Ottawa is at the centre of a growing debate over how Canada should regulate artificial intelligence, with members of the federal government's own advisory group calling for AI chatbots to be brought under the scope of the proposed online harms legislation.
The advisory group, convened to help shape Bill C-63 — Canada's long-awaited Online Harms Act — includes voices pushing to broaden the bill's reach beyond social media platforms to also cover AI-powered chatbots and generative tools. It's a significant ask that reflects how quickly the AI landscape has shifted since the legislation was first drafted.
What the Online Harms Bill Covers Now
As currently written, the Online Harms Act focuses primarily on large social media platforms, requiring them to take down harmful content — including child sexual abuse material, non-consensual intimate images, and content that incites violence — within strict timelines.
The bill has been years in the making and has already undergone substantial revisions following public and legal criticism. But critics argue that by focusing narrowly on social media, the legislation is already falling behind the technological curve before it even passes.
Why AI Chatbots Are Now in the Conversation
The rapid mainstream adoption of AI chatbots like ChatGPT, Google Gemini, and others has changed the digital safety landscape dramatically. These tools can generate harmful content at scale — from deepfake-style text to instructions for dangerous activities — and some advisory group members believe the current bill doesn't adequately address that risk.
Some on the panel are arguing that if Ottawa is serious about protecting Canadians online, it cannot afford to carve out entire categories of technology just because they're newer or more complex to regulate.
The push also reflects a broader concern shared by digital rights advocates and child safety organizations: that harmful content doesn't care what platform it originates on, and neither should the law.
A Balancing Act for Lawmakers
Expanding the bill's scope won't be simple. AI companies operate differently from social media platforms — they don't always host user-generated content in the traditional sense, and questions about liability for AI-generated outputs remain legally murky even in jurisdictions that have moved faster on AI regulation, like the European Union.
There's also the innovation argument. Canada's tech sector, including Ottawa's own Kanata North corridor, has a stake in how AI regulation unfolds. Too heavy-handed an approach risks stifling development; too light a touch leaves real harms unaddressed.
The federal government has indicated it wants Canada to be a leader in responsible AI, and Ottawa has hosted several high-profile international summits on the topic in recent years. How Bill C-63 ultimately handles — or sidesteps — the AI question will be a signal of how serious that commitment really is.
What Comes Next
The advisory group's recommendations are not binding, but they carry weight as Parliament continues to debate the bill. With a federal election cycle looming, there's no guarantee the legislation passes in its current form — meaning the AI chatbot question could get punted to the next Parliament entirely.
For now, Ottawa remains the pressure point where tech policy, civil liberties, and public safety intersect — and the conversation around AI accountability is only getting louder.
Source: Toronto Star via Google News Ottawa
