IBM Uses AI to Help Canada’s Forests

In this article, you’ll discover:

  • How IBM is working with a school to help Canada.
  • Why using AI is good for tracking trees.
  • The way this project protects jobs and nature.

We all rely on wood for so many things in our daily lives, from the houses we live in to the paper we write on. Now, IBM and a school called Polytechnique Montréal are teaming up to make sure the forests providing these materials stay healthy. On November 13, 2025, they announced a new collaboration. They plan to use AI to solve big challenges in the Canadian forestry supply chain.

Expert Voices

This project is part of the IBM Impact Accelerator. This program helps groups use fancy tech to fix real-world problems. The leaders involved are very optimistic about what they can achieve together.

François Bertrand, the VP of Research and Innovation at Polytechnique Montréal, shared his excitement. He said, “Polytechnique Montreal is very happy to be joining the IBM Impact Accelerator program as part the 2025 cohort. This new partnership with IBM will be key to enable us to fully develop the AI and quantum-enabled decision-support tool we are currently working on which aims at transforming the raw forest biomass into a wide range of products while providing sustainable forest management and harvesting.”

Justina Nixon-Saintil, a VP at IBM, believes this is about more than just gadgets. She explained, “We’re in an era where advanced technologies like AI are moving beyond innovation labs and into communities to solve real supply chain and infrastructure challenges. This new IBM Impact Accelerator cohort shows what’s possible when we combine our tools with local insight to build stronger, more sustainable systems.”

Building Smarter Tools

So, what are they actually building? The goal is to create a tool that helps people make better decisions. By using AI and quantum technology, they can look at a lot of data at once.

This tech acts like a super-smart guide. It helps plan how to harvest trees and predicts how much wood calls yield will be produced. The best part is that it balances everything out. It tries to lower costs and save energy while keeping the environment safe. It is a smart way to modernize an old industry.

Why This Matters

The forest sector is a huge part of Canada. It puts $33.4 billion into the economy and supports hundreds of thousands of jobs. Many of these jobs are in rural areas that really need them.

However, the industry faces tough times due to climate change and supply chain issues. By bringing in digital tools, this project aims to make the whole system stronger. It helps ensure that we have resources for future generations.

The Plan Moving Forward

This partnership will last for two years. IBM and the university will start by using the IBM Garage method to get things moving quickly. After that, they will work on setting up the tech and testing it out. It is inspiring to see technology being used to protect nature and support local communities.

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