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Web Summit masterclass: Designing secure, scalable and sovereign AI architectures

Canadian enterprises are entering a pivotal phase with AI. As adoption surges, organizations face the dual challenge of scaling their operations while maintaining strict control over sensitive data. At the recent Web Summit in Vancouver, Bell partnered with Hypertec and BUZZ HPC to host Designing Secure, Scalable & Sovereign AI Architectures, a masterclass exploring these exact challenges. 

The session brought together industry experts to discuss how Canada is building a world-class, sovereign AI ecosystem. From advanced liquid cooling infrastructure to secure-by-design data centers, the panel highlighted how businesses can harness high-performance AI without compromising on sustainability, security or performance. 

Presenters 

      • Samuel Collins, Technical Product Director, Bell AI Fabric 
        As the product lead for Bell AI Fabric, Sam bridges the gap between complex enterprise needs and cutting-edge infrastructure. With a background spanning healthcare, the startup world and large-scale enterprise deployments, he focuses on building secure, compliant and highly performant AI platforms for Canada's most highly regulated industries. 
      • Craig Tavares, President and CEO, BUZZ HPC 
        An NVIDIA Cloud Partner, BUZZ HPC builds and operates high-performance computing clusters designed specifically for machine learning, AI, and scientific computing, with a focus on sovereignty and sustainability. Craig brings deep expertise in cloud architecture, the best practices for simplifying deployment of large-scale GPU clusters and ensuring top-tier performance alongside strict data control and advanced security. 
      • David Arsenault, Vice President, Global Sales, Hypertec 
        Serving clients in over 80 countries, Hypertec is a major global technology solutions provider specializing in high-performance computing, AI infrastructure, custom hardware manufacturing and data center construction. An engineer by training with a strong background in power management, David brings decades of data centre expertise to the table. He specializes in optimizing AI hardware performance and sustainability through cutting-edge innovations like immersion cooling and rack-level power smoothing.


Video presentation

Watch the full Masterclass to dive deeper into the conversation: 


Table of contents     

Navigate to specific topics in the video using the timestamps below: 

      • 00:00:00 – Welcome and the vision for a Canadian sovereign AI ecosystem 
      • 00:05:00 – Inside the engine: The complexity of operating large-scale GPU clusters 
      • 00:06:25 – Building a resilient and balanced hardware supply chain in Canada 
      • 00:09:20 – How sovereign/local architecture delivers faster performance and better data control 
      • 00:14:35 – Advancements in immersion cooling and sustainable energy use 
      • 00:16:42 – Security by design: Protecting data from the physical perimeter to the compute stack 
      • 00:21:39 – Environmental advantage: leveraging Canada's colder climate for sustainable AI 
      • 00:30:09 – Scaling for success: how enterprises transition from pilot projects to full production 
      • 00:34:40 – Treating AI infrastructure as a critical national utility 
      • 00:37:47 – Q&A session: Overcoming energy limitations and addressing community concerns


Take the next step

Canada has the infrastructure, the talent and the technology to lead the global AI race. To learn more about how Bell is enabling a fully sovereign ecosystem, read Sam's insider look at the principles and partnerships that form Bell AI Fabric or discover how we can support your business on the Bell AI Fabric home page. To learn more on the Web Summit, don’t miss his reflections on the week in Vancouver.