Premier endorses call for servers, data centres to be built in Manitoba

ManitobaThe Manitoba government is looking at having more data storage and cloud computing infrastructure based in the province, following recommendations in a new report on the future of innovation and technology.Recommendations made in report on future of innovation and technologySteve Lambert · The Canadian Press · Posted: Oct 31, 2025 7:39 PM EDT | Last Updated: 3 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 3 minutesAn aerial view of a data centre in Frankfurt, Germany. Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew says tech infrastructure like this will become more common in the province. (Michael Probst/The Associated Press)The Manitoba government plans to build more data storage infrastructure in the province so people rely less on storage and cloud-computing services offered by Google, Microsoft and other companies based in the United States, Premier Wab Kinew said Friday.”You’ll see servers and data centres in Manitoba in the future,” Kinew told reporters.”The idea is we need that capacity here at home to power the next generation of our Manitoba economy.”Kinew made the remark after releasing a report on the future of innovation and technology in Manitoba. The report was produced by a group of data experts led by entrepreneur Jim Balsillie, former CEO of Research in Motion.The report says the province needs to avoid being overly reliant on private networks and platforms such as those owned by U.S. tech giants that could be subject to steep price increases in the future.Kinew said greater domestic capacity would also help protect privacy and ensure data is subject to Canadian laws instead of foreign ones.”Your government, with your health information … with any number of important sets of data, how do we keep that safe?” Kinew said in a speech to the Manitoba Chambers of Commerce.”How do we keep your privacy, so that our kids and grandkids will be able to develop as individuals and have that freedom to express themselves in a way that is truly free in the future of our society? “Well, it probably means that we should stop sending all of our information south of the border.”The report contains more than a dozen recommendations, including ensuring research and intellectual property at post-secondary institutions benefit the local economy.”Stronger linkages between universities, industry and government … are needed to ensure that taxpayer-funded investments into research are translated into domestic ownership, commercial outcomes and high-value jobs,” the report says.It also says boosting hydroelectric connectivity to other provinces would help Crown-owned Manitoba Hydro power the infrastructure needed in an economy that includes artificial intelligence.The report also calls for skill development in fields such as artificial intelligence and research and development, so companies with cutting-edge and high-paying jobs are attracted to and stay in Manitoba.