NEWSBYTE Etsy, the ecommerce website that focuses on handmade or vintage items, is opening its third machine learning centre, and its first in Canada. It is expected to open this autumn. The US-based company already has machine learning centres in Brooklyn, New York, and in San Francisco. The aim of the centres is to deepen users and customers' relationship with the retail platform, learning their preferences and the types of item that are offered for sale, creating a smarter and more intuitive system over time. "Etsy is dedicated to creating opportunities for creative entrepreneurs across Canada, and the addition of the Machine Learning Center of Excellence will deepen Etsy's roots in Toronto's robust tech community," said Mike Fisher, Etsy CTO.

E-commerce company Etsy announced today that it will open a new artificial intelligence research and development center in Toronto, Canada. The company broke the news yesterday during a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in New York City. Etsy's third Machine Learning Center of Excellence, which follows on the heels of its Brooklyn and San Francisco locations, will play host to leading figures from local universities and Toronto's "deep pool of world-class machine learning talent," according to a statement. It will also aid in the company's efforts to recruit machine learning engineers. According to Etsy, the Canadian e-commerce market's growth was a deciding factor.