10 people suspected of vandalism at AI institute in Montreal as AI summit kicks off

A woman has been arrested as police in Montreal investigate the vandalism of an office of the Quebec artificial intelligence institute Mila, with authorities saying it appears 10 people were involved.

The SPVM said at about 11:45 p.m. Tuesday, police officers on patrol discovered a building had been vandalized on Saint-Urbain Street, near Saint-Zotique Street West, in the city’s Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie borough.

Initial findings found several windows of the building had been smashed and numerous graffiti tags were spray painted on the building’s walls, according to SPVM spokesperson Manuel Couture.

Through its investigation, police determined a group of about 10 individuals were involved in the vandalism.

Couture said a 25-year-old woman was arrested near the scene of the incident and taken to a detention centre where she will be interviewed to determine the extent of her involvement.

The investigation is ongoing and police will be attending the scene to check for any surveillance cameras and to collect relevant evidence.

Tuesday night’s vandalism comes as one of Canada’s largest AI and tech summits gets underway in the city.

Yoshua Bengio, the founder of Mila, is set to speak at the event Thursday.