Thank you, Mr. Chair and members of the committee. We appreciate the opportunity to appear before you today to contribute to the study regarding the implications of artificial intelligence technologies for the Canadian labour force.
SAP is a software technology application enterprise with long-standing operations in Canada spanning over 30 years. We work with organizations of all sizes across the public and private sectors to enable them to become part of a network of intelligent and sustainable enterprises.
Our secure and trusted technologies run integrated AI-powered business processes in the cloud. More specifically, our applications cover enterprise resource planning, human resources and procurement and finance management, including travel and expense claims.
SAP is a global enterprise present in 140 countries, with Canadian operations of strategic importance. We contribute $1.5 billion annually to the Canadian GDP and have a total of 7,000 jobs in our ecosystem from coast to coast to coast. Our innovation labs where our R and D is conducted are located Montreal, Waterloo and Vancouver.
We understand that Canada's labour force today is confronted by the fast-paced evolution of AI technology, and workers are increasingly faced with a series of complex decisions related to implementation and training as organizations are evolving within this new digital era. As AI is increasingly used to automate decisions that have a significant impact on people's lives, health and safety, we recognize that governments have an important role to play in promoting innovation while safeguarding public interest.
Concerns, which we hope to discuss as a part of our testimony today, are common and are often overlooked practices associated with a general lack of AI integration, which we have seen impact many industries, including Canada's public sector. For example, I'm referring to the use of disconnected or complex legacy systems across organizations, outdated manual processes, limited interoperability and few end-to-end processes across human capital management functionalities. When not addressed, these have implications on recruitment, retention and skills training, not to mention the cost associated with the operation such legacy systems.
The boundless potential of generative AI could bolster Canada's economy by $210 billion, greatly boosting Canadian workers' productivity. It's important that organizations seek experienced industry partners that are equipped to guide operations and organizations through their digital transformations, leveraging technologies like AI to level up the workforce. At SAP, we see that potential and opportunity to unlock productivity and value across our economic sectors. For example, AI can address some of the top workforce challenges of our times from recruiting and training to increasing employee engagement and retention.
I'll run through a few examples. Recruiting AI software can remove unconscious biases in job descriptions. Recruiting automation can lighten the administrative burden by automating the delivery and receipt of necessary documents. Specialized AI-enabled training is interactive; it's continuously learning and adapting to each worker's learning style, whether it's visual, auditory or written. AI analytics, specifically sentiment analytics, can identify how workers are feeling. AI performance analytics allow managers to extract bias-free insights from continuous real-time assessments via multiple sources.
Another area where technology can support is accessibility. Software solutions can enable the inclusion of members of the disability community into today's workforce. As a co-founding member of the ministerial advisory board that established the Canadian business disability network, SAP advocates for the acceleration of the adoption of technologies that embed tools like AI to onboard members of the disability community into today's workforce.
Canada's potential in this space is vibrant and remains globally competitive, with a diverse AI ecosystem that attracts more AI talent and brings more women into AI-related roles than all of our G7 peers.
The high concentration of talent in Canada contributes to a rising volume of AI patents filed nationally and the highest number of AI publications per capita in 2022. It is even more important that public policy favour retention of top AI talent in this country to uphold our competitive edge and support sustained innovation.
The impact of AI to Canada's labour force remains undeniable, and public policy must allow for better digital integration with Canada's industrial base to strengthen our local ecosystem that is inclusive of SMEs, minority-owned businesses and indigenous businesses.
Mr. Chair, thank you. I'm happy to take questions.