Enabling the Defence Team for an AI-driven future

June 05 , 2026 - Defence Stories

Estimated read time: 2:08

Military organizations around the world are undergoing a profound transformation as Artificial Intelligence (AI) reshapes how defence capabilities are developed and applied. Harnessing AI responsibly - at speed and scale - is essential for the Defence Team to maintain operational advantage in an increasingly complex and evolving environment.

Canada brings significant strengths to the defence AI landscape, including clear policy direction, a growing industrial vision, sovereign capability frameworks, and globally recognized expertise in frontier technologies.

Building on this foundation, the Defence Team established the DND/CAF AI Centre within the Digital Services Group (DSG) to help translate these strengths into operational impact.

Setting the direction: Responsible and scalable AI adoption

The DND/CAF AI Centre was established in the summer of 2024 to execute the Department's AI Strategy and provide enterprise-wide direction for AI adoption.

While AI initiatives had already begun to emerge across the organization, scaling these efforts in a meaningful way required stronger coordination. The AI Centre was created to provide that focus - aligning efforts, reducing duplication, and accelerating the transition from experimentation to operational use.

Through a coordinated, department-wide approach, the AI Centre is evolving to enable and govern the strategic adoption of AI across the Defence Team. Through established governance aligned with legal, ethical, and policy requirements.

Navigating barriers

The Centre provides enterprise guidance, responsible AI frameworks, and targeted support to help teams navigate barriers to AI adoption and advance implementation.

The Centre's core areas of focus include:

• Promoting the responsible and effective use of AI
• Enabling innovation and experimentation
• Strengthening risk management practices
• Building foundational AI literacy across the workforce

The AI Centre is strengthening AI awareness, literacy, and adoption across the Defence Team. This work is informed by ongoing engagement with partners in government, academia, industry, and allied defence organizations - positioning the Defence Team to remain connected to emerging opportunities and best practices.

Digital readiness: Preparing the Defence Team for the future

The Centre is developing and sharing AI playbooks, tools, case studies, governance frameworks, implementation guidance, and enterprise mechanisms - including the AI Project Inventory - to promote reuse, reduce duplication, strengthen oversight, and accelerate capability delivery across the enterprise. The AI Centre also convenes collaboration and knowledge-sharing initiatives, including the annual AI in Defence Conference, to help connect operational needs with emerging AI capabilities, lessons learned, and best practices across the Defence Team and allied partners.

Canada's strong foundation in AI positions the Defence Team to advance its digital readiness for modern operations. Through the DND/CAF AI Centre, the adoption of trusted, operationally ready AI capabilities that enhance decision-making and strengthen force effectiveness is being accelerated.

As AI continues to reshape the defence landscape, the DND/CAF AI Centre plays a central role in translating innovation into operational advantage - responsibly, securely, and at scale.

Defence Team members are encouraged to explore available resources on the AI Centre SharePoint site for guidance, tools, and support related to the responsible adoption of AI in their work.