Sure. To add a bit of context, we have an entire technology stack in what we call our machine learning operations pipeline to be able to take a theoretical algorithm and deploy it in a space-rated embedded system. Along the way, we have to ingest a whole bunch of data, label the data and train the algorithm with that data, etc.
To make that tech stack work, we use a bunch of third party technologies. In this case, we were working with an American firm and its technology to make that happen. When OpenAI acquired it, they basically shut it down because it was a strategic advantage to them. We were left with very little warning and a need to ultimately change how our tech stuff operates. If we'd had the choice of going with a competitive Canadian variant of that technology in terms of cost, I'm sure we would have liked to do that. That then gets back to whether there could there be a Canadian start-up that's doing that piece of this AI tech stack.
As Brian alluded to, the answer is yes, in the sense that with the researchers that come out of AMII, Vector, Mila and our universities, there's this great talent pool. It's not necessarily an AI thing, but the classic thing that we talk about in Canada about how we incentivize a domestic industry to have people stay here and have them start companies, and actually have expats come home. Some of the things we've been seeing recently are good directions towards that, like the defence industrial strategy and accelerated procurement approaches. Those things are going to help make Canadian businesses more competitive, writ large.
Potentially, there could be an AI company that would solve this one piece of our tech stack for us.