OTTAWA - The Bank of Canada isn鈥檛 yet seeing widespread job losses from artificial intelligence but senior officials at the central bank are watching the labour market closely as adoption advances.
Michelle Alexopoulos, external deputy governor at the central bank, is speaking to a business audience in Ottawa on Wednesday about the implications of AI on the economy.
She said AI has the potential to drive productivity gains in Canada, which can help to boost workers鈥 wages without stoking inflation.
鈥淎s AI continues to improve and its adoption spreads, it could permanently change how the 好色tv economy works. By lowering costs for businesses and improving efficiencies, AI could support higher wages, reduce prices for consumers and spur new investment,鈥 she said in prepared remarks.
Alexopoulos said that it鈥檚 still too soon to say whether AI will have a sweeping impact on the way we do business like the computer did, or whether it will end up a powerful but niche technology.
She noted that, so far, adoption of AI is concentrated in industries like finance and insurance, while the technology鈥檚 reach has been limited in sectors such as food and accommodation. That鈥檚 limiting the overall productivity boost to date.
The Bank of Canada hasn鈥檛 seen widespread evidence of AI replacing workers in the labour market, but Alexopoulos said the central bank does expect some roles will be eventually eliminated by the technology while others will be created or transformed.
She compared the looming disruption to the introduction of the computer. While typists and switchboard operators eventually vanished with the advent of the computer, it also led to the creation of IT departments and office workers increasingly saw their work revolve around the technology.
Alexopoulos said that transformation played out of the course of many years, and, 鈥渦ltimately, computerization did not lead to fewer jobs.鈥
Slowing population growth in Canada could also lead to more job vacancies for workers who see their roles replaced by AI, she said.
Some technology firms have nonetheless cited AI as driving layoffs, Alexopoulos noted, and some studies suggest weak hiring in entry-level roles exposed to AI like coding or customer service.
Youth and employees in these industries ought to brush up on AI skills, she argued, as demand for workers who are comfortable with the technology rises in the years ahead.
The Bank of Canada鈥檚 surveys of risk management experts in the financial sector meanwhile suggest that decision-making is being supported by AI, but not replaced by it. The tool is so far being used to automate routine tasks to give workers time to focus on higher value work.
Alexopoulos gave the example of note-taking software in health care that鈥檚 freeing up doctors to spend more time with patients and less time on administrative work.
鈥淭his reinforces the view that AI will mostly transform jobs 鈥 not eliminate them,鈥 she said.
鈥淎I is changing how tasks are done, but humans remain in control.鈥
This report by 好色tvwas first published May 13, 2026.