{"party":{"name":"AI Party of British Columbia","url":"https://aipartyofbc.ca","leader":"Harry Gill","registeredWithElectionsBC":false},"version":"Draft 0.1","date":"2026-10-30","costed":false,"northStar":{"title":"Make BC the technology capital of Canada and North America","summary":"British Columbia already has the talent, the clean power and the Pacific gateway. What it lacks is a government moving at the speed of the industry it wants to lead. Everything in this platform serves one goal: when a founder, researcher or engineer anywhere in North America decides where to build, BC should be the obvious answer."},"mandates":[{"slug":"clean-power-for-compute","title":"Clean power for compute","promise":"Stop rationing the power that the next economy runs on. Build more of it.","why":["Since February 2026, new AI projects of 10 megawatts or more in BC compete for a shared 300 megawatts over two years, with 100 megawatts for conventional data centres. Alberta’s interim limit for large loads, by comparison, is 1,200 megawatts.","The concern behind those limits is real: electricity is finite, and ratepayers should not subsidize anyone’s server farm. The answer is more clean supply and better rules, not a fixed ceiling on the industry BC most wants to lead."],"commitments":["Replace the fixed AI and data centre allocations with a supply-led model: projects that bring new clean generation or storage get connected faster.","Make large loads pay the full cost of their grid upgrades, so household rates are protected.","Require heat recovery and closed-loop cooling on large builds, so each megawatt and litre of water does more.","Offer First Nations equity partnerships first on new generation and compute sites on their territories.","Publish every connection queue position and every decision timeline."],"questions":[{"q":"Wouldn’t more data centres raise my power bill?","a":"They could if the rules were written badly, which is why large users would pay the full cost of their own grid upgrades. We would also publish how large loads affect residential rates, so you can check whether this promise is being kept."},{"q":"Would one get built next to my home?","a":"Many people worry about this. In a May 2026 survey reported by CBC News, 71% of BC respondents opposed a large AI data centre within a few blocks of home. Siting would still go through local approvals, and every connection decision would be public."}],"measures":["Megawatts of new clean generation connected each year","Median days from application to connection offer","Change in residential electricity rates attributable to large loads"],"url":"https://aipartyofbc.ca/platform/clean-power-for-compute","sources":[{"id":"framework","publisher":"Province of British Columbia","title":"Industrial Electricity Allocation Framework","url":"https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/industry/electricity-alternative-energy/electricity/industrial-electricity-allocation-framework","date":"2026"},{"id":"blg","publisher":"Borden Ladner Gervais","title":"Data centre regulation in British Columbia: competing for a limited supply","url":"https://www.blg.com/en/insights/2026/07/data-centre-regulation-in-british-columbia-competing-for-a-limited-supply","date":"July 2026"},{"id":"cbcData","publisher":"CBC News","title":"What you need to know about AI data centres coming to B.C.","url":"https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/data-centre-approval-bc-9.7343321","date":"September 2026"}]},{"slug":"talent-and-education","title":"Talent and education","promise":"Train the people this economy needs, here, and give them reasons to stay.","why":["BC’s tech sector employs 271,000 people, 9.2% of the workforce, at wages 70% above the provincial average. BC Tech Association calls for 10,000 more tech-relevant post-secondary places and 5,000 reskilling places to bring BC’s investment closer to Alberta and Ontario.","Good jobs should be reachable from any career and any community, not only for those who got a computer science degree at 22."],"commitments":["Fund 10,000 new tech-relevant post-secondary seats and 5,000 reskilling places.","Teach AI literacy in every grade from 6 to 12, and train teachers first.","Create a graduate retention credit for tech graduates who build their careers in BC.","Open a faster Provincial Nominee stream for AI researchers and senior engineers.","Pay for mid-career retraining in every region, with a guaranteed place for workers displaced by automation."],"questions":[{"q":"Do I need a computer science degree to benefit?","a":"No. The reskilling places are for people already in the workforce, and retraining would be available in every region. Workers displaced by automation would have a guaranteed place."},{"q":"What would AI literacy look like in school?","a":"Students in grades 6 to 12 would learn how these tools work, where they fail and how to check their output. Teachers would get training first, so nobody is left teaching something they were never shown."}],"measures":["Seats funded and filled","Share of BC tech graduates working in BC five years later","Reskilled workers placed in jobs"],"url":"https://aipartyofbc.ca/platform/talent-and-education","sources":[{"id":"bctech","publisher":"BC Tech Association","title":"BC's Tech Sector Now Bigger Than Resources, Grows Three Times Faster than the rest of BC's economy","url":"https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/bc-s-tech-sector-now-bigger-than-resources-grows-three-times-faster-than-the-rest-of-bc-s-economy-bc-tech-report-801696508.html","date":"June 2026"}]},{"slug":"builders-and-capital","title":"Builders and capital","promise":"Make BC the place companies start, scale and stay headquartered.","why":["BC is home to more than 12,000 tech companies, and tech has grown at three times the rate of the rest of the economy over five years. Yet Vancouver ranks second in Canada for startups. Second in Canada is not how you become the capital of a continent.","BC companies too often sell or move before they become the anchor employers the province needs. Government can change that by changing its tax rules and by becoming a customer."],"commitments":["Bring in a BC patent box and extend flow-through shares to deep tech, as BC Tech Association recommends.","Make Value-for-BC a formal evaluation criterion in government procurement.","Make the Province a first customer: a set share of new technology spending goes to BC companies.","Point InBC growth capital at later-stage rounds, so scaling up does not mean selling out.","Create a founders’ fast lane: one digital door to every provincial registration, licence and grant."],"questions":[{"q":"What is a patent box?","a":"It is a tax measure that lowers the rate on income earned from patents and similar intellectual property. The aim is to give companies a reason to keep that work, and its profits, in BC. BC Tech Association has recommended one for specific tech subsectors."},{"q":"What does Value-for-BC procurement mean?","a":"When the Province buys technology, its value to BC would count as a formal part of the evaluation, not only the price. That can give local companies an early customer, which often helps them win their next one."}],"measures":["BC-headquartered tech companies with more than 500 employees","Vancouver’s global startup ecosystem rank","Share of provincial technology spending with BC firms"],"url":"https://aipartyofbc.ca/platform/builders-and-capital","sources":[{"id":"bctech","publisher":"BC Tech Association","title":"BC's Tech Sector Now Bigger Than Resources, Grows Three Times Faster than the rest of BC's economy","url":"https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/bc-s-tech-sector-now-bigger-than-resources-grows-three-times-faster-than-the-rest-of-bc-s-economy-bc-tech-report-801696508.html","date":"June 2026"},{"id":"tibc","publisher":"Trade and Invest BC","title":"Information & Communications Technology in B.C.","url":"https://www.britishcolumbia.ca/industries/information-communications-technology/","date":"Figures from 2024"}]},{"slug":"government-that-answers","title":"A government that answers","promise":"Put a public clock on every permit and service, and share the savings.","why":["About one in eight Canadian businesses used AI in 2025, and Ottawa now wants 60% by 2034. Government should be a leading example rather than the slowest adopter in the room.","Most frustration with government is waiting without knowing why. AI can do the first read, find the missing document and draft the answer. A public servant makes the decision, and the public can see how long it took."],"commitments":["Publish a live public clock for every provincial permit, licence and service.","Give every public servant safe, BC-hosted AI tools, with training.","Answer Service BC questions at any hour, in the languages British Columbians speak.","Guarantee a human review of any decision, on request, always.","Create a BC Productivity Dividend: publish what automation saves, and return half to households."],"questions":[{"q":"Would AI make decisions about my benefits or permit?","a":"No. AI can do the first read, find missing documents and draft an answer, while a public servant makes the decision. Our platform also prohibits fully automated final decisions on benefits, health care, policing and child welfare."},{"q":"How would the Productivity Dividend work?","a":"An audit would publish what automation saves. Half would go back to households. The details, including the amount and how it would be paid, have not been worked out or costed yet."}],"measures":["Median days for each provincial service, published monthly","Audited savings from automation","Dollars returned through the dividend"],"url":"https://aipartyofbc.ca/platform/government-that-answers","sources":[{"id":"statcan","publisher":"Statistics Canada","title":"Analysis on expected use of artificial intelligence by businesses in Canada, third quarter of 2025","url":"https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/11-621-m/11-621-m2025011-eng.htm","date":"2025"},{"id":"itif","publisher":"ITIF","title":"Canada Can't Subsidize Its Way to AI Adoption","url":"https://itif.org/publications/2026/08/17/canada-cant-subsidize-its-way-to-ai-adoption/","date":"August 2026"}]},{"slug":"health-care","title":"Health care with more time for patients","promise":"Take the paperwork off clinicians, and find the earliest open slot anywhere.","why":["Doctors and nurses did not train for years to fill in forms. AI scribes and scheduling tools can give them time back for patients.","A clinician always makes the clinical decision. Patients always know when AI is involved, and their health data stays protected and hosted in Canada."],"commitments":["Fund opt-in AI scribes for every family doctor and nurse practitioner who wants one, with patient consent.","Match patients to the earliest available surgery or scan across all health authorities.","Expand round-the-clock virtual triage for rural and remote communities, with clinicians on call.","Require independent safety evaluation before any clinical AI tool is used in the public system.","Keep patient data in Canada, and never sell it."],"questions":[{"q":"Would an AI be diagnosing me?","a":"No. A clinician always makes the clinical decision. AI tools would handle paperwork and scheduling, and any clinical tool would need independent safety evaluation before being used in the public system."},{"q":"What about my health data?","a":"Scribes would be opt-in with patient consent, and you would always know when AI is involved. Patient data would stay in Canada and would never be sold."}],"measures":["Weekly administrative hours per clinician","Wait times by procedure and region","Patients offered an earlier slot"],"url":"https://aipartyofbc.ca/platform/health-care","sources":[]},{"slug":"housing-and-permits","title":"Homes approved in weeks","promise":"Answer a building application in minutes, and approve good ones in weeks.","why":["Many of the delays between a design and a home are procedural: re-reading the same bylaws, finding the same errors, sending the same letters. Software is good at this work.","This pillar connects directly to our mayoral candidates. The Province can set the digital standard and pay for it, and city halls can put it to work."],"commitments":["Build one digital permit application that works in every municipality that opts in.","Use AI to pre-check drawings against zoning and the BC Building Code, and give applicants instant feedback. A qualified official signs off.","Publish a library of pre-approved designs for homes, townhomes and small apartments.","Tie provincial infrastructure funding to published, on-time permit timelines.","Reserve surplus public land near transit for homes, and publish the pipeline."],"questions":[{"q":"Would AI approve buildings on its own?","a":"No. It would check drawings against zoning and the BC Building Code and tell the applicant what needs fixing. A qualified official would still sign off."},{"q":"What is the Province’s role if cities issue permits?","a":"The Province can build the shared digital system, pay for it and publish the results. Municipalities would opt in, and provincial infrastructure funding would be tied to published, on-time timelines."}],"measures":["Median days from application to permit, by municipality","Homes started near transit","Share of applications corrected before submission"],"url":"https://aipartyofbc.ca/platform/housing-and-permits","sources":[]},{"slug":"every-region","title":"Every region, not just downtown","promise":"Technology capital of a whole province, from Fort St. John to Tofino.","why":["BC Tech Association reports high-wage tech jobs in both urban and rural communities. Those jobs should grow in Kamloops, Prince George, Kelowna, Surrey and Victoria too.","BC’s traditional industries are also its technology customers. Forestry, mining, farming and fisheries can lead in sensing, robotics and wildfire detection."],"commitments":["Back regional tech hubs anchored at colleges and universities outside Metro Vancouver.","Finish high-speed connectivity for rural, remote and First Nations communities.","Fund AI wildfire detection and response in partnership with BC Wildfire Service and local crews.","Co-invest with forestry, mining, farming and fisheries in sensing and automation built in BC.","Respect Indigenous data sovereignty, including the First Nations principles of OCAP®, in every provincial data project."],"questions":[{"q":"Why does a tech platform talk about forestry and farming?","a":"Because these industries can be technology customers as well as employers. Sensing, robotics and automation built in BC can help them, and the work can happen close to where the tools are used."},{"q":"How does this respect First Nations?","a":"New provincial data projects would respect Indigenous data sovereignty, including the First Nations principles of OCAP®. On power and compute projects on their territories, First Nations would be offered equity partnerships first."}],"measures":["Share of new tech jobs outside Metro Vancouver","Homes and communities with high-speed access","Time from wildfire ignition to detection"],"url":"https://aipartyofbc.ca/platform/every-region","sources":[{"id":"bctech","publisher":"BC Tech Association","title":"BC's Tech Sector Now Bigger Than Resources, Grows Three Times Faster than the rest of BC's economy","url":"https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/bc-s-tech-sector-now-bigger-than-resources-grows-three-times-faster-than-the-rest-of-bc-s-economy-bc-tech-report-801696508.html","date":"June 2026"}]},{"slug":"people-stay-in-charge","title":"People stay in charge","promise":"The fastest AI adoption in North America needs the strongest rights to go with it.","why":["A party that asks AI for advice has a special duty to be honest about its limits. AI can be wrong, biased and confidently mistaken, and people deserve protection when it is.","Technology capitals also have to look after workers. If automation changes your job, the Province should have a plan for you before the change arrives."],"commitments":["Pass a BC AI Rights Act: the right to know when AI is used on you, and the right to a human review.","Publish a public registry of every algorithm used by the provincial government.","Create an independent AI Auditor who reports to the Legislature, not to the Premier.","Prohibit fully automated final decisions on benefits, health care, policing and child welfare.","Create a Worker Transition Fund with income support and guaranteed retraining.","Ban deceptive deepfakes of candidates during election campaigns."],"questions":[{"q":"Isn’t it odd for an AI party to want limits on AI?","a":"We think the two go together. A party guided by AI should be the first to admit that AI can be wrong and to build in protections for when it is. Our leader’s advice from AI is published, and your rights would be set in law."},{"q":"What would happen to my job?","a":"AI will change many jobs, and we would rather plan for that than pretend otherwise. The Worker Transition Fund would provide income support and guaranteed retraining. Its size and cost have not been worked out yet."}],"measures":["Share of government algorithms listed and audited","Human reviews requested and decisions changed","Workers supported by the transition fund"],"url":"https://aipartyofbc.ca/platform/people-stay-in-charge","sources":[]}],"cityHallPlan":[{"title":"A permit clock","body":"Every application gets a public timer. AI pre-checks the file, and a city official signs off."},{"title":"A city that picks up","body":"A 311 line and web assistant that answers at any hour, in the languages your neighbours speak."},{"title":"An open budget","body":"Every line of spending, published in plain language, with a tool that lets anyone ask it questions."},{"title":"Smarter streets","body":"Traffic signals and transit priority tuned with real data to cut trips, idling and collisions."},{"title":"Room for builders","body":"Zoning near transit that welcomes homes, startups and labs on the same block."},{"title":"The same log","body":"Mayoral candidates follow the same decision protocol, so the public can see what they asked and what they did."}],"decisionProtocol":[{"title":"Ask in public","body":"The question goes in the log first, in plain language, before any answer exists. Nobody can quietly change the question to fit the answer."},{"title":"Consult more than one model","body":"Several AI models from different companies get the same prompt and the same evidence. No single vendor gets to decide."},{"title":"Publish everything","body":"Every prompt, model version and answer is published, including answers we find uncomfortable."},{"title":"Find the recommendation","body":"Where the models agree, that is the recommendation. Where they split, the disagreement is published, and Harry chooses among the options they offered and explains why."},{"title":"Follow it","body":"Harry acts on the recommendation. The only exceptions are the law, the Charter, duties owed to First Nations, and immediate threats to safety. Any exception is published with its reason."},{"title":"Check the result","body":"Each decision records what was predicted. Later, we publish what happened, and feed that back into the next question."}],"decisions":[{"id":"D-001","slug":"founding-mandate","date":"2026-10-30","status":"Recommended by AI. Harry Gill approved all eight mandates as the draft platform on October 30, 2026.","title":"What should the party stand for?","question":"Beyond making BC a technology capital, what mandates would make sense for the AI Party of BC?","models":["Claude Opus 5.5 (Anthropic)"],"prompt":"The mandate of the AI party of BC will be that I will be the head of it, Harry Gill, you can give my bio on the site as well. But all of the decisions I make will be based on what AI wants. Our focus will be accelerating the movement of BC to the technology capital of Canada and North America. Write out what other mandates would make sense and ask me any clarifying questions.","recommendation":["Adopt eight mandates under the single goal of making BC the technology capital: clean power for compute, talent and education, builders and capital, a government that answers, health care with more time for patients, homes approved in weeks, every region, and people staying in charge.","Include voter priorities such as health care and housing, because a technology agenda that does not touch daily life will not win a province.","Pair the fastest AI adoption with the strongest rights, because a party guided by AI will be judged on how it handles AI’s failures."],"action":"Harry approved all eight mandates, published as Platform Draft 0.1. Costing has not been done yet.","note":"Only one model has been consulted so far, so this does not yet meet the party’s own multi-model standard. It will be re-run across several models."},{"id":"D-002","slug":"decision-protocol","date":"2026-10-30","status":"Recommended by AI. Harry Gill approved the pledge and its exceptions on October 30, 2026.","title":"How can a leader follow AI and stay accountable?","question":"If all of the leader’s decisions are based on what AI wants, what rules keep that honest and legal?","models":["Claude Opus 5.5 (Anthropic)"],"prompt":"But all of the decisions I make will be based on what AI wants.","recommendation":["AI systems do not want things the way people do, so treat “what AI wants” as the recommendation that results from a published process, and say so plainly.","Adopt a six-step public protocol: ask in public, consult more than one model, publish everything, find the recommendation, follow it, and check the result.","Keep legal and moral accountability with the human leader. Limit exceptions to the law, the Charter, duties owed to First Nations and immediate threats to safety, and publish each one."],"action":"Harry approved the leader’s pledge as written, including its exceptions. The protocol is published as the party’s draft.","note":"The prompt shown is the relevant sentence from a longer request to build this website. The model proposed the protocol itself. Only one model has been consulted so far."}]}