The real question is not whether the building is big. It is who owns the asset, who controls the value, and what Alberta actually gets.
Meta is a U.S.-owned company. Unless binding agreements say otherwise, the platform value, AI systems, data control, business advantage, and profits belong to Meta.
Alberta provides the host location: land, power access, gas demand, roads, emergency services, planning burden, labour, and community impact. That does not automatically mean the project should be rejected. It does mean Alberta should not confuse a large private investment with a guaranteed public benefit.
If Canadians want Canadian-owned AI infrastructure, Canadian compute capacity, Canadian data sovereignty, and Canadian economic benefit, then Canadian players need to step up.
Otherwise we are not building Alberta’s AI future — we are renting land, power, and social licence to someone else’s.DataCentreDebate.ca
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The strongest objection is not “AI scary.” It is whether Alberta hosts the impacts while someone else owns the strategic value.