A huge new global industry is taking shape, and one of its essential raw materials sits right beneath our feet. We can keep exporting the large reserves of natural gas that we have been blessed with, or we can help build and power the factories that turn that resource into something much more valuable.The industrial revolution we're in today is much bigger than a better search engine or a machine that writes emails. AI systems are moving into engineering, scientific research, software development, and industrial design. Computing is changing from retrieving information to generating it: producing code, testing designs, interpreting images, and helping people work through complex problems in just about every field. Jensen Huang, Nvidia's chief executive, explains it better than most. In March 2025, he described the shift "from retrieval-based computing to generative-based computing" and called the new infrastructure "AI factories." In June, he put it in even simpler language: "In the era of AI, every manufacturer needs two factories: one for making things, and one for creating the intelligence that powers them."The factory comparison is useful. A conventional factory takes materials and energy and produces goods. It takes raw material and adds value. An AI factory takes data, computing equipment, and electricity and produces digital output: the building blocks of words, images, software, and other information. That adds intelligence, which is a product. That is Alberta's opening. Gas becomes electricity. Electricity powers computing. Computing builds what Trump has termed “Super Intelligence.” Not “artificial” intelligence. Super intelligence builds products and services sold worldwide. These factories will be built in any event; Alberta has a short window to secure the spending, skills, and business opportunities before they slip away to other jurisdictions..For the “super intelligence factories” proposed for Alberta, how much natural gas are we talking about?I researched 33 proposals to understand the scale and number of projects being discussed. Alberta’s proposed intelligence factories could become major customers for our natural gas. If the proposed projects, including AI, cryptocurrency, and other proposals, reach their full proposed size and operate around the clock, they could consume roughly 2.7 to 3.5 billion cubic feet daily. That is a whopping increase — about one-third of the gas Alberta now exports.That is a huge potential new market for one of Alberta’s largest resources, with more of its value put to work right here at home. It also gives Alberta a practical environmental advantage over coal-fired electricity. Efficient gas plants produce roughly half the carbon dioxide per unit of electricity, with far fewer air pollutants, while providing dependable power when the wind drops or the sun sets. Combined-cycle plants also recover exhaust heat to generate additional electricity from the same fuel. Natural gas offers a cleaner-burning, reliable way to power Alberta’s new computing industry.There is no denying these computing centres would create a substantial new customer base for Alberta’s natural gas — strengthening producers’ returns, encouraging drilling, and significantly increasing provincial royalties. Supplying this demand would require additional production and pipelines, because the gas we now ship elsewhere already has customers.The effect on prices would depend on how quickly supply expands. If production and pipelines keep pace with demand, price increases could be modest; if the centres open faster than new supply becomes available, gas prices could rise more sharply, increasing heating and electricity costs..The combined opportunity is to grow Alberta’s gas and computing industries together, capturing the spending and revenue while limiting pressure on household bills. Success depends on how quickly we can deliver additional gas, not simply how many centres we build.Developers must pay to develop the power and infrastructure they require. Water, emissions, noise, and community effects need serious scrutiny. Saying yes to an industry does not mean saying yes to every location.But the direction should be clear. We have the energy, the cool climate, the space, the skilled labour, and the demonstrated ability to build large industrial projects. We can import the computing technology we require and build our own expertise.Alberta should sell the fuel, generate the power, and build the intelligence factories, with Alberta businesses helping construct, operate, and supply them. We have spent generations supplying the raw materials that other economies turn into greater wealth. This industrial revolution gives us the chance to do more of that work here, develop the expertise here, and keep more of the rewards here. Alberta should seize that opportunity with the same drive and ambition that built Alberta’s energy industry.
