Ottawa is moving closer to sidelining human translators in favour of machines, with the Meteorological Service of Canada shopping for artificial intelligence software to automatically translate weather alerts without any human involvement.Blacklock's Reporter says in a notice to contractors, the federal weather service said it is seeking an automated system capable of translating weather bulletins between English and French around the clock, replacing a “specialized team” of bilingual staff currently paid to remain on standby 24/7.“Automated refers to a process where translation jobs are submitted and completed without human intervention, relying solely on machine-to-machine communication,” the service wrote, signalling a major shift in how public safety information is produced and disseminated.The Meteorological Service said it issues alerts at all hours, including special weather statements, freezing rain warnings and tropical cyclone information, all of which must be published simultaneously in both official languages. Many alerts include free-form text written directly by meteorologists, which must be translated before release to comply with federal language rules..Management acknowledged that translation work is currently labour intensive and handled by a dedicated team with expertise in meteorological terminology. Translators review and edit machine-generated text to ensure accuracy and clarity and must be available at all times, particularly during severe weather when alert volumes can spike dramatically.The agency did not disclose how many translators are currently employed or how much money could be saved by replacing them with artificial intelligence. Instead, it said it wants to “explore and assess state of the art translation solutions” capable of handling technical weather language under tight time constraints..The move appears to mark the first time a federal agency has openly proposed replacing an entire functional unit with AI. Treasury Board officials have been laying the groundwork for such changes, announcing a government-wide artificial intelligence strategy in 2025 aimed at offloading routine tasks from public servants.Treasury Board President Shafqat Ali told MPs last October that the push for AI is about outcomes, not jobs. He said artificial intelligence is being positioned as a core tool to help the public service deliver faster and more efficient services, insisting the government intends to use the technology “responsibly” as it reshapes how Ottawa operates.
