Hadrian

Hadrian

@hadrianmk.bsky.social

Hadrian Mertins-Kirkwood (he/him) • Political economist @policyalternatives.ca • Climate, AI, industrial policy 🌎💡⚙️🇨🇦

1.4K followers207 following154 posts

Hadrian reposted

CCPA — Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
@policyalternatives.ca

Come out to this event in Ottawa on November 15! HYPERSCALE in Ottawa: an afternoon with author Paris Marx + @policyalternatives.ca senior researcher on AI, @hadrianmk.bsky.social #cdnpoli www.zeffy.com/en-CA/ticket...

zeffy.comHYPERSCALE in Ottawa: an afternoon with author Paris Marx + local AI data centre organizersJoin us for “HYPERSCALE” — an afternoon with author Paris Marx and local organizers confronting the rapid growth of AI data centres and the corporate power…

Hadrian reposted

CCPA — Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
@policyalternatives.ca

Check out our free webinar on counting the costs (harms and benefits) of Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption and the build out of data centres in Canada. From @policyalternatives.ca. October 15 @12pm ET. Details and sign-up below: us02web.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

us02web.zoom.usThink Twice: A Citizen’s Guide to AI and Data Centres. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email about joining the webinar.Canada's federal government is pushing Artificial Intelligence (AI) adoption and the build out of data centres, but Canadians can, and should, push back. The harms of the AI industry are real and the ...
Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

Transparency must consider the entire AI supply chain, including the AI training process and the impacts of AI data centres, not merely the end user experience.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

Transparency requirements must be proactive, comprehensive and binding. Self-reported disclosure systems or voluntary codes of conduct will conceal the very incidents and practices that require the greatest scrutiny from regulators and the public.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

Regulators should err on the side of requiring too much AI transparency rather than too little, regardless of the alleged “compliance burden” it places on businesses. As more evidence becomes available, cultural norms evolve, and best practices emerge, transparency requirements can be reviewed.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

AI transparency is necessary for enabling other kinds of AI policy, but it is not in itself sufficient for preventing AI harms. Transparency measures must be paired with meaningful regulations that protect and advance the public interest.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

Responsibility for AI transparency lies with every actor at every stage of the supply chain, including AI developers, data centre operators, digital platforms and employers. No one who knowingly builds, operates, promotes or deploys AI systems should be free from oversight and scrutiny.

Hadrian reposted

CCPA — Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
@policyalternatives.ca

"investment should be treated as a means to achieve public goals rather than as an end in itself [and] governments should consider what an investment produces for workers, communities, and the broader economy..." @hadrianmk.bsky.social @policyalternatives.ca www.hilltimes.com/2026/09/14/a...

hilltimes.comAs Ottawa courts global capital, Invest in Canada faces questions over capacity and public benefit - The Hill TimesThe agency's 2026-27 departmental plan outlines fewer staff and lower spending even as Ottawa signals a more prominent role under the new leadership of Dominic Barton and Gurinder Grewal.

Hadrian reposted

CCPA — Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
@policyalternatives.ca

"The federal government really wants you to believe in artificial intelligence. The future of Canadian prosperity depends on it—But is that really true?" Read @policyalternatives.ca Senior Researcher @hadrianmk.bsky.social op-ed: www.nationalobserver.com/2026/07/28/o...

nationalobserver.comAI is doing more harm than good. Canada needs to slow downRacing to adopt AI serves no one but the tech industry. It’s time the federal government recognized that.
Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

There is a path forward for AI in Canada. It will require careful oversight and clear regulation of the AI industry. It will require a deeper national conversation about our shared technological future and the role we want AI systems to play.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

What is the price — in terms of jobs, the environment, democracy, human rights and even our very minds — that we are willing to pay in the name of productivity? And if we are unwilling to pay the price, what should we do about it?

Hadrian reposted

CCPA — Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
@policyalternatives.ca

The harms of the AI industry outweigh the speculative benefits of AI adoption. Canadians should be prepared to push back. Read the @policyalternatives.ca Citizen's guide to AI by @hadrianmk.bsky.social and Rachel Pettigrew: www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...

policyalternatives.caThink twice: A citizen’s guide to artificial intelligence in Canada | CCPACanadians need to think twice about the promise and inevitability of artificial intelligence and be prepared to push back on the AI industry
Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

These productivity benefits may yet arrive. We shouldn't dismiss AI's potential out of hand. But that is an argument for cautious, thoughtful adoption of AI, starting with the lowest risk applications. Not pushing AI into every school and workplace in the country and hoping for the best.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

Canadians are broadly skeptical of AI—as they should be—even if that is not reflected by our media or governments. For AI to actually serve the public interest, we must move slower and with greater democratic oversight of the AI industry. Read more: www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...

policyalternatives.caThink twice: A citizen’s guide to artificial intelligence in Canada | CCPACanadians need to think twice about the promise and inevitability of artificial intelligence and be prepared to push back on the AI industry
Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

...the explosion of AI slop trained on the uncompensated work of human creators, the hegemony of U.S. values embedded in AI systems, the disregard for human rights in immigration/policing/warfare, rampant workplace surveillance, etc. These are not speculative harms. They are happening right now.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

And for what? The productivity benefits that AI promises are elusive. Most AI pilots in the public and private sector fail. AI "workslop" is creating as many problems as it solves. The unreliability of generative AI tools is an inherent technological problem that more data centres won't solve.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

The assumption that outputs matter but process does not fails to recognize that the labour itself is often the point. Automating and deskilling the workforce also serves to facilitate the centralization of power in the hands of employers and technology companies at the expense of workers.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

Job losses are just the tip of the iceberg of AI harms. There are the environmental impacts of data centres, the commercialization of health care and other public services, the stunting of cognitive development and critical thinking, the erosion of democracy through misinformation and deepfakes...

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

To be truly socially beneficial, AI systems must meet high thresholds of capability and trustworthiness. To cause harm, they need only be accessible. Right now, AI systems are far more accessible than they are capable or trustworthy.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

In many contexts, AI is a solution in search of a problem. AI companies and governments promote AI adoption for its own sake rather than offering clear evidence for added value.

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

"AI adoption raises homework scores by 18% and reduces completion time by 30%, but lowers monthly exam scores by 20% within six months. High-stakes entrance-exam scores fall by 18 and 24%." On the AI penalty for students: papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

papers.ssrn.comThe Generative AI Learning Penalty: Evidence from Chinese Secondary EducationUsing 30 months of panel data on 26,811 Chinese students in grades 7-12, we study how generative AI affects homework productivity and learning. The data combine

Hadrian reposted

Andrew Longhurst 🇨🇦 🍉
@alonghurst.bsky.social

Don’t let anyone tell you that we can’t protect the developing brains of children. Norway is doing it. Corporations and tech bros don’t want children to be able to think for themselves. It means that knowledge can’t be commodified.

Pause AI in BC Schools@aicaution.ca

This is encouraging, but the claim that older students "should learn to use AI appropriately so that they are prepared for further education and work" is pure "AI is inevitable" fantasy. www.reuters.com/technology/n...

reuters.comNorway imposes near ban on AI in elementary schoolNorway is imposing a near ban on the use of generative AI tools by elementary school pupils while also restricting their ​use in the education of older children to prevent a ‌negative impact on learni...

Hadrian reposted

KetAnthropic JoshAI
@ketanjoshi.co

Replying to @ketanjoshi.co

"because it is purely focused on output, gen AI use spirals: the more you use it, the more you have to use it, because by using it you avoid learning the skills to make things without it" look just read the whole thing it's so good

Hadrian
@hadrianmk.bsky.social

Such a pleasure to chat with @parismarx.com about the federal AI strategy!

Paris Marx@parismarx.com

Canada is replicating the mistakes of other countries in going all in on AI without thinking clearly about the harms that could be unleashed on society in the process. It was great to chat with @hadrianmk.bsky.social to learn more about Mark Carney’s AI strategy and the many problems it presents.

Hadrian reposted

CCPA — Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives
@policyalternatives.ca

The new federal artificial intelligence strategy, AI for All, has all the trappings of a policy document. But it is, at its core, a declaration of belief. By @hadrianmk.bsky.social and Rachel Pettigrew @policyalternatives.ca www.policyalternatives.ca/news-researc...

policyalternatives.caMagnifica Technologia: Seven key takeaways from Canada's new AI strategy | CCPAThe new federal artificial intelligence strategy, AI for All, has all the trappings of a policy document. But it is, at its core, a declaration of belief.