AGNT/01 builds AI employees for Montreal small businesses: a receptionist that greets callers in French first, a missed-call text back, follow-up and review requests. Each build is set up around Quebec's Law 25 and the Charter of the French Language, delivered remotely from Ottawa and typically live in 2 to 3 weeks.
Aniket Gandhi, AGNT/01 · Last verified October 2026
The audit flags each one before anything goes live.
Typical timeline, confirmed in your agreement. T&C apply.
Statistics Canada's June 2026 business counts for the Montreal census metropolitan area, which takes in Laval, Longueuil and the surrounding suburbs.
employer business locations in the Montreal CMA
of them have 1 to 9 employees (101,502 locations)
food services and drinking places with employees
offices of dentists with employees
legal services locations with employees
personal care services locations, the closest category Statistics Canada has to med spas and salons
Source: Statistics Canada, Table 33-10-1176-01, Canadian Business Counts with employees, June 2026. Counts are by location, so a business with three locations is counted three times, and Statistics Canada advises caution when comparing periods.
Roughly three in four Montreal employers have fewer than ten people. In a business that size, the person answering the phone is also cutting hair, cleaning teeth or running the line. An AI receptionist picks up the call nobody can take, in the language the caller chose.
An AI build that works in Ontario needs changes before it answers a Quebec phone.
| Rule | What it requires | What we change in your build | Official source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Law 25: person in charge of personal information | The person with the highest authority in the business holds this role by default and may delegate it in writing. Their title and contact information must be published on your website (s. 3.1). | The receptionist's privacy answer points callers to that title and contact. We check it is on your site before launch. | LegisQuébec, P-39.1 |
| Law 25: privacy impact assessment | Required for any project to acquire, develop or overhaul an information system or electronic service delivery system involving personal information, proportionate to its sensitivity (s. 3.3). | You get a one-page data map: what the AI collects, why, where it is stored, who sees it and for how long. | CAI guidance |
| Law 25: information leaving Quebec | Before personal information is communicated outside Quebec, or a provider outside Quebec is entrusted with it, the business must assess it and sign a written agreement (s. 17). | We list every vendor in the stack and where it hosts data. AGNT/01 itself is in Ontario, so that goes on the list too. | LegisQuébec, P-39.1 |
| Law 25: decisions made only by automation | If a decision is based exclusively on automated processing, the person must be told no later than when they hear the decision, can ask for the information, reasons and principal factors used, and can submit observations to a staff member who can review it (s. 12.1). | By default our agents collect and route; a person on your team makes the call on refusals, waitlists and eligibility. If you want an automated decision, we add the notice and the review path. | LegisQuébec, P-39.1 |
| Charter of the French Language: service in French | Customers have the right to be informed and served in French (s. 5 and 50.2). The OQLF lists access to a French voicemail system and French information from customer service among those rights. | French greeting, French voicemail, French answers to every FAQ, with English one sentence later. | OQLF, langue du commerce |
| Charter: commercial publications | Commercial publications must be in French; the OQLF says this includes a complete French version of a business website and French content on its social media (s. 52). | Chat widget replies, booking pages and DM auto-replies ship with full French versions, not a partial translation. | LegisQuébec, C-11 |
| Bill 96: contracts of adhesion | Since June 1, 2023, a new contract of adhesion must first be given in French. After that, the parties may expressly choose another language. On a website or app, the French version must be accessible there (s. 55). | Deposit, cancellation and booking terms that the AI sends or links to are written in French first. Your lawyer signs off on the wording. | OQLF, contrats d'adhésion |
| Call recording notice | The Criminal Code exception for one-party consent is a criminal-law rule. Privacy law still requires telling people why their information is collected, by what means, and their rights (Law 25, s. 8). | The first sentence of every greeting says the caller is talking to an AI and that the call is recorded, and why. | Criminal Code, s. 184 |
| CASL: commercial texts | Commercial text messages are covered. They need consent, sender identification and an unsubscribe option such as replying STOP. An inquiry can give implied consent for six months. | Missed-call texts reply to the inquiry and name your business. Promotions only go to people with consent on file. STOP and ARRÊT are both set as opt-out words. | CRTC, CASL FAQ |
The stakes are real. Under Law 25 the Commission d'accès à l'information can impose administrative penalties of up to $10,000,000 or 2% of worldwide turnover for businesses (s. 90.12), and penal fines run from $15,000 to $25,000,000 or 4% of worldwide turnover (s. 91). The duties apply regardless of size.
This section is general information, not legal advice. Have your lawyer or privacy advisor confirm how these rules apply to your business.
A starting template we adapt for each Quebec client. Swap in your name, hours and booking link.
« Bonjour, ici [Nom de l'entreprise]. Vous parlez à notre assistante virtuelle, un système d'intelligence artificielle. L'appel est enregistré afin de traiter votre demande et d'en assurer le suivi. Comment puis-je vous aider? »
« Pour un rendez-vous, je peux vérifier nos disponibilités tout de suite. Pour parler à quelqu'un de l'équipe, dites simplement "une personne". »
"Hello, you've reached [Business name]. You're speaking with our virtual assistant, an AI system. This call is recorded to handle and follow up on your request. How can I help?"
"I can check appointment times right now. To reach someone on the team, just say 'a person'."
« Bonjour! Ici [Nom de l'entreprise]. Désolés d'avoir manqué votre appel. Comment pouvons-nous vous aider? Répondez à ce texto ou réservez ici : [lien]. Pour ne plus recevoir de textos, répondez ARRÊT. »
Where we would start if you hired us on Monday.
Where we are. AGNT/01 is based in Ottawa, Ontario, and founder-led by Aniket Gandhi. We do not have a Montreal office. Montreal clients are served remotely by video call, phone and email, and we keep the same Eastern time hours you do.
Our French. We work in English day to day. We do not claim native French-speaking staff. Every French script, text and FAQ answer is drafted by us, reviewed by a francophone before launch, and approved by you before a single caller hears it. Later French edits get the same review.
What stays with you. Your business remains responsible for its Law 25 and Charter duties. We build tools that support those duties and document them for your lawyer or privacy lead.
All prices in USD. Month to month after the build.
$799 build + $297/mo
$1,999 build + $1,197/mo
$3,999 build + $1,997/mo
From $10,999