One of the world's biggest artificial intelligence companies is knocking on Canada's door, potentially armed with an offer that — under normal circumstances — would be hard to refuse.

OpenAI is building a global network of data centres to store the massive amounts of information collected by its services, including ChatGPT — and Canada's cheap energy could help with that.

The company believes AI and its associated infrastructure will be the base of future economic development, and it says it wants to help spread what it calls "democratic AI." It recently launched "OpenAI for countries" to pounce on the opportunity.

Meanwhile, Canada, wary of an increasingly protectionist U.S. government and the powerful American tech companies subject to its laws, is trying to distance itself from foreign players by building AI models domestically. And paradoxically, OpenAI says it can contribute to that — by building those centres on Canadian soil.

The company is currently looking at building data centre infrastructure in Canada, building on its $500-billion US Stargate initiative in the United States and similar projects around the world.

"There are so many different elements that go into building an AI model that Canada has in abundance, whether it's the power and the resources — and frankly, the wherewithal and the desire — to really be a leader in the technology," said Chan Park, OpenAI's head of U.S.