The Canadian Companies Building AI Infrastructure and Why They Matter

If you think the rapidly growing artificial intelligence (AI) is a software story, you might be overlooking a much bigger investment opportunity. Every AI model, cloud platform, and data centre relies on a massive network of physical infrastructure, from transformers and electrical equipment to engineering services and power systems.

That creates an opportunity for many companies working behind the scenes of the AI boom. And the great news is that Canadian investors have several interesting ways to gain exposure to this long-term trend without buying the world’s largest technology companies.

In this article, I’ll highlight two top Canadian stocks that are helping build the infrastructure behind AI and explain why their products and services are becoming increasingly important.

Keel Infrastructure stock

The first Canadian-listed company building the physical base for AI computing is Keel Infrastructure (TSX:KEEL). It mainly develops data centres and energy infrastructure for high-performance computing workloads, including AI. The company’s portfolio includes power generation, established grid connections, and renewable hydroelectric capacity across Pennsylvania, Washington, and Quebec.

Currently, KEEL stock trades at $5.50 per share with a market cap of $3.4 billion. Interestingly, the stock has surged 287% over the last year and 70% in 2026.

That strong stock performance has been driven largely by a major business transformation. Keel shifted away from Bitcoin mining, exited its Latin American megawatt operations, redomiciled to the United States, and refocused its development pipeline on North American high-performance computing and AI markets.

Its first-quarter results still showed the cost of that transition as Keel’s revenue fell 23% year-over-year (YoY) to US$37 million. General and administrative expenses rose to US$27 million due largely to professional services related to its U.S. redomiciliation, accounting conversion, and Paso Pe sale. As a result, the company posted an operating loss of US$98 million.

However, Keel’s long-term growth potential rests more on development than current earnings. The firm has a 2.2-gigawatt pipeline, including 648 megawatts of secured capacity.

As of May 8, Keel had about US$533 million of liquidity, which is expected to support Panther Creek, Sharon, and Moses Lake AI infrastructure projects through lease execution while supporting the start of construction at Moses Lake. These projects make Keel a direct way to follow the AI infrastructure buildout.

5N Plus stock

The next stock fits into the AI buildout through specialized components rather than physical sites, and that’s 5N Plus (TSX:VNP).

This Montreal-based firm produces specialty semiconductors and performance materials used in renewable energy, space satellites, imaging, optoelectronics, and advanced electronics.

At the time of writing, VNP stock traded at $33.40 per share with a market cap of roughly $3 billion. Its shares have climbed 226% over the last 12 months and 88% in 2026.

Unlike Keel, 5N Plus entered 2026 with strong earnings momentum. Its first-quarter revenue rose 33% YoY to US$117.9 million, mainly because of higher specialty semiconductors volumes and stronger pricing for bismuth-based products.

The company’s adjusted EBITDA jumped 41% from a year ago to US$29.2 million with the help of higher semiconductor volumes and prices that exceeded inflation for space solar power and bismuth products. With this, its net earnings nearly doubled to US$17.8 million from US$9.6 million. 5N Plus is now expanding capacity and improving productivity to support long-term demand.

Overall, its strong earnings growth, specialized semiconductor materials, and expanding production capacity position 5N Plus as an attractive stock to benefit from the long-term expansion of AI infrastructure.

The post The Canadian Companies Building AI Infrastructure and Why They Matter appeared first on The Motley Fool Canada.

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More reading

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Fool contributor Jitendra Parashar has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.