Montreal

Samsung latest company to set up AI lab in Montreal

The laboratory is a collaboration with Yoshua Bengio, a computer science professor at Université de Montréal and an AI researcher.

'Another signal that Montreal is becoming a hub for artificial intelligence,' star prof Yoshua Bengio says

Computer science professor Yoshua Bengio poses at his home in Montreal. (Graham Hughes/Canadian Press)

Montreal has added another major player to its roster of companies investing in artificial intelligence research.

Samsung confirmed Monday it has opened a lab at the Université de Montréal.

The laboratory, which has been open since August, is a collaboration with Yoshua Bengio, a computer science professor at the university and an AI researcher.

It will focus on developing core algorithms for use in robotics, autonomous driving, translations, and voice and visual recognition.

In an interview, Bengio said the collaboration with Samsung dates back to 2014, but there will now be a larger research team.

"It's another signal that Montreal is becoming a hub for artificial intelligence, not just at the university level but at the industry level," he said.

"I think there will probably be more announcements to come."

Facebook, Google and Microsoft have also recently established AI research teams in the city.

With files from Radio-Canada