AI has become something both the private sector and governments are using to get more out of the systems they already run. Alberta offers an example of how AI can inform a more strategic approach to modernization. As outlined in the province’s Velocity papers, AI-derived evidence can help the government determine where to invest, which capabilities to modernize, and how to manage the cost and risk of change. The goal is to make modernization more targeted and sustainable, supporting more affordable public services and better digital experiences for Albertans and public servants.
Modernization in this context is best understood through the lens of Gov 3.0, an approach that goes beyond layering in new technology. It means fundamentally rethinking services, processes, roles, skills and decision-making to better serve the public. While AI is a powerful enabler of this change, the ultimate goal is a more effective, human-centric way of delivering public services.
Affordability is the business case
For Alberta and governments across the country, scaling AI is increasingly essential to the affordability and sustainability of public services. With limited fiscal room, rising costs and growing demand, governments cannot rely on increased spending alone. Moving AI from pilot to production, supported by capability- and risk-based modernization, can improve productivity, reduce technical debt and make better use of existing infrastructure and resources.
The opportunity extends beyond automating existing processes. AI-driven insights can help governments understand how life events, social determinants and fragmented service journeys shape demand, enabling earlier interventions, better coordinated services and more targeted investment. Realizing this potential requires iterative, outcomes-driven modernization that adapts to changing needs. For citizens, the result could be a benefit processed in days rather than weeks or a permit issued without a trip to a government office. Modernization and affordability aren’t separate goals.
Most government systems weren’t built for AI. Decades of development have left data scattered across disconnected platforms, yet Alberta’s experience shows how AI can help work through that complexity rather than requiring it to be resolved first. Security must advance alongside implementation. Alberta’s public account describes automated agents checking applications against security controls before release, illustrating how cybersecurity can become a continuous part of delivery rather than a final checkpoint.
Modernization must also reflect the distinct needs of each sector. Alberta’s health system, for example, faces workforce shortages, an aging population and growing demand for virtual and home-based care, alongside the need for integrated data to support capacity planning and patient flow. Different government programs have different evidentiary, compliance and safety requirements, making domain expertise essential to applying AI with appropriate safeguards.
Alberta is also exploring more resilient, secure computing infrastructure for sensitive systems, including platforms to support secure sovereign compute. While this remains an emerging direction rather than a defined program, it reflects a broader focus on digital resilience: keeping services running and citizen data secure as operational demands grow.
Change management determines what sticks
The governments that get the most out of AI tend to invest in their people as well as the technology. Alberta has said publicly that its own program was built around this idea, training thousands of public servants and framing the goal as freeing staff from repetitive work rather than reducing headcount. Realizing AI’s full value, however, requires more than training. Employees need practical opportunities to apply AI, while managers must redesign roles and workflows so public servants can focus on judgment, service coordination and complex problems. This may also require collaboration with employees and bargaining agents to adapt workforce policies and support new ways of working.
Service delivery must evolve alongside the workforce. AI can make routine interactions faster through digital self-service and proactive notifications, while preserving telephone, in-person and community-based support for people with complex needs. Citizens are more likely to embrace these changes when services reduce effort, provide clearer answers and resolve needs across programs, while preserving access to a person when it matters.
Ultimately, success should be measured not by the number of AI tools deployed or tasks automated, but by improvements in service quality, reduced administrative burden and the ability of public servants to focus their time on the people who need it most.
From experiment to production
There is a real difference between experimenting with AI and building the architecture, security and workforce foundations to run it in production. Closing that gap requires more than technology. It means assessing the transformation path, redesigning processes, modernizing underlying applications and infrastructure, and sustaining systems over time so they continue to deliver value. This end-to-end approach is what turns individual projects into lasting operational improvements.
If we view Gov 3.0 as the next big step in government transformation, it means rethinking how the government works and serves people. That includes redesigning services, processes and workforce practices around citizen needs, using data and AI responsibly, and connecting work across programs and organizations. Technology enables this change; it is not the change itself.
Realizing this vision requires investing not only in technology, but also in the people, methods and operating models needed to put it into practice. AI-enabled approaches, including agentic applications that bring together specialized capabilities, business context and workflow steps, can help reduce manual handoffs, rework and ongoing service costs. The opportunity is to translate these efficiencies into better service delivery and free up resources for the next generation of public-sector capabilities.
Built locally, by Albertans
Much of this work depends on a strong understanding of the communities and institutions the government serves. In Alberta, local delivery teams can bring established relationships, regional knowledge and continuity through changes in government leadership, helping sustain progress over time. A local workforce also creates economic value by keeping technology investment and the jobs it supports within the province, while contributing to the broader network of suppliers and talent that supports Alberta's digital economy.
The opportunity
Alberta’s results are a timely reminder of what’s possible when governments invest not only in AI technology, but also in the modernization, security, change management and local delivery capacity needed to sustain it. The impact of AI depends less on the model itself than on whether organizations can implement and operate it responsibly, affordably and in ways citizens experience through faster services, less administrative burden and a government that is easier to navigate.
The opportunity now is to build on this momentum across ministries and programs, applying the same discipline and local expertise to deliver more affordable, responsive and accessible public services for Albertans.
