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FILE - Pages from the Anthropic website and the company's logo are displayed on a computer screen in New York, Feb. 26, 2026. (AP Photo/Patrick Sison, File)
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Hundreds of economists say ‘we must act now’ on AI’s economic impact and job displacement risks

The Associated Press 2 minute read Preview
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Hundreds of economists say ‘we must act now’ on AI’s economic impact and job displacement risks

The Associated Press 2 minute read Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Hundreds of economists say in an open letter that institutions “must act now” to address how artificial intelligence could transform the economy and could put many people out of work.

The statement released Monday was signed by top economists, along with computer scientists and some executives at tech companies including Anthropic, Google and OpenAI.

“AI may become radically more powerful over the next 10 years,” says the letter organized by Stanford University's digital economy lab. “This could drive an unprecedented transformation of our economy, larger than the Industrial Revolution, but unfolding over a vastly shorter time frame. It could bring risks, including large-scale job displacement, as well as opportunities such as major gains in living standards.”

The letter, which has only four sentences, says leaders must “build the incentives, guardrails, and institutions needed to steer AI in a direction that complements humans and benefits society.”

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Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2026
JESSE BOILY / FREE PRESS FILES The University of Winnipeg’s board of regents approved a $180.7-million budget on June 22 that increases costs in undergraduate and graduate programs and hike tuition rates by four per cent for the fall.

U of W falls back on tuition hikes amid budget crunch

Maggie Macintosh 5 minute read Preview

U of W falls back on tuition hikes amid budget crunch

Maggie Macintosh 5 minute read Monday, Jul. 13, 2026

The University of Winnipeg has joined other public post-secondary institutions across the province in hiking tuition rates by four per cent — as high as possible — for the fall.

Domestic fees are increasing by more annually in 2026-27 than they have in eight years in Manitoba.

International rates, which are unregulated and roughly four times those paid by their Canadian peers, are rising even higher.

U of W’s board of regents approved a $180.7-million budget on June 22 that increases costs in undergraduate and graduate programs and phases out “low rate” courses on the downtown campus.

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Monday, Jul. 13, 2026
Ruth Bonneville / Free Press Will Castor, shown with his parents Doug and Cheryl Castor, has a traumatic brain injury caused by a car crash. Cheryl Castor is fighting to restore a critical rehabilitation service for Manitobans that was of great benefit to her son.

Mom spearheads fight for rehab services

Zoe Pierce 4 minute read Preview

Mom spearheads fight for rehab services

Zoe Pierce 4 minute read Monday, Jul. 13, 2026

Four years ago, a car crash permanently changed Will Castor’s life.

The 28-year-old suffered a traumatic brain injury that required a long recovery as he worked to relearn skills many people take for granted, such as eating, speaking and getting out of bed.

A key part of that journey was First Steps Wellness Centre, a Winnipeg rehabilitation facility, where Will worked with therapists to regain independence and connect with others facing similar challenges.

But on June 5, financial constraints forced First Steps to close, leaving families without the specialized therapy they had come to rely on.

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Monday, Jul. 13, 2026
Matt Goerzen/The Brandon Sun files Manitoba Hydro is still betting on natural gas generating stations — like this one in Brandon — instead of considering battery storage solutions for peak energy needs.

If it works in Ontario, why not in Manitoba?

James Wilt 5 minute read Preview

If it works in Ontario, why not in Manitoba?

James Wilt 5 minute read Monday, Jul. 13, 2026

Grid-scale battery storage has fundamentally changed the global energy landscape — and Manitoba needs to get on board.

Battery systems store large amounts of excess electricity for when it’s most needed. While they can be charged from any generation source, they are especially beneficial for integrating wind and solar power, which vary with weather and time of day. Batteries allow electrical grids to meet the need for firm, dispatchable and affordable capacity using renewable energy, rather than relying on coal, nuclear and fossil gas. They also provide numerous other benefits, including reducing overloading of transmission infrastructure and helping to regulate the grid’s frequency and voltage.

Average costs for grid-scale batteries plummeted by more than half between 2023 and 2025 and installations have skyrocketed in China, the U.S., Australia and Europe. Texas now has 16,500 megawatts (MW) of battery storage, while California has 15,200 MW. Closer to home, Ontario recently awarded 640 MW of contracts to three battery storage projects in a competitive auction, with batteries beating out fossil gas-fired power plants on cost every time. One of these projects will be built near Dryden, only four hours east of Winnipeg.

Each battery system will provide eight hours of capacity but will cost considerably less than Ontario’s previous battery procurements, which provide only four hours of capacity. With this latest auction, Ontario has now secured 3,600 MW of battery storage capacity, including the operational Oneida (250 MW), Hagersville (300 MW) and Napanee (250 MW) projects. Almost all have significant Indigenous participation, with the latest procurements boasting 50 per cent First Nations ownership.

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Monday, Jul. 13, 2026
A conceptual illustration of a statue of Samuel de Champlain, proposed to be installed at a city park in Orillia, Ont., is shown in this undated handout image. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout - City of Orillia (Mandatory Credit)

Quebec municipalities express interest in Samuel de Champlain statue from Ontario

Erika Morris, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Preview

Quebec municipalities express interest in Samuel de Champlain statue from Ontario

Erika Morris, The Canadian Press 4 minute read Monday, Jul. 13, 2026

Some Quebec municipalities and organizations are offering to take a controversial statue of Samuel de Champlain from an Ontario city in Simcoe County.

The nearly four-metre-tall bronze monument of the 17th century explorer and founder of Quebec City was removed from a park in Orillia, Ont., and placed in storage in 2017 following debate over its colonial imagery.

Orillia Mayor Don McIsaac said a wave of offers poured in after the city recently raised the possibility of melting the statue down.

“They say it's racist, it's not our history, it is an insult to Indigenous peoples,” McIsaac said in an interview about the controversy over the statue.

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Monday, Jul. 13, 2026
Russell Wangersky / Free Press Winnipeg’s tree canopy is getting a financial respite.

Mayor’s flip-flop a welcome effect of campaign

Editorial 4 minute read Preview

Mayor’s flip-flop a welcome effect of campaign

Editorial 4 minute read Saturday, Jul. 11, 2026

Trees may not have a vote, but they are poised to become among the biggest winners from this fall’s municipal elections in Winnipeg.

At the start of the week, things didn’t look good for Winnipeg’s tree population. City staff issued a report recommending city council reduce the 2026 urban forest renewal program and divert the money to improvements to the Assiniboine Park Conservancy’s Journey to Churchill exhibition.

The recommendation was triggered by a directive from the provincial government to take the same sum of money out of a strategic infrastructure fund it provides to the city to support the conservancy exhibit. This left the city with a $1.2-million hole in its infrastructure program. Staff felt the money could come from the tree-planting budget.

Mayor Scott Gillingham — who is running for re-election this fall — initially endorsed the recommendation when it was put before the executive policy committee (which he chairs) earlier this week. Seventy-two hours later, however, Gillingham was having second thoughts.

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Saturday, Jul. 11, 2026
Magnific More than a quarter surveyed said advertising has influenced them to place a wager, while one-third of younger Canadians said advertising has led them to place a bet.
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Sports gambling marketing during World Cup raises concerns about negative influence on susceptible audiences

Joel Schlesinger 5 minute read Preview
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Sports gambling marketing during World Cup raises concerns about negative influence on susceptible audiences

Joel Schlesinger 5 minute read Saturday, Jul. 11, 2026

It’s just a game. And in the case of the World Cup over the last few weeks, it’s a beautiful game — dozens of them, in fact.

Yet interspersed amongst the exciting broadcast play on the pitch, advertising for sports gambling has raised concerns fun and games may come at too high a cost for some.

A recent New York Times feature pointed to a bonanza for the gaming industry globally, with one analyst stating the flow of bets amounts to as many as 10 Super Bowls.

Billions are likely to be made by online gambling platforms from what has been called the biggest gambling event in history. The other side of that coin is billions of dollars will be lost by sports fans willing to wager on a game’s outcome.

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Saturday, Jul. 11, 2026
TIM SMITH / THE BRANDON SUN FILES Manitoba Premier Wab Kinew

Pipeline could be Kinew’s legacy or a slick disappointment

Dan Lett 5 minute read Preview

Pipeline could be Kinew’s legacy or a slick disappointment

Dan Lett 5 minute read Friday, Jul. 10, 2026

Is Wab Kinew poised to become Manitoba’s Pipeline King?

Developments on several fronts are giving Manitoba’s premier the opportunity to make oil and gas pipelines not only the cornerstone of his current economic policy, but also the lasting legacy from his time governing the province.

On the one hand, Prime Minister Mark Carney has promised significant sums of federal money to develop the Port of Churchill into the major shipping hub it has always aspired to be. The catch is that Manitoba must come up with a firm plan to ship liquefied natural gas (LNG) through the port by 2030, a goal that almost certainly requires a pipeline.

At the same time, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe and, most recently, Ontario Premier Doug Ford are signing deals to build LNG pipelines that connect western oil fields to major shipping hubs in eastern Canada.

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Friday, Jul. 10, 2026
MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS Wind turbines in southern Manitoba.

Westman residents fear power project’s wind turbines will sully their idyllic landscape

Julia-Simone Rutgers 16 minute read Preview

Westman residents fear power project’s wind turbines will sully their idyllic landscape

Julia-Simone Rutgers 16 minute read Friday, Jul. 10, 2026

POLONIA — Leonard Kaspick can list just about every household in the valley.

“There’s someone living right across the northeast, someone living behind here, about a quarter mile there’s a house there, then a half mile there’s another house there, I’m here, and then on top of the hill there’s someone else there,” he says, standing in the heart of the hamlet — a community hall just off the main drag.

Besides the hall and the smattering of homes, there’s a historic (though out-of-commission) church next door and a single general store further down the road.

“There’s less people here now than there was in 1885,” Kaspick, 83, jokes as he wraps up a condensed history of the western-Manitoba community.

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Friday, Jul. 10, 2026

Manitoba needs clean, publicly owned data centres

Hersh Seth 5 minute read Friday, Jul. 10, 2026

Some might disagree, but I believe Winnipeg needs an AI data centre.