AI models and APIs
Does Cohere store data in Canada?
Command models, North platform, Model Vault, private deployments
If you host it yourself.
Cohere can run on servers you choose. Data stays in Canada only if you host it in Canada. It is Canadian-owned.
Self-hosted: Run it yourselfSoftware you install on servers you choose. The vendor never holds your data.
Checked 2026-10-13 against the vendor's own pages.
The facts, claim by claim
- Where data is stored
- Private deployments on-premises (air-gapped) or in an isolated VPC; Cohere says it has no access to data processed in private deployments or on AWS, Azure or GCP
- Where it is processed
- Wherever the model is deployed
- Support and backups
- Not stated on the pages read
- Owner
- Cohere Inc. (Toronto, ON), "a Canadian company subject to Canadian federal privacy laws" · Parent country: Canada
- Servers run by
- Customer's own infrastructure, a VPC, or Cohere's SaaS · Owner not stated
- Customer-held keys
- You hold the data in private deployments
- Certifications
- Not recorded (blank means not checked, not none)
- Worth knowing
- Partner of Bell (AI Fabric) and the federal government. Announced a business combination with Germany's Aleph Alpha on 2026-09-16, with plans for dual headquarters in Toronto and Berlin.
- Caveats
- Re-check ownership after the Aleph Alpha deal closes.
What the rules say about this
- Nova Scotia public bodies: Storage and access must both be in Canada: check support access and backups, not only storage.
- Québec Law 25: Canada is not Québec: storage in Toronto still needs a privacy impact assessment for Québec data.
- OCAP®: Self-hosting on Nation-controlled or Canadian-owned infrastructure is the route to possession.
Summaries only; each rule page links the law or regulator. Not legal advice.
Canadian alternatives to Cohere
Other ai models and apis listings that are Canadian-owned, not US-owned, or self-hostable.
| Listing | Tier | Stored in Canada? | Owner | Servers run by |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TELUS Sovereign AI Factory | Tier 1: Canadian end to end | Yes | Canadian | Not a US company |
| Bell AI Fabric | Tier 2: Canadian-owned, data in Canada | Yes | Canadian | Owner not stated |
Sources
All checked 2026-10-13. Claims about storage and ownership rest on the vendor's own pages (or its parent's); supporting links can include regulators and program lists.
- Where the data is stored: https://cohere.com/private-deployments
- Who owns it: https://cohere.com/privacy
- Supporting page: https://cohere.com/deployment-options
- Supporting page: https://cohere.com/blog/cohere-and-aleph-alpha-sign-agreement