OTTAWA — The CEOs of several tech startups and a group of prominent researchers are calling for Parliament to move forward with the federal government’s proposed artificial intelligence law. 

Their open letter, published Tuesday, comes with the legislation scheduled to be debated again this week—and as it faces growing criticism from industry and digital-rights groups.

Innovation Minister François-Philippe Champagne tabled Bill C-27 last June. In addition to replacing the country’s two-decade-old consumer privacy law, the legislation would usher in a new Artificial Intelligence and Data Act (AIDA). If enacted, the law would set requirements for people developing and deploying “high impact” systems to try to address “risks of harm and biased output.”

The letter calls for MPs to “strongly and urgently support” AIDA. Mila, a Montreal-based AI institute backed by the Université de Montréal (UdeM) and McGill University, circulated it. At the time this story was published, the letter had 78 signatories included technology company CEOs Nicole Janssen (AltaML), Humera Malik (Canvass AI), Sébastien Mailhot (D-Box Technologies) and Charles Deguire (Kinova Robotics). Several professors from University of Alberta and UdeM are also listed, as are partners at the law firm BLG and executives at the Responsible AI Institute and California-based ServiceNow.

“The pace at which AI is developing now requires timely action,” the letter states, warning that unless “parties work collaboratively to adopt AIDA before the summer, we are looking at significant delays before we have a regulatory framework that guides companies and protects Canadians.” That would leave the country “drastically out-of-sync with the speed at which the technology is being developed and deployed.”

Ottawa’s proposal has faced significant pushback. Executives at startups developing AI systems and large firms using it have warned that AIDA leaves too many crucial details—such as what constitutes a high-impact system—to future regulations, which they say could stifle innovation and adoption of the technology. Digital rights groups have criticized it as too narrow.

AIDA was put forward without consultation, said Teresa Scassa, a University of Ottawa law professor and a member of Champagne’s AI advisory council. There’s still “a need for public education [and] to build public trust,” she said. Scassa is also concerned that the bill would give responsibility to enforce the law to “the same minister who’s responsible for supporting and encouraging AI innovation.” Canada needs a more robust bill to address the risks of AI, she said.

The letter says AIDA is “directionally sound and successfully balances the protection of Canadians and the imperative for innovation.” It states that by being one of the first countries to pass AI legislation, Canada can “send a strong signal to businesses across the world” that they can develop or buy “trustworthy and responsible AI systems” here. Scassa, who has seen but not signed the letter, counters that there’s no particular need to be first. “​​There aren’t any prizes—it’s not a race,” she said, adding that while Parliament may pass AIDA, the government has said it will take at least another two years to finalize and implement the accompanying regulations. 

Politico first reported Tuesday that a letter backing Bill C-27 was circulating among Ontario and Quebec AI researchers. 

Mila is one of three institutes involved in the Pan-Canadian AI Strategy, a nearly $569-million federal program meant to bring researchers to the country and support commercialization 

The letter comes as some prominent AI and tech leaders urge caution about its evolution and use. Yoshua Bengio, the organization’s scientific director, also signed the letter. As generative tools have gone viral in recent months, Bengio in particular has expressed increasing concern. Last month, he signed a separate open letter from the U.S.-based Future of Life Institute that called for labs to pause training more powerful AI systems for at least six months.

Champagne has tweeted out news reports about Bengio’s concerns and the Future of Life letter, calling for MPs to move forward with AIDA. On Friday, he convened an “emergency meeting” of his AI advisory group, which Bengio co-chairs, in Montreal. “The minister is concerned and has solicited the support of [the] Council on Bill C-27,” a Mila executive wrote in an email seeking signatures for the letter. “The bill is being delayed by technical procedures by the opposition, and is at risk of being pushed back to 2024 if it is not adopted before the summer break.” The Logic obtained the email from a source, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to share it.

That email said the letter’s signatories included Geoffrey Hinton, chief scientific advisor at Toronto’s Vector Institute, as well as the CEOs of major Canadian corporations including National Bank, Cirque du Soleil, Claridge, Novacap and Stingray. However, none of those people are listed on the final version. Hinton—another pioneer of Canada’s AI ecosystem—withdrew from the effort, said Jeremy Gio, a spokesperson representing Mila. “As for other businesses, it was decided to publish a short list of signatories from the immediate AI ecosystem from all across the country.”.

Bill C-27 is scheduled to return to the House of Commons on Thursday for second reading. Committee hearings are the next step in the legislative process.