Doubling Canadian AI Compute
Bell Canada Partners with Cohere to Double AI Compute for Sovereign Models
Key Points
BUZZ HPC is described as delivering cloud computing using Canadian-manufactured Hypertec hardware “as well as accelerated-computing technology from Nvidia,” specifically citing “NVIDIA’s DSX AI platform” as part of the compute stack.
Bell tied the Merritt expansion to concrete monetization targets: it aims for “$2-billion in revenue from its AI services by 2028,” plans to monetize “373 megawatts of power” (with ambitions to expand to “800 megawatts in the long-term”), and is investing in related areas including “cybersecurity and consulting arms.”
Bell CEO Mirko Bibic explicitly framed the project as helping Canada address a gap identified in Ottawa’s AI strategy, saying: “If we want to be less dependent on frontier AI models from elsewhere, we ought to be supporting the frontier AI model being built and developed right here at home.” The report also links the push to recent U.S. actions: the U.S. government directed Anthropic to prevent foreign nationals from accessing its “most capable” models, “Fable and Mythos.”
Bloomberg adds operating details on the delivery chain: “a division of Hive Digital Technologies” (BUZZ/Hive unit) will provide the AI cloud services using Hypertec hardware, while Cohere will use the compute to run models serving “government and business customers.”
Bell Canada has signed a landmark deal with AI firm Cohere, cloud provider BUZZ HPC, and hardware maker Hypertec to build a sovereign AI computing platform in Merritt, British Columbia. The partnership will deploy 2,304 NVIDIA Grace Blackwell GPUs at Bell's Merritt data center, with capacity set to double by early 2027, according to The Province.
Bell CEO Mirko Bibic framed the deal as a direct response to Canada's vulnerability to U.S. tech restrictions. "If we want to be less dependent on frontier AI models from elsewhere, we ought to be supporting the frontier AI model being built and developed right here at home," he said, per Castanet.
U.S. Model Ban Triggered Canada's Sovereign AI Push
The deal was accelerated by a U.S. government directive in June 2026. Washington ordered AI company Anthropic to cut off foreign access to its most capable models, "Fable" and "Mythos," citing national security concerns. Because Anthropic could not separate U.S. from foreign users in real time, Canadian enterprises lost access overnight. The episode exposed how dependent Canada had become on American AI infrastructure, according to Head Topics.
Federal AI Minister Evan Solomon defined the project's goal as building a digital economy that "someone else can't decide to turn off." Canada's 2024–2025 federal budget had already earmarked $2.4 billion for AI, including a mandate for sovereign compute — physical computing resources controlled domestically.
How the Four Partners Split the Work
Each partner plays a distinct role. Bell supplies the data-center space and connectivity through its Bell AI Fabric network. BUZZ HPC — a division of HIVE Digital Technologies — manages cloud services using Canadian-made Hypertec servers and NVIDIA's DSX AI platform. Cohere then runs its large language models on top of that hardware, serving government and business customers, per Castanet.
BUZZ HPC's parent company, HIVE Digital, spent USD $220 million to procure the NVIDIA hardware over a three-year contract. The Merritt facility launched in March 2026 with 6.5 megawatts of capacity. The expansion targets higher-density AI workloads — the kind needed to run large models in full production, not just testing, according to The Province.
Bell's $2 Billion AI Revenue Target by 2028
Bell is betting big on AI as a revenue engine. During Q1 2026 earnings, CEO Bibic raised the company's AI revenue target from $1.5 billion to $2 billion by 2028, citing a "deep pipeline" of customer interest. Bell posted a $616 million profit in Q1 2026 despite heavy spending on AI Fabric, according to Head Topics.
The company plans to monetize 373 megawatts of power for AI workloads, with a long-term goal of reaching 800 megawatts. It is also investing in cybersecurity and consulting to round out its AI services. HIVE Digital expects its share of the deal to add $70 million in annual recurring revenue.
Critics Question Whether "Sovereign" AI Is Really Sovereign
Not everyone is convinced the platform delivers true sovereignty. Technology advisor Ritesh Kotak noted in a CBC interview that while the data stays on Canadian soil, the chips still come from NVIDIA — a U.S. company. He argued that "true" sovereignty would require domestically made silicon, which Canada does not yet produce, per Castanet Kamloops.
Labor advocates raised a separate concern. Bell announced roughly 690 job cuts just days before the deal was revealed, following nearly 4,800 layoffs in 2024. Unions argue that Bell's $2 billion AI ambition is being built on the back of a shrinking workforce, even as the company promotes the deal as an engine of job creation.
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