Kamloops may not be the first city that comes to mind when you think of cutting-edge artificial intelligence, but that’s about to change.
This week at Web Summit Vancouver, Bell Canada unveiled Bell AI Fabric, a national initiative to build Canada’s largest AI computing network—and its first node is opening next month in Kamloops.
The Kamloops facility will anchor Bell’s AI Fabric rollout, serving as both a technological and philosophical blueprint for what Bell calls a “sovereign” AI future. The choice of Kamloops over more traditional tech hubs such as Calgary or Toronto is no accident.
“Kamloops has everything: abundant clean hydro power, high fiber density, low cost of living, and an academic partner in TRU that’s ready to collaborate,” said Dan Rink, President of AI Infrastructure at Bell.
The city sits at a critical junction of Canada’s digital and physical infrastructure. As Rink explained during a press conference, Kamloops benefits from its position on the national fiber backbone and proximity to multiple hydroelectric dams. This means low-latency connections and dependable access to some of the cleanest power on the planet—key factors for powering high-performance AI inference and training.
The centre’s first tenant will be Groq, a Silicon Valley-based company known for its energy-efficient inference chips. According to Groq COO Sunny Madra, the company was drawn to Canada’s clean energy, strong developer community, and growing interest in data sovereignty.
“Our Kamloops deployment lets us offer low-latency, sovereign AI compute to the 1.6 million developers already using Groq’s global cloud—many of whom are Canadian,” said Madra.
Bell’s facility is also doubling as a sustainability showcase. Built with BC-sourced mass timber and designed for ultra-high efficiency, the data centre will share its waste heat with Thompson Rivers University’s (TRU) district energy system, supporting the university’s goal of becoming net-zero.
“The data centre won’t just process AI models—it’ll literally heat the campus,” said Rink.
The project forms part of a broader national plan. Bell is evaluating future data centre sites in Manitoba, Ontario, and Quebec, each tied to a local energy grid and institutional partner. But the company made it clear: British Columbia is the launchpad.
“Eric Schmidt once said B.C. is one of the best places in the world to build AI,” said Rink. “With our infrastructure and partnerships, we’re proving him right.”
As Canada accelerates its digital transformation, Bell’s investment signals a bold bet that the next generation of AI innovation can—and should—be rooted in clean power, local control, and regional collaboration. Kamloops is just the beginning.
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