Ahhh, perfect.

Virtual Reality ( YouTube: St. Albert Proposed LRT)

Augmented Reality ( Wikimedia Commons, User: Klugem)

Though a rather nebulous term, the 'high-tech' sector has kept strong in Alberta despite a slow economy. The two fields driving this strong industry in Alberta are video games and artificial intelligence.

The most exciting emerging technology in the province comes in the advancement of artificial intelligence. AI has widespread practical applications that are certain to revolutionize the global economy and change human life on a large scale, from self-driving cars to machine learning. The Financial Post has acclaimed Alberta as a world leader in AI, thanks in large part to the research being done by Richard Sutton at the University of Alberta in Edmonton. Sutton is the pre-eminent authority on reinforcement learning - a type of AI that learns by trial and error, making it attractive for ad and article placement, or schedule and resources management. As a result of Sutton's research, and the forecast that global demand for AI will reach USD 45 Trillion by 2025, businesses are moving quickly to catch the wave. RBC is funding a new AI research lab in downtown Edmonton, and new startups are already starting to appear under the banner of the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute, chaired by Sutton. Advanced Artificial Intelligence has many applications, and could be used to ameliorate efficiency in your business. Further, the intake of multi-national corporations into the Capital Region presents opportunities across many industries to share in this success.

The video game business has had roots in our province for some time, with industry giant Bioware headquartered in Edmonton. Although the comparatively cheap labour offered by South Asian counterparts has effected the labour force's lower end, shifting some of the game development out of the region, creative components still largely take place here and the number of workers employed in the industry has grown to around 20,000 according to ATB. With video games rapidly gaining steam as the preferred form of entertainment for younger generations, video games and their development present a host of economic opportunities for our province- and the opportunity to get in at a relatively early stage in the industry (the first video game ever, a precursor of Pong, is not yet 60 years old). Video gaming seems poised to hit an entirely new level with the rapid increase in virtual/augmented reality technology, and could see an entirely new wave of developers and producers to accompany this exciting new technology.

Capitalizing on a poor office renting environment, Calgary and Edmonton look poised and ready to target large software companies seeking to diversify their American offices and put boots on the ground closer to these local industries.  

 

Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) or "drones" are a classic example of an industry that is growing faster than it can be regulated. With the recent advances in small, low-power computer processors, the technology for creating cost-effective commercial grade UAVs finally reached a tipping point around about five years ago. Since then, the number of UAVs sold for recreational purposes has increased rapidly every year.

With an industry experiencing growth on this scale, Canadian regulatory bodies are having a difficult time keeping pace. Currently, Transport Canada regulates the operation of UAVs, with different guidelines for recreational versus commercial fliers. To operate a drone at all in Canada, a number of guidelines must be met, concerning maximum altitudes, minimum distances from people and roads, and communications with local aviation navigation bodies such as Nav Canada. However, uncertainty around what constitutes a "recreational" versus a "commercial" flight, and lack of public understanding of the rules and regulations is causing issues for both legal UAV operators and governments. There is no professional association or designation required to purchase and operate a UAV in Canada, so there is a bit of a "wild west" mentality about the industry.

The potential of UAVs for industrial applications is almost unlimited, especially in large, low-density countries such as Canada. In Canada, UAVs are used by farmers to survey crops and pinpoint exact areas requiring attention. UAVs outfitted with infrared cameras can also be used by emergency services detachments to find missing persons in rural areas. In the government sector, UAVs can be used for land-use planning, marketing and promotional material, public works inspections, fire fighting optimization; the list goes on. Real estate and advertising are two other industries that have seen an increase in adoption of UAV services. Locally, there are several UAV companies that provide a variety of safe, professional aerial photography services. Elevated Robotic Services is a St. Albert company providing aerial photography for oil and gas, marketing, utilities, and construction industries. SmartDrones is another local St. Albert UAV company that caught international attention in 2016 when it shot footage for the blockbuster X-Men: Apocalypse movie. A recent forecast by Fractovia estimates the North American UAV industry will exceed USD 1 billion by 2023, which should give some indication of the value that can be provided if this market can be grown safely and effectively. For early adopters of this technology, the benefits should be great as the industry expands and matures.