Canadians can sign up for the government's free AI basics course

The Canadian government has announced a new, no-cost course to teach the general public about Artificial Intelligence (AI), what it can do, and how it will affect them. Named the National AI Literacy Initiative, the initiative will offer three courses: one for teachers, one for post-secondary students, and one for all Canadians. The federal government said the teacher course will “provide K-12 educators with practical training and classroom-ready resources, with five additional chapters to be released throughout the fall.” According to the federal government, the course geared toward post-secondary students is designed to help them understand the technology and “use it confidently and responsibly while building foundational AI knowledge and workplace readiness skills.” The third course, dubbed Essentials for Canadians, will be available through Employment and Social Development Canada’s national Training Finder in its Job Bank and through community partners yet to be announced. Interestingly, the government has provided $13 million to launch the three free courses in partnership with the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute and expand them to every Canadian who wants access. According to CBC News, the courses will not be led by an instructor, and participants can work through the course modules at their own pace. The course for post-secondary students is also designed to take about three hours to complete. The course will first be available to teachers and post-secondary students starting Sept. 21. You might also like: - Eligible Canadians will get these government payments this week - WestJet Rewards members have a new way to rack up points - Telus confirms 'unauthorized access' to some customers' personal information