Mitacs recently asked two leading experts to talk about the intersection of artificial intelligence and clean technology. Ivette Vera-Perez is the Team Lead for Mitacs's Account Management group with expertise in clean technology. Ivette serves on the board of directors of the Ontario Clean Technologies Industry Association (OCTIA).Tibor Turi is the executive director of SOSCIP, a consortium of academic and industry members that supports collaborative research projects through partnership-building services and access to leading-edge advanced computing platforms. Tibor: The current state of AI serving cleantech is both exploratory and operational. It is exploratory because cleantech and AI are both interested in solving critical real-world problems that push researchers and entrepreneurs right to the very edge of innovation.

Canada's Liberal government is picking six industrial sectors, led by clean technology, to foster innovation and jobs in an economy that's has been relying on commodities to drive growth. Support will be focused on clean tech, digital, advanced manufacturing, bio-sciences and clean resources, according to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's second budget released in Ottawa on Wednesday. As part of the effort, the government will consolidate its corporate support programs into one fund and contribute C$400 million ($299 million) in additional venture-capital funding through the country's development bank. "We need to focus on our strengths - areas where we can lead globally and create good jobs for Canadians," Finance Minister Bill Morneau said in his budget speech to lawmakers, according to prepared remarks. Innovation, along with infrastructure, is at the center of Trudeau's efforts to develop a growth agenda that could help bolster support for a deficit-spending plan that will see the country's debt rise C$143 billion over six years.