ca/ai.

Media contact:
Patricia Pickett
Communications Specialist
Ontario Tech University
news@ontariotechu.ca
905.809.1675