GOVERNMENT FUNDING & NEWS

The Liberal government used its majority to pass Bill C-22, the lawful access bill, in the House of Commons before breaking for the summer. The move came a day after approving a motion to fast-track the bill and end debate at the public safety committee, which was then forced to approve it just before midnight without debating dozens of outstanding amendments. The amended bill will now head to the Senate where it must pass before becoming law. The legislation would give law enforcement the ability to get access to digital information more quickly and easily for investigations under a judicial warrant. Provisions in the bill that would allow the federal public safety minister to secretly order electronic service providers to retain user metadata and create access capabilities for their systems have sparked alarm from privacy advocates, academics, tech companies and opposition parties. The Canadian Civil Liberties Association carefully assessed the legislation and compared it to other Five Eyes allies’ lawful access regimes in its recent analysis with the University of Toronto’s Citizen Lab on how the bill poses significant privacy concerns. The bill was passed with government amendments that would explicitly protect encryption and shorten the maximum amount of time for metadata retention from one year to six months. Another change would restrict the grounds for retaining Canadians’ metadata. The government would now only be able to ask a company to retain metadata if it would be essential for aiding “effective and timely” criminal investigations or the Canadian Security and Intelligence Service’s duties. Global News

The Government of Canada’s Bill C-25 received royal assent, officially amending the Canada Elections Act to ban AI-generated imitations of real people, also known as deepfakes, of political figures. Also known as The Strong and Free Elections Act, Bill C-25 contains multiple amendments intended to strengthen the electoral process. This includes “banning sophisticated deepfakes of electoral actors that intend to mislead Canadians.” The act makes it illegal to create or distribute an image or voice imitation that is likely to be mistaken for a political figure, like candidates, party leaders or the chief electoral officer, with the intent to mislead. The act does carve out a defence for imitations with the intent of parody or satire. Democratic Institutions

Prime Minister Mark Carney said U.S. restrictions on Anthropic’s newest AI models show the dangers of overreliance on a limited number of American providers. San Francisco-based Anthropic said it has taken its latest artificial intelligence models, known as Fable 5 and Mythos 5, offline to comply with a directive from the Trump administration to prevent their use by foreign nationals. The export controls mark the U.S. government’s most significant step to date to restrict access to the most advanced AI models. “The situation we’re in collectively right now with Mythos and Fable is something that can happen with overreliance on certain models” Carney said. “Nobody has done anything wrong in the situation. But we will have done something wrong if we just accept this, don’t take the lesson, don’t build out and diversify.” Carney made the comments in Ireland ahead of the G7 summit in Evian-les-Bains, France. AP

Canada received a score of 0.67 on the 2025 Organisation for Economic Development and Co-operation (OECD) Digital Government Index, below the OECD’s average of 0.70, but up 0.01 since 2023. Canada recorded higher scores in User-Driven (0.80), Digital by Design (0.76) and Open by Default (0.74), compared with OECD averages of 0.71, 0.75 and 0.59, respectively. These results show that Canada performs well in placing user needs at the centre of service design and in promoting the openness and transparency of government data and processes, the OECD said. However, Canada scored below the OECD average in Government as a Platform (0.54 vs 0.71), Data-driven Public Sector (0.59 vs 0.74) and Proactiveness (0.59 vs 0.67). This means that Canada still has room for improvement in developing shared platforms for government-wide use, leveraging data as a strategic asset, and adopting proactive approaches to service delivery, the OECD said. “While Canada performs well in areas such as project management and monitoring, opportunities remain to strengthen the broader approach to digital investments across the full investment lifecycle.” In particular, more formalized approaches to ex-post cost-benefit analysis, a central government-wide fund for digital projects, and a dedicated GovTech strategy could further strengthen strategic prioritization and accountability. In addition, a unified digital post system for delivering official communications, a common platform for issuing and managing digital payments, and a data interoperability system are not yet reported at the federal government level. “Establishing shared infrastructure in these areas could enhance the coherence and reach of digital service delivery.” OECD

Competition Bureau Canada announced an examination of competition across Canada’s food supply chain, in keeping with the Bureau’s work in the food sector. Food prices have risen sharply in recent years, putting significant pressure on Canadian households. While many factors influence food prices, competition plays an important role in keeping prices in check and giving Canadians more choice. The Bureau’s examination will look for potential competition issues in three key areas:

• Production and processing, including how food is grown, caught, transformed and packaged.

• Transportation and distribution, including how food moves to retailers across Canada.
• Retail pricing practices, including loyalty programs, pricing algorithms, shrinkflation and skimpflation.

The Bureau is seeking input from Canadians and organizations with experience in the food supply chain. They are invited to share their views through an online form by July 31, 2026. The Bureau will also meet with groups and hold roundtable discussions in the coming months to determine where competition is not working well, where there are barriers, and what could help improve competition. The Bureau will publish a final report in spring 2027. The report will share findings and make recommendations to governments on how competition can be strengthened across the food supply chain. Competition Bureau Canada

A high-ranking federal bureaucrat who was publicly accused of improperly deleting records related to the procurement of Ottawa’s costly and controversial ArriveCan app has been cleared of wrongdoing in a probe by Canada’s Information Commissioner. Minh Doan, a senior public servant and former vice-president and chief information officer at the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA), was accused in an internal CBSA complaint more than two years ago of destroying records related to the app – a COVID-era declaration tool for international travellers that ballooned in cost. But a report by Information Commissioner Caroline Maynard found that Doan’s files had been unintentionally corrupted – not destroyed. “While records may have been permanently lost and opportunities missed by the staff,” Maynard wrote, “I am satisfied that Doan himself made reasonable efforts to recover the corrupted records.” In addition, nothing the commissioner learned during her investigation led her to believe an offence had been committed, she said. Doan is now the chief technology officer for the Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat, according to a public government directory. ArriveCan was built by the federal government and was used by travellers to screen themselves for COVID-19 symptoms. The initial version of the app cost $80,000, according to the CBSA, but software updates led spending to skyrocket to nearly $59.5-million, according to a 2024 federal Auditor General report, and resulted in inquiries, several watchdog reports and increased scrutiny of government spending. The Globe and Mail

The Government of Canada is launching an audit and strategic review of the federally funded non-profit Canada Health Infoway after the failure of its $300-million PrescribeIT program. However, the Conservatives say the organization should be defunded and any necessary responsibilities should be transferred to Health Canada. Canada Health Infoway launched PrescribeIT in 2017 as part of “axe the fax” initiatives to replace fax machines with digital alternatives. But the program was shut down in most of the country last month because fewer than five percent of prescriptions flowed through it. The program has been the subject of hearings at the House of Commons health committee in recent months. Canada Health Infoway, has received more than $2 billion in federal funds since it was founded in 2001. Canada Health Infoway has disclosed it had five senior executives last year who were making salaries between $270,000 and $342,000, with bonuses between $60,750 and $76,950 and taxable benefits between $28,573 and $34,305. The organization also had 24 vice-presidents and senior managers who earned between $207,284 and $340,762 in total compensation. Total remuneration in the 2024-25 fiscal year for 175 employees was nearly $29 million. The Globe and Mail

The Office of the Procurement Ombud (OPO) hosted its third Procurement Solutions Forum, bringing together senior procurement leaders and stakeholders from across the federal government to discuss the development of a harmonized set of federal procurement rules – one of the Procurement Ombud’s five key recommendations to address long-standing federal procurement issues, as outlined in his report Time for Solutions: Top 5 Foundational Changes Needed in Federal Procurement. The session built on two previous forums focused on establishing a federal Chief Procurement Officer, and creating a government-wide Vendor Performance Management system. The session focused on how a more harmonized set of procurement rules could improve consistency across federal departments, reduce administrative burden and make federal procurement rules both clearer and more accessible for suppliers and public servants alike. Participants agreed the session underscored both the urgency and the opportunity to modernize federal procurement practices in a coordinated way. OPO will host a fourth Procurement Solutions Forum in the coming months to discuss the remaining recommendations in the Ombud’s report: leveraging artificial intelligence to modernize federal procurement tools and systems; and establishing a government-wide framework for procurement data collection to improve transparency and support decision-making. Office of the Procurement Ombud

Despite the Government of Canada’s talk about “buying Canadian” and building up the defence sector, government buyers are still treating Canadian products as second-best, says Alberta tech entrepreneur James Neufeld. “It’s a really big systemic challenge that there is a slight prejudice in the Canadian buying system because [government buyers] are worried they will buy subpar products,” Neufeld told The Logic. Samdesk, the company Neufeld founded and leads, makes a platform with the same name that combines social media posts and traditional data sources to provide calibrated alerts about potential hazards and business risks. DoorDash uses it to warn delivery drivers away from dangers, Neufeld said. When Iran responded to U.S. and Israeli attacks by targeting other Persian Gulf states, Samdesk pinged clients with staff travelling in places like Qatar to tell them their people might be in danger. Samdesk has sold its services to NATO, to the U.K. Ministry of Defence and to the Pentagon, Neufeld said. Now, National Defence is seeking a tool for its Intelligence Command that does what Samdesk does: one that will monitor and synthesize data from open sources to “alert users to developing situations, based on predefined criteria, for the purposes of conducting exploitation and analysis.” Neufeld thinks that the government’s Buy Canadian policy, its AI strategy and its defence industrial strategy should all weigh in Samdesk’s favour. But the bidding documents for the National Defence work say explicitly that there’s no advantage for Canadian companies in the process. Neufeld said he thinks the new procurement is nominally competitive but set up in a way that favours the current supplier. The Logic

Carbon capture companies warned the Government of Canada last week that recent federal policy changes have made their projects unviable, and the companies are now lobbying for access to a clean fuel market that was built for an entirely different industry. When Varme Energy set out to build a business converting waste into electricity while capturing carbon emissions, it was banking on two things: a strong carbon price and methane regulation credits. Then the federal government announced new headline prices for carbon and revised its methane regulations. The changes, announced in the span of a few months, wiped $265 million in anticipated revenues off the books, according to Varme CEO Sean Collins. Varme is part of a coalition of Alberta-based carbon capture companies that travelled to Ottawa to tell the federal government their projects are “economically underwater” and they are running out of time. Collins said that without a solution, some projects could be cancelled. “If Canadian domestic carbon removals could sell into the clean fuels market, we’d be financed, our project would make it across the finish line,” he told iPolitics. The clean fuel regulations market was designed to reduce the carbon intensity of liquid fuels, with oil refiners and fuel producers earning and trading credits for cleaner production. Fred Ghatala, president of Advanced Biofuels Canada, argues the door is already open for carbon capture projects that relate to fuels – and that opening it any wider would weaking the regulation and its intended purpose. iPolitics

The Government of Ontario announced that GE Vernova Hitachi Nuclear Energy and Montreal-headquartered Velan Inc.  signed a partnership agreement to explore opportunities to deploy reactor integral isolation valves and containment isolation valves, critical pieces of safety equipment for BWRX-300 small modular reactor (SMR) projects in Europe. As part of this partnership, Velan plans to build a new manufacturing facility in Durham Region to help meet rising global demand for SMR technologies that will see each new reactor built bring up to $70 million worth of new investment into Ontario for world-class components. Ontario is building the G7’s first grid-scale SMR. With SMR projects advancing in Poland, Finland, Italy, Belgium, Estonia and the Netherlands, Europe is undergoing a major nuclear resurgence as countries seek reliable, affordable and secure sources of electricity. At the same time, decades of underinvestment have left many jurisdictions without the skilled workforce, advanced manufacturing capacity and specialized supply chains needed to deliver these projects at the pace and scale required. “This pivotal shift is where Ontario’s expertise and industry is stepping in to deliver the world’s next generation of nuclear reactors,” the government said. Govt. of Ontario

The Government of Québec reached an agreement with France-based AI company Mistral to determine how AI technology can help make the government more efficient. The exploratory agreement follows the same formula as the agreement the government signed last week with Toronto-based Cohere. Mistral had announced its intention to open an office in Montreal to develop the Canadian market. Like Cohere, Mistral sells its AI technology primarily to businesses and government organizations. La Presse

The Government of Québec reached a deal with the province's English-language universities to increase the percentage of out-of-province students who are capable of having basic conversations in French by the time they complete undergraduate degrees. The government said it will provide about $20 million per year to the universities over the next eight years as part of the deal. Quebec expects about 60 percent of out-of-province students in undergraduate programs at McGill University, Concordia University and Bishop's University to have basic French-speaking skills by graduation. Officials from the universities say they are far from this target at the moment, but are confident they can achieve it. University leaders say they will use the new funding to support additional French courses, immersion activities and other learning opportunities. The Canadian Press

Crown corporation Alberta Innovates announced it is investing more than $14 million across 12 organizations to accelerate the commercialization of Alberta technology. Funding, which will be deployed over the following months and years to projects across defence, aerospace, and agri-food, will help scale access to support for small and medium-sized enterprises across infrastructure, expertise, partnerships and market opportunities. Funded projects will supply Alberta’s innovators with access to things like specialized testing, research, and development facilities, as well as supporting academic initiatives like the University of Alberta’s Alberta CREATE, which provides semiconductor and advanced manufacturing infrastructure, and ecosystem builders like Edmonton Unlimited and Platform Calgary’s Scale Alberta program. BetaKit

The Federal Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) announced $700,000 for the City of Toronto to support local businesses through two complementary initiatives. The first will enhance community-based main street activations across Toronto during the FIFA World Cup 2026™ tournament period, and the second will support export readiness programming to help businesses expand into global markets. The federal government also announced $600,000 for Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) to help establish the Future of Sport Lab x FIFA 2026 Legacy Incubation Hub to help Canadian soccer and sport-technology startups to commercialize and scale innovative solutions. Delivered by TMU in partnership with the City of Toronto, the Hub will design, deliver and operate an annual cohort-based accelerator program to provide mentorship, commercialization support, pilot opportunities and international partnership development to up to 60 sport technology startups. FedDev Ontario’s investment is supported by additional contributions from key partners, including up to $300,000 from the City of Toronto and investments from private-sector and sport organizations. FedDev Ontario

The Government of Alberta is launching a dual practice model in September 2026 that will allow eligible physicians to deliver both publicly funded and privately paid surgeries in accredited facilities. Through clearly established safeguards and a robust governance framework, the dual practice model is designed to improve access, expand care options for Albertans, and attract and retain physicians by offering more flexibility in how they practise while maintaining publicly funded care, the government said. Eligible procedures will include those already accredited by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta, such as orthopedic procedures, hip and knee replacements, cataract surgery, select ear, nose and throat procedures, gynecological surgeries, dermatology, plastic surgery, and minimally invasive general surgeries such as hernia repair. Family physicians will not be eligible to participate, except those with subspecialties in anesthesia or surgical assistance. Emergency and life-saving services, including cancer care, will remain exclusively publicly funded. The dual practice framework will enable surgical procedures to be performed in accredited chartered surgical facilities and hospitals. Hospital and Surgical Health Services and Acute Care Alberta are working to build a model that supports hospital-based dual practice to leverage underutilized operating rooms. Govt. of Alberta

The Government of British Columbia approved the expansion of the Red Chris mine following joint decision-making under a streamlined regulatory process. It is the second assessment conducted under a Section 7 agreement with Tahltan Central Government. The mining will move from open pit to underground, improving production and extending operations into the 2040s. The Red Chris Block Cave Underground Mine Expansion (Red Chris expansion), a copper and gold mine 18 kilometres southeast of Iskut in northwest B.C., is one of B.C.’s 35 priority major projects and has also been added to the federal priority projects list. The expansion has a projected capital cost of $2.4 billion to $3 billion and will increase ore processing to as much as 15 million tonnes per year. Red Chris mine is owned by Newmont (70 percent) and Imperial Metals (30 percent). Govt. of B.C.

The Government of the United Kingdom announced that social media platforms will be blocked from offering services to children under age 16. The U.K. will go further to protect kids with world-leading additional restrictions on harmful features online such as live streaming and strangers communicating with children. The action is expected to be brought to Parliament before Christmas, with protections expected to come into force in Spring 2027. The U.K. government plans to use the same model for a social media ban as Australia. This would capture user-to-user platforms, whose purpose is to enable social interaction and which allow users to post material, alongside algorithms. The ban will include platforms like Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X. Messaging services like WhatsApp and Signal won’t be included in the social media ban. So-called AI ‘romantic companion’ chatbots – designed to simulate sexual relationships or roleplay with users – will have to enforce a minimum age of 18. Similar intimate functionalities will be restricted for under-18s on AI chatbots more widely. Govt. of the U.K.

G7 leaders met with OpenAI’s Sam Altman, Anthropic’s Dario Amodei, Google DeepMind’s Demis Hassabis and Cohere’s Aidan Gomez, to explore how to align AI standards among the like-minded countries. “There was a consensus around figuring out a way to align standards between the democracies,” said Gomez, citing issues like use of the technology for economic gains, child safety and cyber threats. He was speaking at the VivaTech summit. AI comes with immense potential, “but also risks for free, democratic societies,” Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, said in a post on X. “We have complementary strengths, shared security interests, and a common responsibility to lead. So we should deepen our cooperation. Invest together. Accelerate adoption everywhere, from industry to health care. And ensure that the most powerful models are trustworthy and safe,” she said. Ursula von der Leyen in a post on X

Senior Chinese officials stressed Beijing’s plans to share artificial intelligence globally and safely, the latest sign of how the U.S. and China are promoting different approaches to AI. “China is accelerating the establishment of a global AI cooperation organization, and welcomes all parties to join,” Wang Yi, China’s top diplomat, told reporters in Mandarin Chinese, according to a CNBC translation. He emphasized the technology should serve the needs of humans. Wang was speaking at the release of China’s global governance whitepaper, which criticized trade wars and emphasized support for the Global South. Wang’s comments came as the U.S. ramps up efforts to restrict foreign access to leading, U.S.-developed AI models. U.S. AI models also tend to be subscription-only, while China’s efforts have focused on cheap or free AI models that can often be downloaded in their entirety. CNBC

 Fisheries and Oceans Canada announced that Canada, for the first time, will host the 12^th Our Ocean Conference (OOC) Spring 2027, in Halifax, N.S. Drawing on commitments made in A Force of Nature: Canada's Strategy to Protect Nature, hosting OOC 2027 supports Canada’s efforts to build a sustainable ocean economy, grow stronger fisheries, protect up to 30 percent of the marine environment by 2030, and secure Canada’s natural marine legacy for future generations. Canada brings to OOC 2027 a distinct approach to ocean stewardship built on Indigenous knowledge passed down over generations, combined with world-class science and a track record of multilateral collaboration. As host of OOC 2027, Canada will work with global partners to accelerate commitments, strengthen ocean governance, and translate international ambition into tangible results. Fisheries and Oceans Canada

RESEARCH, TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION

U15 Canada published updated guidance on best practices for safeguarding risks, in response to the federal government’s Defence Industrial Strategy and evolving risks. The guidance reflects the latest developments in research security practices at U15 research universities across the country and the evolution of federal policies governing the secure conduct of research, updating a guide first issued in 2023. As geopolitical threats continue to evolve and the Defence Industrial Strategy calls on universities to advance sovereign capabilities in dual-use technologies that will underpin Canada’s security, the guidance – which includes best practice actions – is intended to support universities in strengthening research security practices while continuing to enable secure international collaboration. The guidance was developed by vice-presidents of research and dedicated research security teams at U15 universities. A central principle of the guidance is that safeguarding research must be proportionate, inclusive and evidence-informed. “Risk mitigation should not undermine the openness and diversity that make Canadian universities a vibrant and collaborative place to conduct research.” U15 Canada

McGill University is the highest-ranked postsecondary institution in Canada in the QS World University Rankings 2027, placing 30^th globally. It is closely followed by the University of Toronto at 32^nd, and the University of British Columbia at 45^th. Other Canadian institutions and their global rankings include:

• University of Alberta: 96^th
• University of Waterloo: 113^th (tied)
• Western University: 142^nd (tied)
• Université de Montréal: 162^nd (tied)
• McMaster University: 174^th (tied)
• Queen’s University: 179^th (tied)
• University of Ottawa: 228^th (tied)
• University of Calgary: 249^th

The Massachusetts Institute of Technology ranked No. 1 among global universities, followed by Imperial College London, Stanford University, University of Oxford, and Harvard University. QS World Rankings 2027

The Government of Canada invested $10 million in the future of research in Canada’s North with the first awards from the Canada Foundation for Innovation's (CFI) Northern Fund. Developed in consultation with Northern research institutions, this program funds labs and equipment to support research for the North by the North. Two research projects each received $5 million in funding: 

• Community health research: With CFI funding, the Qaujigiartiit Health Research Centre will build a new state-of-the-art facility, with collaborative workspaces for research and community outreach. Based in Iqaluit, Nunavut, the centre has provided a safe and culturally sensitive environment to answer Nunavut’s health research questions for 20 years.
• An environmental stewardship app: SIKU: The Indigenous Knowledge App will use CFI funding for software, digital storage and expertise to manage large datasets to support more than 100 community-led projects, with reporting, AI analysis and data visualization. With over 40,000 users, the app provides the tools Northern communities need for research, environmental monitoring and stewardship. This online and mobile platform created by Northerners and managed by the Arctic Eider Society based in Sanikiluaq, Nunavut, brings together Indigenous Knowledge and scientific approaches for research programs that range from sea ice and climate studies to wildlife ecology and mapping. Canada Foundation for Innovation

The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) is leading an international joint call, anticipated to officially launch in late July of this year, with proposals due in late September. The funding opportunity aims to leverage complementary interests and research expertise across G7 and Nordic countries to support bilateral or multilateral collaborative research projects in quantum science and technologies. Participating international funders include:

• Japan Science and Technology Agency.
• United Kingdom Research and Innovation - Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council.
• NordForsk, which acts on behalf of the following Nordic organizations: Innovation Fund Denmark, Research Council of Finland, Research Council of Norway and the Swedish Research Council.
• Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, German Research Foundation, pending confirmation. 

Each project must include at least one Canadian researcher eligible to receive NSERC funds and at least one international collaborator eligible to receive funds from a participating international funder. The Canadian applicant must submit a single collaborative proposal on behalf of the Canadian and international research teams. As the lead agency, NSERC will conduct a merit review process for each proposal. For questions, contact alliance_quantumquantique@nserc-crsng.gc.ca NSERC

The National Research Council is seeking innovative solutions in low-emission aviation electric engines to enable strategic operations in the Arctic. Canada's Armed Forces have increased their investment in developing operational capabilities in extreme Arctic conditions, minimizing environmental impact and enhancing resilience amid changing climate conditions that threaten existing infrastructure. A modular electric engine solution would enable flexible power output across aviation platforms. This challenge is only open to receive proposals for Phase 2 (prototype development) of the Challenge Stream. Only proposed solutions that fall within technology readiness levels 5 and 9 can be submitted to this challenge. The closing date for proposals is July 16, 2026 at 2 p.m. ET. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

The Indigenous Scholars Awards and Supplements Pilot Initiative (ISAS) will soon be available to Indigenous doctoral students and postdoctoral researchers, in addition to Indigenous master’s students. The newly expanded initiative will be administered by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC). Launched in 2022, the ISAS initiative was developed in response to the government’s commitment to strengthen Indigenous research capacity and provide dedicated funding to support promising master’s students, enable greater mentorship of emerging researchers, and increase opportunities for Indigenous Peoples at Canadian postsecondary institutions. The expansion of the initiative to all levels of funding helps improve access and builds on the commitment to support Indigenous research and research training for Canada’s First Nations, Inuit and Métis scholars. The doctoral and postdoctoral competitions launch on July 8, 2026, and the master’s competition launches on September 2, 2026. SSHRC

The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) announced the winners of the 2026 Storytellers Challenge, during a special showcase at the Science Writers and Communicators of Canada conference. The annual competition challenges postsecondary students to demonstrate – in up to three minutes or 300 words – how SSHRC-funded research is making a difference in the lives of Canadians. ​These five students were selected for their exceptional ability to translate complex social, cultural and economic research into compelling narratives. The winners each receive $1,000 in addition to the $3,000 they received as finalists, and the opportunity for national promotion of their excellent work.

• Andrea Bentzfrom the University of Ottawa, who explained how pediatric emergency nurses experience moral injury shaped by ethical challenges and broader professional and societal pressures.
• Kathleen Motluk from the University of Toronto, who described a project examining the use of a barge as accommodation for asylum seekers in the United Kingdom.
• Diana Peña Ruiz from the Institut national de la recherche scientifique, who explained that women in Canada hold less wealth than men, with gaps persisting or widening among younger generations.
• Jaclyn Roach from the University of Regina, who explained that teacher well-being is shaped by systemic pressures and deeply impacts classroom experiences.
• Ghada Youssef from the University of Victoria, who described an arts-based project that shares genocide survivors’ experiences through graphic novels and documentary films.

SSHRC also awarded the competition’s Engagement Prize to Lakehead University’s Sydney Ambury, who received an additional $1,000. This finalist creatively and consistently promoted their submission, the submissions of other finalists, and the Challenge generally. SSHRC

A study by University of Calgary researchers found that a 30-plus-year U.S. federal survey of 12,686 Americans revealed four distinct entrepreneurial career paths, not one universal age trend. Seok-Woo Kwon and Xiaoying Wang of UCalgary’s Haskayne School of Business found that whether a venture was incorporated predicted money and well-being better than when it began: incorporated founders tended to earn more and feel better, while informal, unincorporated self-employment was linked to lower well-being and no earnings gain. Starting an unincorporated business in middle age tracked the steepest well-being drop of any group, with no financial payoff to offset it. Growing up around a family business was the strongest predictor of becoming an entrepreneur at all. Kwon and Wang traced who became self-employed, when, for how long, and how those paths related to their finances and well-being by around age 50. Their study, published in Sage Journals’ Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, noted, “The key theoretical insight is that there is no single relationship between age and entrepreneurship.” Instead, several different relationships run side by side, each with its own logic. Most people, about 69 percent, never really went into business for themselves at all. A small core of career-persistent entrepreneurs, around six percent, jumped in young and stayed in, with roughly 80 percent of the group self-employed by their mid-30s and holding there. The remaining two groups dabbled and moved on. Early-adulthood entrepreneurs, about 12 percent, spiked in their twenties and early thirties, then drifted back to conventional jobs. Middle-aged entrepreneurs, about 13 percent, did the reverse, staying employed through their twenties before ramping up after their mid-30s. The bottom line: For a large share of those who struck out on their own, particularly people who did it later in life and never registered a formal company, the move was linked to lower well-being and no extra money to show for it. StudyFinds

Research institute BC Policy Solutions published a report providing solutions to address the state of postsecondary education in British Columbia. The report’s author, Véronique Sioufi, the racial equity researcher and policy analyst at BC Policy Solutions, refers to the “marketization” of postsecondary education in the province, which she said has been a result of policies including using international students for funding, neoliberal public postsecondary takeover, and prioritizing competition over cohesion. Nineteen of B.C.’s 25 public institutions are projected to operate at a loss with an estimated $300 million annual shortfall. Since 2024, postsecondary institutions have cut or suspended over 180 programs, laid off more than 1,300 faculty and countless contract staff and closed over 45 student services, according to Sioufi’s report. She provided four key recommendations:

• “decolonize” postsecondary education to move away from treating students as customers.
• restore public funding to at least 75 percent of operating costs, maintain the two-percent cap on domestic tuition increase, and extend the cap to international student tuition.
• implement community-driven governance structures.
• Improve labour relations by moving away from casual and part-time staff in favour of permanent, full-time roles protected by collective agreements. BC Policy Solutions

A Canadian medtech startup, built on another Canadian company’s data infrastructure, has secured the top prize at one of Europe’s biggest tech conferences. Montreal-based medical AI company Reveal Life Science took home first place in the OVHcloud Startup Challenge at VivaTech in Paris, beating out dozens of international competitors. The startup won for its technology that reads tissues in seconds to determine whether they are healthy or cancerous, using a chemical analysis technique called Raman spectroscopy. Reveal said its AI platform contains the world’s largest datasets of molecular data. Another unique feature of Reveal’s tech is its data hosting, which it does through fellow Canadian company Qohash. This month, Reveal and surgical innovation centre IRCAD (Institut de Recherche contre les Cancers de l'Appareil Digestif) announced a Canada-France partnership to bring its AI to breast cancer surgery. Though it hasn’t been cleared for sale yet, Reveal has obtained an FDA Breakthrough Device designation, which typically speeds up the regulatory review process for U.S. sales. BetaKit

SFU VentureLabs and Manterra Technologies Inc. signed a memorandum of understanding for a new collaboration to help expand access to local manufacturing for B.C. startups. Through this partnership, VentureLabs companies will gain access to Manterra’s nearly 40 years of manufacturing expertise, helping companies move toward scaled production. For many founders, moving from a working prototype to a manufacturable product is one of the most difficult stages of growth. As VentureLabs' Manufacturing and Commercialization Partner, Manterra gives founders access to a certified manufacturer with decades of experience in highly regulated industries. Manterra Technologies operates a 52,000-square-foot facility in Metro Vancouver, providing expertise in precision plastic molding and advanced 3D-printing technology. Access to these localized resources will help startups accelerate their production timelines while building a sustainable foundation within the province. SFU VentureLabs

German security tech firm Giesecke+Devrient (G+D) launched its AI Hub in Montreal, located at Mila – Quebec AI Institute, with an initial 15 staff to work on new cybersecurity and financial technologies. The Munich-based company has pledged to spend $80 million in Canada over the next five years to cover salaries, research partnerships with Mila and other organizations, compute costs and other development expenses. The hub is at the heart of G+D’s Global Center of Excellence for AI and will develop applied AI solutions for security-critical domains, including cybersecurity, financial technology and digital identity. The establishment of the new hub builds on G+D’s long-standing presence in Canada since 1962. Canada was selected as the location for the hub because of its strong AI ecosystem, deep research talent pool, and established innovation infrastructure, particularly in Montreal, G+D said. Giesecke+Devrient

Domestic firms produce cybersecurity software and gear that’s strong enough to guard sensitive data – like personal information held by banks – but not for state secrets, said Bridget Walshe, associate head of the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security. Through the new federal Defence Industrial Strategy, the agency wants to work with Canadian companies to take that next big step, Walshe said in a speech at a global conference on post-quantum cryptography in Ottawa. Preparing for a future when quantum computers can break the traditional ciphering that protects all kinds of digital communications is difficult in Canada, with responsibility for different industries divided among levels of government, Walshe said. The federal government is assuming that critical systems need to be upgraded by 2030, she said, but it can be a difficult case to make in private industry, where one firm might have thousands of embedded devices that can’t handle new software and have to be replaced. The Logic

Ireland-based Jazz Pharmaceuticals agreed to pay Vancouver-based AbCellera US$84 million for early research on AbCellera’s three antibody-based treatments for gastrointestinal cancers and other solid tumours. Each drug, if it succeeds, could yield further payments for AbCellera of up to $792 million each for two initial programs, plus royalties. Jazz will have the exclusive, worldwide right to develop and commercialize each program. The preclinical research collaboration, option and license agreement is aimed at discovering and developing next-generation T-cell engaging (TCE) multi-specific antibodies. The collaboration will leverage AbCellera’s antibody discovery engine to deliver optimized development candidates for multiple gastrointestinal cancers and other solid tumors. AbCellera's T-cell engager platform is a fully integrated capability, from discovery to clinical manufacturing, for developing multi-specific TCEs for difficult-to-treat cancers. AbCellera

Burn experts at Hamilton Health Sciences are the first in the world to use a novel biological treatment to save the face of a young woman who was severely burned in a London, Ont. house fire last December. The treatment used exosomes – tiny particles released by cells that carry signals from one cell to another to help coordinate rapid healing and tissue repair and reduce inflammation. The particles are collected, typically from lab-grown cells, and injected into the injured areas to accelerate healing – much more so than the current standard of skin grafting, which can leave scarring and a patch-like appearance. Exosomes have been studied for years as part of burn research, but not yet in humans. Clinical trials involving humans have used exosomes for other types of wound healing, with promising results. Western University student Kaitlin Jeffrey, 18, of Toronto, received the innovative treatment and healed faster, and with better results, than another young student whose burns from that same fire were serious, but not as severe. The other student wasn’t a candidate for exosome treatment because their injuries did not require skin grafting. Jeffrey’s two treatments, which took place several days apart, used one trillion exosomes sourced from the United States. Hamilton Health Sciences

Calgary’s tech ecosystem is the fastest growing in Canada, according to Startup Genome’s 2026 Global Startup Ecosystem Report. The report lists Calgary among its cohort of cities in the 41^st to 50^th fastest emerging ecosystems, putting it on par with cities like Abu Dhabi, Sacramento, Warsaw, and Chennai, India. Calgary’s ranking represents a spike in the city’s standing within global emerging ecosystems, jumping 52 points since 2020 and more than quadrupling growth rates of other Canadian ecosystems. Calgary’s economy is driven by strong fintech, cleantech, and agtech sectors, with robust public sector backing catalytic expansion. Platform Calgary's 2025 Impact Report confirmed $323.9 million in investment secured by member companies, pushing cumulative capital raised past $1 billion since 2018, with 1,563 founders supported, up 36 percent year-over-year. It projects a further 20-percent increase in founder participation for 2026. Globally, Toronto-Waterloo was tied with Paris for 13^th in the world’s top 20 startup ecosystems. Silicon Valley retained its No. 1 spot. Startup Genome

Three Canadian insurance companies were ranked among the most mature in terms of AI adoption across North America and Europe for a second time by Evident Insights, a financial sector AI benchmarking firm. The study ranks 30 of the largest insurers from the two continents. Ten are life insurance carriers, eight of which are headquartered in Canada and the U.S. Manulife topped the list of North American life insurers and ranked third place overall, up two places from last year. Evident highlighted Manulife’s use of adaptive questions to approve eligible applications automatically. The feature, implemented in September 2025, has doubled the life insurer’s instant approval rate and cut up to 40 percent of medical questions, according to Manulife. Earlier this month, the insurer said it planned to roll out more AI tools in Canada that were successfully piloted in the U.S. under its John Hancock brand. Manulife and Intact are among the only three major players in the insurance sector that publicly disclose the financial returns generated by artificial intelligence investments, according to Evident. Manulife generated more than $300 million with the technology in 2025, while Intact reported $200 million, Evident said. Investment Executive

Toronto-Dominion Bank told some employees working in its financial crimes and risk management team that it would run software to track their work, prompting questions around consent and privacy in the workplace as the Canadian lender tries to increase productivity, according to a recording of a team call reviewed by Reuters and a document TD shared with employees. The program will track the time employees spend on browsers, internal chat and meeting applications, according to the recording. Companies are increasingly facing employee pushback over the deployment of software to monitor their work. TD said in a statement to Reuters the deployment is “standard practice across the industry.” “In various parts of our business, we use automated solutions to improve insights and better allocate resources,” the company said. “This is not AI and not specific to any business or matter, the tool allows managers to more accurately manage workflows, team capacity and performance. Where deployed, colleagues are informed about where they are used and for what purpose.” TD said it has safeguards in place to protect colleagues’ privacy. The Financial Times reported in March that JPMorgan, the biggest U.S. bank, was starting to monitor the hours of its junior investment bankers, saying it was for their own well-being. The Globe and Mail  

Texas-headquartered and Vancouver-founded HIVE Digital Technologies, Bell and Cohere are partnering on a US$220-million, three-year AI infrastructure project to build a sovereign Canadian AI platform. HIVE, via BUZZ HPC, secured a US$220-million with Bell Canada and Cohere to deliver a full-stack Canadian AI platform. The infrastructure will be powered by 2,304 NVIDIA Grace Blackwell graphics processing units deployed at Bell’s Merritt, B.C. facility, serving as the compute backbone for Cohere’s foundation models. The new development is one of the first major projects for the Canadian Sovereign AI Alliance, a loose coalition of companies led by Bell to sell technology that’s developed or controlled domestically. The move is designed to keep AI infrastructure, data and governance within Canada, aligning with federal priorities for technology sovereignty. Executives from HIVE, Bell and Cohere describe the partnership as a turning point, shifting Canada from AI research leadership to industrial-scale AI commercialization. By integrating connectivity, compute and model development within Canadian borders, the initiative aims to capture economic value domestically rather than renting foreign infrastructure. HIVE

Kaylie Tiessen   • 2ndChief Economist at The Canadian SHIELD Institute for Public Policy | Board Member | Policy Fellow3d • 

The federal government is increasingly emphasizing the sovereign cloud in its digital strategy, but the government’s list of approved cloud services tells a different story. Ottawa still procures most of its cloud services from large American companies.

The Canadian Shield Institute dug into federal cloud procurement details for the Foundations of Digital Sovereignty, and we found that ThinkOn is the only Canadian cloud services provider approved for government procurement. It also happens to have the fewest approved services of all providers on the list.

Microsoft is approved to provide about 750 different types of services. ServiceNow is approved for just over 600. And Oracle about 110. ThinkOn is approved to provide 49.

There are already several Canadian cloud services providers including ThinkOn, Micrologic and eStruxture that the government could be procuring from. If the government is truly committed to sovereign cloud, we should see more Canadian firms like these on the approved procurement list.
This week in the Foundations of Digital Sovereignty, we lay out a list of policy solutions that can impact the supply and demand sides of the government cloud services market. We cover the gamut of options from trade and competition policy to public interest regulation and blocking statutes.

Digital sovereignty will never be achieved by one mechanism alone. It’s not just a procurement problem or a trade problem or a competition problem — it cuts across many layers and technical considerations. Delivering digital sovereignty requires complementary efforts across these elements.

Read Chapter 7, Back to Basics here: https://lnkd.in/guDW5q6r

Toronto-based fintech firm Wealthsimple is launching Wealthsimple Predict, a new standalone app that will give Canadian retail investors access to prediction markets trading. The app, currently in beta testing, is set to launch this summer. At launch, the app will offer access to nearly 4,000 event contracts trading on Kalshi, the leading U.S. predictions exchange. These contracts represent a subset of Kalshi's listings that fall within the categories Wealthsimple is authorized to offer in Canada – economic indicators, financial markets, and climate – and meet Wealthsimple's listing standards. Prediction markets enable participants to trade on the outcome of real-world events. Each contract poses a yes or no question – for example, will Canada's inflation rate rise in Q3? – and settles at $1 if the answer is yes, or $0 if it isn't. The price of a contract at any given time reflects what the market collectively thinks the probability of that outcome is: for example, a contract trading at $0.70 implies 70 percent probability that the event will resolve to a “Yes” outcome. Clients can buy or sell contracts before settlement, so positions can be exited as new information moves the market. In March, the Canadian Investment Regulatory Organization authorized Wealthsimple to offer event and forecast contract trading, also known as prediction markets. Wealthsimple

O’Leary Digital Ltd. is considering tapping public markets to fund its proposed “Wonder Valley” data centre projects in Utah and Alberta, according to reporting from Bloomberg. O’Leary Digital is backed by six investors, including Kevin O’Leary of ABC’s Shark Tank. The firm faces substantial capital requirements for its planned U.S. and Canadian data centre developments. O’Leary Digital is in discussions with hyperscalers to assess interest in housing equipment at the facilities. Companies developing artificial intelligence infrastructure have entered the bond market to raise billions of dollars for data centre buildings, equipment, computing power and chips. Investing.com

Canada ranks 14^th among the world’s 25 largest data-centre investment hubs for risk of damage from climate-driven extreme weather, according to a report from Sydney, Australia-based analytics firm Cross Dependency Initiative (XDI). The study examined 2,595 planned data centres globally and found Canada ranked ahead of both the U.S. (23^rd) and the U.K. (24^th). XDI identified Canada as one of three countries – alongside Australia and France – facing some of the fastest projected growth in heat-related operational risks. The report found that 11 percent of Canada’s 37 planned data centres would be considered high-risk under low-resilience engineering standards, though that figure falls to three percent with more advanced resilience measures. The report identified surface-water flooding as the primary climate threat. Alberta ranked 23^rd globally among subnational jurisdictions for climate-related damage risk and British Columbia ranked 29^th. XDI projects average damage risk to Canadian data centres could increase by 145 percent between 2026 and 2100. The findings suggest climate resilience should now be treated as a strategic infrastructure consideration alongside power availability, connectivity and land access, the report said. Swiss Re projects global insurance premiums associated with data centres could rise from US$10.6 billion today to US$24.2 billion by 2030. XDI

Swedish legaltech startup Legora – which recently opened a Toronto office – plans to more than double its workforce to about 1,500 employees this year after quadrupling its client base. The Stockholm-headquartered company, which is valued at $5.6 billion, was looking to grow from 650 employees to about 1,500. Legora, which was founded in 2023 and counts Bain Capital and Nvidia’s venture capital arm among its investors, offers firms and in-house legal teams tools to review and draft documents, speed up due diligence, and keep on top of regulations. Financial Times

Frontier, a coalition of companies that funds carbon-removal projects, said it would inject an additional US$915 million into the sector, and added Anthropic as a new participant. Shopify, Stripe, Google, Salesforce, and H&M are among the backers of the new funding pool. The additional funding brings Frontier’s total funding pledges to $1.8 billion. The new funding will target technologies including ‌ocean ⁠alkalinity enhancement, biomass-based removal, enhanced rock weathering, and direct air capture. Frontier said these technologies could collectively reach gigaton scale, though each carries ​distinct cost ​and technology ⁠risks. Frontier said it plans to make approximately 10 to 15 focused ​bets through eight- to 10-year offtake ​contracts ⁠extending as far as 2040. Frontier funds startups worldwide – including in Halifax, Montreal, Saskatoon and Vancouver – that make technologies to capture tonnes of carbon, offsetting the corporate backers’ emissions. Reuters

Montreal-headquartered NorthStar Earth & Space announced the launch of augmented commercial services valued at more than $40 million over 12 months with the Royal Canadian Air Force’s 3 Canadian Space Division (3 CSD). The agreement enables 3 CSD to integrate NorthStar’s space-based surveillance capabilities to enhance mission readiness and threat detection in orbit. By processing millions of images and observations collected from space- and ground-based sensors, NorthStar delivers precise assessments and predictions of the behaviour of objects in space. Canada’s Defence Industrial Strategy recognizes space as a critical operational domain for national security and economic stability. Satellites underpin communications, navigation, climate monitoring, Earth observation and defence operations, making sovereign, mission-ready space domain awareness capabilities essential. These capabilities play a critical role in safeguarding Canada’s North, where Arctic security and sovereignty are key priorities. NorthStar Earth & Space

NordSpace Corp. announced the opening of its new Rocket Factory 1 (RF-1) campus in Markham, Ont. The 60,000-square-foot advanced manufacturing campus is dedicated to the production of the company's light and medium-lift orbital launch vehicles alongside its space systems division, and represents a 10x expansion over NordSpace's previous headquarters. RF-1 marks the company's deliberate transition from several years of research and development to a production-focused industrial company. The facility is designed to host up to 250 employees and will be fully operational over the coming months. NordSpace's vertically integrated model is anchored by its launch program and advanced manufacturing focus. This model is being optimized to internalize demand, reduce schedule and cost risk, and ensure that Canadian payloads can be designed, built, launched and operated entirely within Canadian sovereign control. Nordspace Corp.

Canadian space industry executives, testifying on the new Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS) before the House of Commons Standing Committee on National Defence, delivered a clear message: Canada must urgently establish domestic sovereign launch capabilities and aggressively reform its procurement culture. Executives stressed Canada’s vulnerability as the only G7 nation lacking sovereign orbital launch. While praising the DIS policy blueprint, MDA Space CEO Mike Greenley highlighted early friction, warning that procurement teams too often "revert to old ways of buying from foreign countries." He urged the government to mandate domestic procurement and formally classify space as dual-use critical infrastructure, noting that losing access to space-based systems like GPS could cost the Canadian economy $1 billion a day. SpaceQ

Montreal-based Marconi Technologies and Polish defense integrator Enamor International were selected to deliver Orion X650 high-capacity MANET radios to the Polish military, providing a survivable, mobile backhaul for 5G-enabled communications. Multi-year deliveries will begin later this year. The contract directly supports Poland's defense investment priorities under the EU's Security Action for Europe (SAFE) procurement program accelerating the country's military modernization along NATO's eastern flank. It is the first Canadian contract under SAFE. The Orion X650 is a sixth-generation software-defined tactical radio built for high-throughput communications in contested environments. It's designed for missions demanding frequency agility and survivability, whether on the move or at the quick halt. For the Polish defense forces, the X650 will serve as the data transport backbone connecting 5G-enabled C2 nodes, extending mobile broadband capability to forward and dispersed units while maintaining resilience against electronic warfare threats. Marconi Technologies

The University of British Columbia signed a research and development memorandum of understanding with HD Hyundai’s shipbuilding arm, HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering. Under the agreement, the two will work together on joint research, digital twin simulation, AI-based vessel design, autonomous navigation systems and naval vessel structures. They will also pursue joint research on next-generation naval platforms, including destroyers, submarines and unmanned vessels, expected to play an increasingly important role in future maritime warfare. In addition, they plan to develop eco-friendly materials for shipbuilding to support more sustainable marine operations. HD Hyundai is part of a South Korean consortium (alongside Hanwha Ocean) bidding to supply up to 12 new submarines to the Royal Canadian Navy. The Investor

South Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean Co. Ltd. announced a non-binding memorandum of understanding with Kanata Clean Power & Climate Technologies Corp. regarding the proposed development of Kanata LNG, a floating liquefied natural gas export project planned for Prince Rupert, B.C. Kanata's proposed project is expected to have a capacity of up to 12 million tonnes per year. Kanata estimates total capital expenditures for the project at approximately US$15.7 billion, subject to final engineering, commercial arrangements and regulatory approvals. Under the terms of the MOU, Hanwha Ocean and Kanata intend to explore potential opportunities for cooperation across several technical and commercial areas, including:

• Engineering and construction of floating LNG production and related facilities.
• Operations and maintenance services over the facilities' operating life.
• Strategic equity participation by Hanwha Ocean or affiliated entities.
• Long-term LNG purchase arrangements.
• Midstream solutions including LNGC (specialized marine vessels that transport LNG) LNG BV (a major international classification society and certification body) and more.

Hanwha Ocean is competing, with Germany’s ThyssenKrupp Marine System, for an estimated $80-billion contract to supply Canada’s planned fleet of up to 12 submarines. Hanwha Ocean

Global business R&D expenditure rose by an estimated 6 percent in 2025, double the three percent recorded in 2024, with growth increasingly driven by AI and the digital industries, according to the Organisation for Economic Development and Co-operation’s (OECD) Short-term Financial Tracker of Business R&D (SwiFTBeRD) dashboard. SwiFTBeRD tracks a panel of the world’s largest R&D firms, using publicly disclosed data in annually and quarterly company reports. Growth in 2025 was driven by digital‑related sectors, with R&D investment in software and computer services and ICT hardware expanding, respectively, at close to 15 percent and seven percent in inflation-adjusted terms. Growth in R&D expenditure in the life sciences sector slowed down to zero, while R&D investment across the SwiFTBeRD panel’s large companies in the automotive and aerospace sector continued its declining trend since 2024.Chip maker NVIDIA is the company in the SwiFTBeRD panel with the largest nominal R&D growth in 2025 at 43 percent, followed by TESLA at 41 percent, and META at over 30 percent. Semiconductor firms Broadcom and AMD join the top five. OECD

VC, PRIVATE INVESTMENT & ACQUISITIONS

 The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPP Investments) announced a strategic partnership with CtrlS Datacenters Ltd., a leading data centre operator in India, committing up to INR 70 billion (Cdn$1 billion) to scale its digital infrastructure footprint in one of the world’s fastest‑growing data economies. As part of the partnership, CPP Investments will invest INR 40 billion (Cdn$588 million) to acquire an 8.2-percent stake in CtrlS, which operates a data centre platform with significant contracted capacity, long-term customer relationships and a growing development pipeline. In addition, CPP Investments and CtrlS will form a joint venture to develop hyperscale data centre campuses across India. CPP Investments has committed up to INR 30 billion (Cdn$441 million) to the joint venture and will hold 48 percent equity ownership, with CtrlS owning the remaining 52 percent. The partnership aims to speed up the development of next-generation data centre infrastructure to meet rising demand from hyperscalers, cloud services, AI applications and India’s rapidly expanding digital economy. CPP Investments

Toronto-based Realize Capital Partners, a wholesaler for the Government of Canada’s Social Finance Fund (SFF), announced the final close of its blended finance, impact fund-of-funds, Realize Fund I, having raised $276.7 million in total capital – $141.7 million of private capital to match the federal government’s $135-million anchor investment in 2023. With this close, Realize Capital Partners said it is delivering on the SFF ambition to use the government’s capital to multiply and mobilize private capital participation in the social finance market. The fundraise underscores investor interest in sustainable and equitable Canadian investment solutions. Fund I has completed about 40 percent of its planned investments. Business Wire

Toronto-based startup June Health, a women’s healthcare platform delivered as an employer and partner benefit, raised $2.4 million in a financing round. Securian Canada contributed significantly to the funding as a strategic institutional investor, alongside AgeTech Capital and Canadian technology founders Dave and Mike Wessinger (PointClickCare) and Michael Garrity (Financeit), among others. June Health said the funding will accelerate the company’s mission to modernize how women access and experience health care through clinician-trained AI and integrated clinical support across every stage of life. The funding will support continued investment in June Health’s AI and data infrastructure, expansion of employer and strategic distribution partnerships, and growth of the company’s integrated care platform. Business Wire

Fredericton, N.B.-based agtech startup Picketa raised $2.1 million for its technology that helps farmers measure nutrient levels in crops and soil. The round was led by Tall Grass Ventures with participation from new investors BDC Seed Fund, Verdex Capital and Skull Diamond & Heart Capital. Returning investors NBIF, Koan Capital, and East Valley Ventures also increased their commitment. Picketa’s technology helps farmers use its LENS data to reduce fertilizer costs by up to 20 percent and improve yields by applying the right level of nutrition at the right place at the right time. Picketa has been working with third parties including the University of Guelph, the University of Missouri, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and Cornell to calibrate its platform and build the dataset that powers its nutrient models. AgFunderNewsletter

Toronto-based Wittington Ventures and Kirkland, Wash.-based Breakthrough Energy Discovery launched Weston Breakthrough Fellows, a new Canadian initiative designed to accelerate the development and commercialization of innovative climate technologies emerging from Canada's leading research institutions. The program will provide early-stage innovators with the capital (US$500,000 each), commercialization training, mentorship and networks needed to transform scientific discoveries into venture-scale companies. Weston Breakthrough Fellows will support a dedicated Canadian cohort of Breakthrough Energy Discovery's global Fellows program. With an initial focus on agriculture, the program will strengthen Canada's research-to-commercialization pipeline, by supporting early-stage companies advancing climate innovations that enable a more productive, competitive, and sustainable agriculture sector. Wittington Ventures

Brampton, Ont.-headquartered MDA Space Ltd. is buying Colorado-based spacecraft company Blue Canyon Technologies for US$620 million in an all-cash transaction. MDA Space said Blue Canyon, which makes satellites and related components from Raytheon, will boost  its U.S. presence and “capitalize on growing demand in the U.S. government market for defence space missions.” Blue Canyon has more than 85 spacecraft launched and 3,500+ products on orbit. MDA space said the transaction will provide the company with a strategic business and manufacturing footprint to capitalize on growing demand in the U.S. government market for defence space missions. Blue Canyon will add about 400 employees to MDA’s current workforce of more than 4,000. MDA Space

Montreal-based payments firm Nuvei is paying cash to buy all of New York-based Payoneer Global Inc.’s shares, in an acquisition worth US$2.75 billion. The transaction combines Nuvei's leading payment acceptance capabilities with Payoneer's cross-border payouts, multi-currency accounts and banking network, along with same-day and real-time settlement in more than 150 markets. By combining complementary capabilities, Nuvei said it can offer businesses a more complete platform to accept payments, send funds, issue cards, manage treasury and FX needs, and access embedded financial services – at scale. Nuvei

Nokia will spin out its space communications business, a U.S firm called Modul8, from Nokia Bell Labs, , in a $56.7-million deal with Celestial Acquisition Corp. that will see Modul8 listed on the TSX Venture Exchange as an Ontario company. Celestial is a capital-pool company whose purpose is to find a business to take public. Celestial will continue the business of Modul8 under the name Modul8 Corporation. Modul8’s focus is space-based 5G and Wi-Fi technology, to replace traditional radio communications with digital broadband. The new board is to be chaired by Kevin Ford, the recently retired CEO of Calian, and includes former astronaut Chris Hadfield and ex-Conservative leader Erin O’Toole. Though the company is to be headquartered in Canada, all its operations are currently in Texas and much of the business will likely stay there, the prospectus says. Celestial Acquisitions Corp.

Toronto-based identity security firm 1Password acquired Apono, an innovator in just-in-time access governance for humans, machines and AI agents, where access is granted the moment it’s needed, scoped to the task, continuously monitored and revoked automatically. Financial terms of the acquisition weren’t disclosed. Apono’s 80 employees are joining 1Password’s 1,400-person team and will remain based out of Apono’s existing headquarters in New York City, as well as its office in Tel Aviv. 1Password said that Apono’s capabilities advance the vision behind 1Password® Unified Access: one platform that governs every human, machine and AI agent identity, from the credentials these identities hold to the access they’re granted at runtime, making 1Password the common control plane for trusted access across the enterprise. 1Password

Calgary-based advanced event technology company Showpass announced an agreement to acquire Toronto-based Bounce Inc., a campus life platform focused on building stronger campus communities. When completed, the acquisition would expand Showpass's presence to more than 70 percent of Canada's top-ranked university campuses. Financial terms weren’t disclosed. By bringing stronger event technology into the university ecosystem, student unions and campus organizers would have access to better tools to promote events, sell tickets, manage entry, understand attendance and more, Showpass said. The acquisition also would also create new opportunities for universities to better connect athletics, arts, student programming and campus traditions with student life, helping to foster a stronger sense of belonging, morale and school spirit. Showpass

REPORTS & POLICIES

The startup company that Canada does not see: federal funding criteria block startups from financial support

Startup companies in Canada at their earliest stage are unable to secure substantial government funding because of federal funding programs’ narrow definition of what qualifies as a startup, according to a study by Jon Irwin, who works with early-stage Canadian companies on funding and growth.

His study documents, program-by-program from official eligibility documents current to June 2026, that broad-based non-dilutive funding above $50,000 in Canada “almost always requires years of incorporation, six-figure revenue, and non-founder employees on payroll.”

“The bar [for government funding] is rising, not falling,” Irwin said. CanExport's revenue floor for eligible applicants tripled from $100,000 to $300,000 for 2026-27 and now requires three full-time employees.

“The only support a genuine startup can reliably access is partial wage subsidies, which fund hiring but not building, and which cannot pay the founders doing the work,” Irwin said.

“The disconnect is that simple to state: Ottawa's programs define a startup as a company that has already succeeded at starting,” he said. Everyone else – including other countries – defines it as a company that has not yet had the chance.

“This is not a spending problem,” he noted. Canada delivers more than $3 billion a year through the federal Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax credit program, and roughly half a billion dollars through the National Research Council Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP).

“It is a design and accountability problem, and it is well documented,” Irwin said.

The Jenkins panel told the government in 2011 that support was too indirect and too fragmented, he noted.

The Canada Innovation Corporation was promised in 2021, given a $2.6-billion blueprint in 2023, written into law in June 2023, “and has never been proclaimed into force: no board, no CEO, and the $775 million and $800 million Parliament authorized for its first two years never moved,” Irwin said.

Innovative Solutions Canada, Canada’s answer to the U.S. Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program saw departments spend just 34.8 percent of its target and was then cut by $70 million ongoing. The SR&ED reform cycle took 26 months from consultation to royal assent.

“Meanwhile the evidence that funding the founder stage works is no longer a matter of opinion,” Irwin said.

Peer-reviewed studies of the U.S. SBIR program and the EU's equivalent find that an early-stage grant roughly doubles a young firm's probability of raising follow-on venture capital, “with the strongest effects on exactly the young, constrained companies Canadian programs screen out,” he said.

Germany's EXIST program reports 74 percent five-year survival and about six euros of value added per euro granted.

The U.S., on actual dollars out the door, spends close to nine times more per person than Canada on open, SBIR-style innovation awards; even counted broadly to include IRAP's discretionary grants, the per-person gap on direct support is roughly two to one.

Pre-seed investment was about one percent of Canadian venture dollars in 2024. Only 32.4 percent of high-potential startups founded by Canadians in 2024 kept their headquarters in Canada. Business exits have outpaced entries for six consecutive quarters.

“When private pre-seed capital is this thin, public programs that exclude the founder stage leave it with nothing,” Irwin said.

Irwin said he sees the same pattern over and over. A founder reads about Canada's generous innovation supports, sits down to apply, and discovers that nearly every program of meaningful size wants the same three things before it will talk to them: years of incorporation, six figures of revenue, and employees on payroll who are not the founders.

“In other words, the programs want proof the company has already survived the stage the funding was supposedly there to help with,” he said.

To the funding programs of the Government of Canada, a startup is a company two or three years old, generating revenue, and employing staff, Irwin said.

This means the companies that actually fit the word “startup” – young, pre-revenue, founder-run – are left with one reliable category of support: hiring subsidies.

“We have built a system that will help a startup pay part of a student's wages but will not help it build the product the student would work on,” he said.

For example, CanExport SMEs is the flagship program helping companies develop export markets, worth up to $50,000 per project.

For 2026-27, an applicant must have between three and 500 fulltime employees and between $300,000 and $100 million in annual revenue declared in Canada during its last complete tax year, Irwin said.

For the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario’s main business funding stream, applicants must have been incorporated and registered for at least the past three years, carry a minimum of five full-time employees, and normally request at least $125,000, with matching funding sources identified at application and confirmed within 30 days of approval. The money is also a repayable contribution, not a grant.

At the Ontario Centre of Innovation, the Technology Demonstration Program offers up to $150,000, but only to SMEs with at least $500,000 of annual revenue in one of the last three tax years.

BDC, the Crown corporation whose tagline is the bank for Canadian entrepreneurs, requires that an applicant for its startup financing, up to $150,000, be in operation for at least 12 consecutive months and be generating revenue.

“A startup loan you cannot get until you have a year of operations and sales behind you is a working capital loan wearing a costume,” Irwin said.

The Canada Digital Adoption Program, briefly the broadest small business grant in the country, closed to new applicants in February 2024, and while it ran, its $15,000 grant stream required $500,000 in annual revenue, he said.

Various programs, including the Student Work Placement Program, Mitacs Accelerate, and IRAP’s Youth Employment Program, and Canada summer Jobs, offer wage subsides, Irwin said.

Every one of these programs is a subsidy for adding a person to payroll, he said. “None of them funds the thing a startup actually has to do first, which is build something people will pay for.”

All of the programs are partial and most pay in arrears, so the startup must fund the full salary up front and wait to be made whole. And none of the programs will pay the founders themselves, the people doing nearly all of the work at this stage, usually for free.

Innovative Solutions Canada (ISC) is the strongest exception in funding startups, Irwin said.

ISC’s challenge streams require only that a company be incorporated in Canada, for-profit, under 500 employees, with the majority of its R&D and payroll in Canada. There is no revenue test, no age test, and no minimum employee count. Phase 1 awards run to $150,000 and Phase 2 up to $1 million or more.

A pre-revenue, founder-only company can win these awards, and some do, Irwin said. The catch is that ISC is not on-demand funding. “You wait for a government department to post a challenge that happens to match your technology, and then you compete for a small number of awards.

“It is a lottery ticket, not a program a founder can plan around,” he said.

The Department of National Defence’s IDEaS program runs open competitive calls with first-phase awards up to $250,000. Its eligibility page welcomes applications from industry, academia, and even individuals, with no revenue or age test. However, there’s no effective contracting mechanism to acquire the capabilities that are funded.

NRC IRAP, on paper, has no age, revenue or employee floor, either. Its published criteria ask that a firm be incorporated, for-profit, under 500 employees and pursuing technology-driven innovation.

However, in practice, IRAP is discretionary and relationship-based, Irwin said. The NRC's own materials note that meeting the minimum requirements does not guarantee support, that the relationship typically starts with advice before any funding, and that the assessment covers the firm's financial capacity to complete the project.

Financial statements are part of the application package. An IRAP advisor deciding whether your company can carry its share of a project will, quite rationally, favour companies with revenue and staff. “The gate is informal, but it is a gate.”

With the SR&ED program, a Canadian-controlled private corporation earns a 35-percent refundable credit on qualifying R&D spending, with the enhanced expenditure limit recently doubled to $6 million.

There is no revenue or age requirement, and pre-revenue companies routinely receive refunds above $50,000.

But SR&ED is retroactive by construction, Irwin pointed out. The startup must spend the money first, file after the company’s fiscal year ends, and wait for processing. Cash lands many months, sometimes more than a year, after the expense.

For a company with no money, a promise of 35 percent back next year does not fund this year’s activities. An entire private factoring industry exists to lend startups money against their future SR&ED refunds, “which tells you everything about the timing problem.”

Also, founder dividends do not generate SR&ED credits, but salaries do. “Even our best program quietly rewards payroll over founder sweat.”

Invest Nova Scotia's Accelerate program gives pre-revenue companies $30,000 to $40,000 non-dilutive, and allows up to $15,000 of it to go to founder salaries. “Accelerate is under the $50,000 line, but it is the best-designed early-stage program in the country,” Irwin said.

Investissement Quebec's Fonds Impulsion invests $250,000 to $2 million at pre-seed and seed with no revenue minimum, but it is equity rather than a grant, requires a lead investor already committed to the round, and requires referral from a recognized ecosystem partner.

“No revenue gate, but a match gate: the public money follows private money rather than leading it, which is no help to the company whose problem is that no private money has arrived yet,” Irwin noted.

Startup funding programs offered by other countries, including the U.S., Germany and France don’t impose the restrictions that Canada’s federal funding programs do, and other countries’ programs also pay startup founders, according to his study.

Research on job creation, American and Canadian alike, finds that it is young firms, not small firms, that create a disproportionate share of net new jobs, his study noted.

“Once you control for age, small businesses as a class are not special; startups are.”  ISED's own analysis of Canadian data reaches the same conclusion.

“A funding architecture that screens on maturity is, by construction, screening out the segment of the economy that produces the jobs,” Irwin said.

Statistics Canada's (StatCan) review of innovation support shows Canada leaning heavily on indirect support: about 0.057 percent of GDP in direct funding of business R&D against an Organisation for Economic Development and Co-operation (OECD) average of 0.081 percent and a U.S. figure of 0.107 percent, while Canada’s tax-credit support runs well above the OECD norm.

The OECD notes that most countries have drifted toward tax incentives, “but Canada is an outlier in how far.”

Irwin said the same StatCan paper also makes the finding that should drive policy: firms receiving both direct grants and tax credits produce more world-first innovations than firms receiving tax credits alone.

“We have the tax credit half of that combination. We are missing the direct half precisely at the founder stage,” he said.

Canadian pre-seed investment in 2024 totalled $99 million across 115 deals, less than three to five percent of all venture dollars invested that year, and seed dollars fell 47 percent from 2023. The first half of 2025 brought a further 28-percent drop in early-stage deal count.

“Public maturity gates and a thin private pre-seed market compound each other: the government will not fund you until you have traction, and the traction capital is not there,” Irwin said.

Research by Leaders Fund, a Toronto venture firm, found that only 32.4 percent of high-potential startups founded by Canadians in 2024 were headquartered in Canada, with nearly half headquartered in the United States, almost double the share of the 2019 cohort.

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business reports that business exits have outpaced new entries for six consecutive quarters, the Montreal Economic Institute calculates the business entry rate has roughly halved since the early 1980s, and Business Development Bank of Canada counts about 100,000 fewer entrepreneurs than 20 ago despite a much larger population.

In October 2011 the Jenkins panel, commissioned by the government to review all federal R&D support, examined some 60 programs across 17 departments and concluded that Canada's support was too fragmented and too tilted toward indirect tax measures, and recommended rebalancing toward direct support for young innovative firms.

Every company in the CanExport-eligible cohort, every firm with three employees and $300,000 in revenue, was once two people and an idea, Irwin noted.

The question for the federal government is not whether those mature companies deserve support, he added. It is why our system only recognizes a startup once it has stopped being one.

His study proposes seven changes, costed and assigned to the ministers who own them, the largest changes of which he said would cost about two per cent of SR&ED's annual payout. These changes are:

1. Stand up a Canadian Seed Fund of SBIR-style feasibility grants, $100,000 to $150,000, with no revenue, age or employee gates, delivered with AI-assisted screening so decisions land in under 90 days, with every funding decision made by a human. The legal vehicle already exists: proclaim the Canada Innovation Corporation Act, or expand Innovative Solutions Canada to open calls.
2. Legislate the innovation procurement set-aside, as the United States has done since 1982, so departments can no longer quietly underspend it.
3. Replace maturity gates (age, revenue, headcount) with milestone gates in CanExport, Ontario Centre of Innovation, and the regional development agencies.
4. Count founders as people: allow grant and wage-subsidy dollars to compensate founders, as Nova Scotia and Germany already do.
5. Pay forward, not backward: advance at least half of small awards on signing, and give first-time SR&ED claimants with pre-approved projects quarterly advance payments.
6. Publish the funnel: publish applications, awards, recipient stage profile and time to decision for every program, as the U.S. does in a public database.
7. Adopt a formal definition of a startup, under five years old and pursuing a scalable product regardless of revenue or headcount, and require every program claiming to serve startups to report against it.

“Canada does not have a startup funding problem so much as a startup definition problem, and the funding faithfully follows the definition,” Irwin said.

“We have the money. We have the institutions. We have, by international consensus, some of the best founders anywhere, which is exactly why other countries keep ending up with them.”

“What we are missing is the honesty to define a startup as what it is, a company at the moment of maximum uncertainty, and the will to fund that moment. It is the only moment the word startup has ever described, and it is the one moment Canada has chosen not to see.” John Irwin on LinkedIn

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Government needs to create the conditions for Canadian companies to succeed in digitally-driven global economy

If Canada wants to succeed in the new digitally-based global economy, the federal government needs to create the conditions firms need to become national – and global – champions, according to a commentary from the Council of Canadian Innovators (CCI).

“It’s no secret that Canada has a scale-up problem,” said the commentary by Claire Wilson, research and policy analyst at CCI.

Home-grown firms are often acquired by foreign buyers before they reach global scale. The consequences of this are clear: slowing GDP growth and stagnating productivity, she said.

Sixty percent of the productivity gap between American and Canadian firms is explained by Canada’s higher share of small firms and their greater productivity disadvantage relative to large firms, Wilson noted.

Intangible assets make up 92 percent of the S&P500 and are approaching $100 trillion in value globally. Control of data, intellectual property and the standards that govern them underlie economic advantage and are pre-requisites for firm success and national economic prosperity, Wilson noted. “But growing and scaling a firm in Canada often comes with unique difficulties.”

Earlier this year, CCI undertook its annual CEO survey: a survey of 125 CEOs of some of the fastest-growing innovation firms  in Canada.

While there were a few bright spots – for example, a majority (67 percent) of respondents are happy with the government’s  handling of U.S.-Canada relations, the survey revealed Canadian CEOs are facing a cooling business climate and have significant concerns about Canada's future. Fifty-four percent of respondents think that Canada’s economy is going in the wrong direction, and 42 percent are less confident than they were two years ago in Canada as a place to scale a business.

Concerns around trade relations were another common refrain among respondents. Twenty-three CEOs explicitly mentioned trade diversification and export policy as an area governments should focus on to help Canadian firms scale, and a further 16 flagged U.S.-Canada relations as an important government priority.

CEOs identified access to customers as their largest barrier to scaling their businesses, followed closely by access to capital, Wilson said.

However, these challenges varied by firm size. Large and medium-sized firms were more likely to cite customer access as their primary obstacle, likely reflecting their greater focus on expanding into new markets.

By contrast, smaller firms were more likely to identify capital constraints as their most pressing barrier.

Similar differences emerged in views of the broader economy. Large and medium-sized firms were more likely to believe Canada’s economy is moving in the wrong direction (65 percent and 55 percent, respectively),  smaller firms were more optimistic, with over half (52 percent) believing the economy is heading in the right direction.

This difference, once again, likely stems from larger firms’ greater exposure to global markets and broader economic pressures relative to smaller businesses, Wilson said.

“Perhaps the most troubling trend appeared when we asked CEOs and business leaders why they stay in Canada,” she said.

“Time and time again, they reported that they stay in Canada because they love this country. A noble reason, certainly, but patriotism alone doesn’t pay the bills.”

While over half (51 percent) of CEOs surveyed indicated that patriotism was a key motivating factor for not relocating, only nine respondents mentioned capital or market access, only six mentioned talent. “This should worry all of us,” Wilson said.

Governments play a critical enabling role for businesses. They create the conditions firms need to scale and succeed, she said.

It is unreasonable to expect CEOs, entrepreneurs and other talented and ambitious people to perpetually struggle through difficult capital markets, unclear regulatory environments and a dwindling talent base, especially given Canada’s proximity to one of the largest economies in the world, Wilson said.
“Competitive and innovative companies are what make a country economically prosperous, and growing the Canadian economy requires  making this country  a place where people want to (and can) grow and scale firms.” CCI

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Canadian SMEs face obstacles to break into defence sector: BDC report

Demand for small and medium-sized defence companies is rising in Canada, but they are struggling to break into the sector, according to a report by the Business Development Bank of Canada.

SMEs’ ability to scale is shaped by challenges securing capital, hiring, navigating complex procurement requirements, and meeting defence-specific requirements, the report said.

This points to a “three-speed SME landscape:” firms specialized in defence working to scale up capacity to meet demand; firms balancing a predominantly civilian market with growing defence opportunities; and firms preparing to enter the sector, according to the report.

“This reflects a growing divide across the ecosystem, with capacity constraints, financing gaps and readiness shaping which firms are able to participate in the sector’s growth, the report said.

BDC, The Icebreaker, and market research firm Forum Research surveyed 642 small and medium-sized enterprises ranging from companies already active in defence to ones looking to enter the sector.

Most defence SMEs (47 percent) expect to request financing in the next 12 months to support their growth, develop new products or services, meet their working capital needs and prepare projects.

However, 52 percent of businesses looking for financing think that access will be difficult. Defence SMEs find it challenging to secure financing, with financial institutions remaining cautious about the risk profile, limited customer base and unstable cash flows of the sector.

There are two types of defence SMEs that share similarities but also have distinct characteristics: defence-heavy SMEs (majority of sales are in the defence sector), and defence-light SMEs (minority of sales are in the defence sector).

A majority (58 percent) of defence-heavy SMEs are looking for equity, often for amounts above $1 million. Defence-light SMEs are looking mostly for working capital loans (38 percent) and lines of credit (41 percent).

Many non-defence SMEs are interested in joining the defence sector and can bring a variety of expertise and capabilities: IT products, engineering services, construction, as well as ground vehicles, personal equipment, aerospace and shipbuilding. Some even have capabilities in weapons and ammunition.

Defence SMEs span multiple industries, with concentrations in IT, manufacturing, professional services and construction.

However, SMEs interested in joining the defence sector face challenges as well, the first being meeting defence-specific requirements.

Also, defence SMEs are operating in a high-growth environment, with many already near capacity.

Trade is important for defence SMEs, as two-thirds export and/or import goods or services. Additionally, the same proportion expect some of their sales growth over the next two years to come from abroad.

“Growth is uneven across the ecosystem, with established firms working to scale up to meet demand while others face barriers to entry,” BDC said.

“Progress will depend on stronger coordination across the ecosystem and clearer, more accessible pathways for firms to enter and grow,”  said Peter Dawe, vice-president, defence strategy, at BDC.

“It will also require sustained support for businesses – particularly those new to the sector – as they navigate its complexity and position themselves for long-term success,” he said. BDC

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Canada’s ocean research system produces high-quality science, but struggles to translate research into impactful benefits for Canadians

Canada’s ocean research system produces high-quality science, but struggles to translate research into environmental, social and economic benefits, according to a new report from the Council of Canadian Academies (CCA).

Knowledge mobilization is a major bottleneck in the research-to-impact pathway, the report said. “Despite strong evidence generation, insufficient attention to and investment in communication, translation, and user-focused outputs reduce the uptake of research findings. Ensuring the right contextualized knowledge is available to policymakers at the right time is a key challenge and opportunity.”

The effective use of ocean research is hindered by the lack of shared vision and weak connections among researchers, policymakers, and industry, according to the report.

Mounting interest in the Blue Economy could be an opportunity to articulate and advance such a vision, the report said.

Dual-use R&D also offers a new way forward, with the potential to access new partnerships and resources, while highlighting the growing importance of ocean research in achieving several national priorities.

Successful research projects are designed and sustained based on a fulsome appreciation of Indigenous rights, knowledge systems and leadership, the report said. “Early and sustained engagement with Indigenous Peoples, communities, and end users is critical to achieving impact.”

The Marine Environmental Observation, Prediction and Response Network (MEOPAR) asked the CCA to convene a workshop examining both successful outcomes of marine research and instances where anticipated impacts weren’t realized.

Eighteen experts from government, academia, ocean research institutions and networks, Indigenous Nations, and Canada’s Ocean Supercluster participated in the workshop. In addition, the CCA and MEOPAR held three in-person events in Vancouver, Trois-Rivières, and Halifax, two webinars, and an online survey that elicited responses from 177 individuals.

Canada is home to the world’s longest coastline and borders three oceans. Ocean research, when done well, has far-reaching impacts that benefit society, the natural environment and the Canadian economy, the report said.

On the west coast of Canada, British Columbia hosts more than 1,000 ocean technology companies, while on the east coast, a wide variety of multinational companies are developing and commercializing ocean technologies.

Efforts are underway to create an innovation environment that would grow Canada’s ocean economy from 1.6 percent to upwards of five percent of overall GDP by 2035.

One of the top challenges raised in the survey was funding, reflecting the reality that ocean research is a costly endeavour and that current funding levels (as well as restrictions on how funds can be used) constrain research directions and outcomes.

Another leading challenge was coordination and collaboration across the ocean research system, stemming from Canada’s vast geography and jurisdictional fragmentation.

Variability in infrastructure, gaps in research vessel availability, and the high costs of accessing and maintaining the vessels that do exist are persistent problems.

Other important focus areas for the ocean community included:

• data management and governance.
• education and training.
• recognition of Indigenous rights.
• the need for a shared vision.
• Canada’s role in global ocean research.

Rapid technological development that supports the collection, analysis, management and dissemination of ocean data was identified as a key trend.

AI, for instance, affects several dimensions of ocean research, from potentially providing instant analysis of real-time data flows, to supporting navigation and experimentation by autonomous vessels, to underpinning more accurate or computationally efficient predictive models.

More broadly, ocean technology and the translation of ocean research could alleviate some of the resource challenges, while also contributing to the Blue Economy and potentially growing the marine workforce.

Geopolitical shifts are influencing multiple dimensions of ocean research and cannot be ignored. In response to these shifts, an increasing focus on security and sovereignty could shape the trajectory of the Canadian ocean research enterprise for decades to come, according to several workshop participants.

Throughout the workshop, participants emphasized that respect for Indigenous Peoples as rights-holders must be a baseline principle for ocean research moving forward, as part of the necessary work to advance reconciliation.

Workshop participants highlighted Indigenous capacity to actively design, conduct and lead ocean research initiatives.

During the workshop, several participants shared their experiences of how the relationship between researchers and coastal communities can influence impact. Impacts are strengthened when coastal communities are engaged in the identification and prioritization of research questions, and when ocean research projects provide opportunities for local training and applications of research findings.

Although workshop participants raised several additional systemic challenges in translating ocean research – including limited domestic capital and a lack of policy coordination – they viewed the establishment of close, timely links among researchers, industry and end users as a key predictor of success. The importance of early engagement with industry emerged as a key theme.

A lack of attention to knowledge mobilization was perceived by workshop attendees as a main factor in the failure of ocean research to achieve impact.

One participant described the global issue of marine plastic pollution as a key example of failed knowledge mobilization in the ocean research community. Despite the well-documented harms of plastics and the global scale of the problem, awareness remains insufficient to support coordinated mitigation efforts.

Participants also raised concerns that some institutions, despite receiving public funding for ocean research, were failing to participate in or adequately resource outreach activities. This can contribute to the erosion of public trust in science and its value, diminishing public willingness to fund ocean research.

The extent to which ocean research in Canada suffers from a capacity problem in collecting or using data varies according to the operating context.

The capacity to ensure that this data effectively drives policy and investment, however, was viewed by workshop participants as a widespread problem.

Workshop participants emphasized that ensuring the right data outputs are available in the right format at the right time for policymakers is a key challenge and an opportunity for knowledge mobilization.

National-level strategies identified for improving the impact of ocean research included:

• Articulating a shared vision for ocean research.
• Enhancing coordination.
• Funding research for impact.
• Managing data. Currently, fragmentation and siloing of research along disciplinary or institutional lines create barriers in the effective sharing and uptake of data. Challenges also exist in leveraging ocean data to better understand maritime investment risks and opportunities for the Blue Economy.
• Strengthening and diversifying the talent pool.

A lack of a common vision for ocean research has been a longstanding challenge for the research community, and this problem persists.

The CCA’s Expert Panel on Canadian Ocean Science (2013) identified a vision gap, stating that “in contrast to other countries, or other disciplines in Canada, no comprehensive national strategy or vision currently exists for ocean science in Canada. This makes it difficult to prioritize needs and comprehensively plan investments for ocean science.”

A national strategy for ocean research that aligns with broader national priorities could offer opportunities across multiple sectors.

For example, in response to emerging risks and changing geopolitical dynamics, the federal government has pledged investments in defence spending and dual-use infrastructure to support national security and international trade.

Related initiatives to catalyze dual-use R&D, such as the Defence Industrial Strategy, provide a new lens through which ocean R&D priorities and coordination can be viewed moving forward.

Workshop participants identified several strategies to improve coordination:

• Convening a national annual conference: There is no domestic equivalent to the World Ocean Summit that could convene Canada’s ocean research sector. Such a conference could strengthen Canada’s identity as an ocean nation, be organized around specific themes and targeted outcomes, and support domestic uptake of innovations from abroad by attracting international participants.
• Linking ocean research and policy: Effective communication between researchers and government counterparts could promote uptake of a broader range of ocean research data and knowledge in policymaking.
• Strengthening connections between government and the rest of the ocean research community.
• Supporting pathways to commercialization with enhanced coordination: Tighter connections among researchers, industry and investors could support commercialization efforts and improve the chances of scaling Canadian inventions domestically. In the absence of such supports, inventions can fail to reach the market or may be commercialized abroad, with the economic gains from domestic research strengths also being achieved outside of Canada.

Some workshop participants suggested that a central coordinating body for ocean research could be the most effective way to establish a shared vision, operationalize the Blue Economy strategy, and enhance coordination.

Fragmentation and the lack of a national vision curtail Canada’s ability to have a cohesive approach to pursuing international partnerships on ocean research, according to the report.

Some survey respondents highlighted that funding models are generally inadequate to secure participation in major international projects, and that Canada’s participation in such ventures lags that of peer countries.

When it comes to talent, participants reported that existing programs and curricula generally struggle to prepare trainees to appropriately engage with communities involved in and affected by ocean research, and the place-based knowledges they hold.

Trainees are also seen as having limited exposure to the entrepreneurial or business dimensions of ocean research, potentially curtailing or delaying their contributions to the Blue Economy upon entering the labour market.

Enhancing ocean research impact goes beyond the reach of any one researcher or project, requiring coordinated effort across institutions, governments and sectors, the CCA report said. “A national strategy for ocean research that aligns with broader national priorities could offer opportunities across multiple sectors.” Council of Canadian Academies

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Canadians overwhelmingly say Canada’s health care system must change, with most feeling worried and frustrated by the system

Canadians overwhelmingly agree that Canada’s health care system must change, with nine in 10 (91 percent) saying change is important or somewhat important, according to a survey conducted by Nanos Research for Santis Health.

Most Canadians believe health care is headed off course, with a majority (55 percent) saying the system is moving in the wrong direction.

Negative emotions dominate public sentiment, as seven in 10 (70 percent) Canadians say they feel worried or frustrated about the health care system.

“Worried and frustrated by the status quo, the data shows Canadians are ready and willing to change,” Santis said.

“This mandate is a wake-up call and gives permission for decision-makers to move faster and further to innovate and do things differently. The system and governments now have a license from Canadians to lead it.”

Long waits remain the defining failure of the system, cited more often than any other concern by Canadians (25.5 percent). This is followed by poor access to services (12.1 percent) and shortage of health care staff (11.5 percent).

Public confidence in the status quo is scarce, with only a small minority believing health care is moving in the right direction (14 percent).

Canadians are ready to rethink who delivers care, with nearly seven in 10 (69 percent) open to receiving routine care from professionals other than doctors.

There is strong support for modernizing how care is delivered, with four in five (81 percent) open or somewhat open to expanded virtual care and digital tools, such as a secure “digital health wallet” that individuals own and control, allowing them to instantly share their full medical history with any doctor or hospital they choose.

About than two thirds (66.6 percent) were open or somewhat open to having a health care provider use AI to assist with diagnosis, treatment plans and keeping up with changing information.

Access is valued over cost containment, as about seven in 10 (72 percent) Canadians favour getting new life-saving medications at the same time as other major countries, even if it costs more.

When asked to provide one piece of advice on how to improve Canada’s health care system, the top response (9.3 percent) was “increase public funding and protect public delivery.”

The next-highest response (7.5 percent) was “expand private health care options.” Seven percent said “cut administrative layers and red tape.”

Thirty-five percent said the best approach to improve health care in Canada is health care provided mostly by the public system, but with a limited role for private health care.

Thirty-one percent said the best approach was health care provided by a mix of public and private care.

Twenty-nine percent said the best approach was health care provided mainly by the public system, with little or no role for private payment.

Nanos conducted an RDD dual frame (land-and cell-lines) hybrid telephone and online random survey of 1003 Canadians, 18 years of age or older, from May 3 to 6, 2026 as part of an omnibus survey.

The results were statistically checked and weighted by age and gender using the latest Census information and the sample is geographically stratified to be representative of Canada. Santis

Editor’s note: This link provides a webinar and a podcast about the report’s findings.

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Generative AI use among Canadian workers is higher in natural and applied science occupations and people with higher education

More than one in five Canadian workers (22 percent) reported having used generative artificial intelligence at work in the previous 12 months – and its use is accelerating, according to a new study by Statistics Canada (StatsCan).

Generative AI use was higher among workers in certain occupations and industries, namely in natural and applied science occupations and in the professional, scientific and technical services industry, said the study, Workplace artificial intelligence use: A profile of sociodemographic and job characteristics.

The study provides a profile of workers aged 15 to 69 years who used AI and automation technologies at work during the previous year, when surveyed from the fall of 2024 to the summer of 2025.

The study’s co-authors are Tara Hahmann and Marton Lovei, analyst and unit head, respectively, with the Centre for Labour Market Information at StatsCan.

From September 2024 to July 2025, generative AI (such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot and Google Gemini) was the most common automation technology used by Canadians at work (22 percent), followed by natural language processing (11 percent), voice recognition software (six percent) and machine learning (five percent).

Generative AI use among Canadian workers nearly doubled over the study period, increasing from 17 percent in September 2024 to 30 percent in July 2025.

The use of other AI and automation technologies also increased during this period, but at a more moderate pace. For example, the use of natural language processing increased by about two percentage points to 12 percent, while the use of machine learning rose by about two percentage points to six percent.

From September 2024 to July 2025, Canadian workers working in professional, scientific and technical services (52 percent), educational services (42 percent) and finance, insurance, real estate, rental and leasing (38 percent) were most likely to report using generative AI over the past 12 months.

Conversely, generative AI’s use was lowest in industries characterized by manual and customer-facing tasks, such as accommodation and food services (five percent), agriculture (six percent) and retail trade (nine percent).

Generative AI use was also concentrated in certain occupational groups. Notably, half (49 percent ) of workers in natural and applied science occupations (which includes computer and information systems professionals, architects and engineers) had used it in the  previous 12 months. This was followed by workers in management occupations, 38 percent of whom had used generative AI.

Conversely, the proportion was lowest among workers in occupations in manufacturing and utilities (five percent) and in trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations (percent).

Furthermore, workers in occupations that typically require a bachelor's degree or higher (44 percent) were more likely to have used generative AI in the previous 12 months than workers in jobs that usually require a high school diploma or less (10 percent) or that do not have formal educational requirements (three percent).

There were provincial and regional variations in worker-reported technology use at work over the survey period. From September 2024 to July 2025, the proportion of workers who had used generative AI at work in the past year was highest in British Columbia (25 percent), Ontario (24 percent), Quebec (21 percent) and Alberta (21 percent), while it was lowest in Manitoba and Saskatchewan (17 percent) and Atlantic Canada (18 percent)

Generative AI was the most common automation technology used by workers from September 2024 to July 2025, likely because of its widespread accessibility, usability and adoptability, the study said.

“These factors also help explain an accelerating uptake, with use nearly doubling during this period.” Statistics Canada

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Federal government must significantly increase investments in wildfire prevention, adaptation and response: Senate committee

The federal government must significantly increase investments in wildfire prevention, adaptation and response, and improve its collaboration with other levels of government as well as with Indigenous communities, according to a report by the Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry.

Ineffective collaboration across all levels of government is impeding wildfire management, the committee found.

Wildfires are a shared jurisdiction, which presents co-ordination challenges that contribute directly to inconsistent planning, delayed response times, uneven access to equipment and personnel, and a system that only mobilizes once disaster is already underway.

A “whole-of-society” approach is needed for Canadians to co-exist with wildfires, the committee’s report said.

This approach should be based on collaboration between federal, provincial, territorial, municipal and Indigenous governments, to ensure wildfire preparation, adaptation and resilience measures are built into all communities and business sectors, in particular forestry and agriculture, the report said.

Three consecutive record-breaking wildfire seasons – 2023, 2024 and 2025 – have demonstrated that climate change is accelerating fire behaviour beyond the capacity of existing systems, according to the report. “Wildfires are now a crisis.”

“Wildfires are more than just smoke and flames; they are national disasters that tear through the heart of Canadian communities,” said committee chair Senator Mary Robinson. “These traumatic events burn people’s homes and livelihoods to the ground, destabilizing communities and leaving survivors with long-lasting physical, psychological and financial challenges.”

“Wildfires are national catastrophes and governments must adapt their response to match the scale of the crisis and mobilize at the speed of the flames,” Robinson said.

Over the past decade, Canada has averaged more than 5,000 wildfires annually, burning roughly 2.9 million hectares each year. In one recent year alone – 2023 – wildfires burned 14.6 million hectares of land throughout Canada, shattering previous records both nationally and regionally. 

The committee heard that millions of Canadians are exposed to toxic wildfire smoke for days, weeks or sometimes months at a time. The physical health and mental health consequences are significant, particularly for children, pregnant women, older adults, people with chronic conditions and remote Indigenous communities who often have limited access to both clean air spaces and long-term mental health support. The economic costs of wildfire smoke now exceed the costs of fire suppression itself.

Forestry and agriculture – the economic pillars of rural and northern regions – are also at a crossroads. Wildfires are reducing timber availability, damaging infrastructure, eroding supply chains and undermining the viability of forest-dependent communities.

Agricultural producers are losing livestock, crops, equipment and land; they face rising insurance costs and inadequate business risk management programs that do not respond quickly enough during wildfire emergencies. “Without significant adaptation, these sectors will continue to suffer deep and lasting losses.”

Prescribed and cultural burning, proactive fuel management, expanded FireSmart implementation, wildfire-resilient infrastructure, modernized building codes, enhanced predictive modelling, early-warning systems, and investments in new technology such as satellite monitoring, aerial firefighting capacity and advanced drone systems all offer pathways toward greater resilience.

The report’s 15 recommendations include that the federal government should designate forests as a strategic national asset and recognize forests as critical and renewable infrastructure.

The government also should create a federal coordinating office for wildfires and emergency response – modelled after the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan, Australia and New Zealand – to coordinate people, resources and policy in a modernized context, and that this office include the voices of Indigenous communities and their expertise, the report recommended.

The report also recommended that the federal government create and fund a national fleet of modern firefighting aircraft that are in good working order, and the necessary infrastructure and trained personnel (i.e., pilots) would be pre‑positioned throughout the country and support provinces and territories during wildfire seasons.

The government also should provide long-term funding for emerging wildfire technologies (such as drones and other innovations).

Other recommendations include that the Government of Canada:

• work with provinces, territories, municipalities and Indigenous communities and governments to develop coordinated approaches to mitigate and respond to human- and health-consequences of wildfires – including physical and mental health issues linked to smoke exposure and the psychological effects of evacuation and displacement trauma – by ensuring long-term funding for mental health supports for affected communities, before, during and after wildfire evacuations, that integrate pre-planning support, cultural safety and relationship-building across agencies.
• in partnership with Indigenous communities and governments, take immediate action to remove barriers faced by evacuees in host communities during wildfires, including by ensuring equitable access to housing, services and culturally responsive supports.
• establish a national wildfire hazard mapping program to predict the likelihood of wildfires with the same models used for drought and flood forecasting.
• enhance capacity for Indigenous-led fire management by extending financial and logistical support to Indigenous communities, utilizing existing Indigenous clauses in the Wildfire Resilient Futures Initiative and the Fighting and Managing Wildfires in a Changing Climate program.
• create a national reforestation policy that responds swiftly to disasters such as wildfires, as well as provide long-term investment for landscape-level planning, training and capacity building.
• work with provinces, territories and municipalities to ensure that new homes are built safely, affordably and practically, and that adaptation and resilience measures be added to the National Building Code of Canada 2030 and consider incentivizing people to purchase more FireSmart homes.
• acknowledge that wildfires demand urgent action. “As the committee heard, we must move at the speed of the crisis.” Standing Senate Committee on Agriculture and Forestry

 THE GRAPEVINE – News about people, institutions and communities

Lisa Lambert, the inaugural CEO of Quantum Industry Canada (QIC), has stepped down  after leading the organization since 2023. Lambert joined Maryland-based quantum company IonQ as vice-president, global strategy and managing director, Canada. Sean Lee, chief of staff and division director, communications and engagement, at particle accelerator centre TRIUMF, will take over as interim CEO of QIC. The leadership transition comes after QIC successfully lobbied for significant movement in the quantum technology portfolio within Canadian innovation policy. Canada recently launched its own quantum “champions” program to keep promising domestic firms headquartered here, which was a recommendation in QIC’s pre-budget submission last fall. As a result, firms including Toronto’s Xanadu and Vancouver’s Photonic received $23 million in up-front funding. The feds also allocated $334.3 million to advancing quantum technology over the next five years. Quantum Industry Canada

Federal Health Minister Marjorie Michel announced the appointment of Peter Moreland-Giraldeau as the new vice-chairperson, and Conor McCourt as a member of the board to the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board (PMPRB). The PMPRB is an arm’s-length organization of the government that protects the interests of Canadian consumers by ensuring that the prices of patented medicines sold in Canada are not excessive. Moreland-Giraldeau is a lawyer by training with eight years of professional experience across multiple jurisdictions. He has served on the board as a member since October 2023, and in his new position as vice-chairperson he will support the recently appointed chairperson, Anie Perrault. McCourt is a retired lawyer with extensive experience in the practice of pharmaceutical patent law and agency, health regulatory affairs, and pharmaceutical and biologics market access and pricing. Health Canada

Former BDC Capital partner Michelle Scarborough joined Lucid Ventures, an early-stage investment firm based in Waterloo and Toronto. Scarborough has more than 20 years of experience across venture capital and private equity, and has managed more than $1 billion over her career and built institutional funds working with companies at the forefront of innovation. At BDC Capital, she was responsible for building one of the largest venture capital platforms globally investing in women-led technologies. Scarborough is also a Kauffman Fellows and former Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association board director. Lucid Ventures LinkedIn post

Former U.S. secretary of homeland security and current special envoy to the Shield of the Americas Kristi L. Noem was hired by a British Columbia mineral exploration company. NovaRed Mining Inc., whose head office is located in Vancouver, said Noem has joined the company in a “strategic advisory role to support NovaRed’s mission of acquiring and advancing critical mineral exploration opportunities through its artificial intelligence-enhanced technology platform.” In March, U.S. President Donald Trump reassigned Noem from her role as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, after serving 13 months. Noem faced criticism while overseeing Trump’s immigration crackdown, including over the shooting deaths of two protesters – Renee Good and Alex Pretti – in Minneapolis at the hands of immigration enforcement officers. The former South Dakota governor was also criticized over the way her department has spent billions of dollars allocated to it by Congress. Global News

Jesse Wiebe, an angel investor who heads the Canadian Startup Capital Association, was arrested on charges of unlawful entry and indecent act. Wiebe, 36, was arrested in Saskatoon on May 17 after allegedly entering an apartment naked, committing an indecent act. Police said last month that the accused, then unnamed, was allegedly intoxicated and unknown to the occupants of the apartment. He was taken into medical care after the incident. The allegations haven’t been tested in court. “This is a deeply serious matter, and I am treating it as such,” Wiebe said in an e-mailed statement to The Globe and Mail. “I am currently addressing significant personal and mental health challenges, and I am receiving professional support and treatment.” Wiebe helped build angel-investing programs at Startup TNT, one of the country’s most active private investment networks, and recently launched the Canadian Startup Capital Association, one of several groups seeking to influence how Ottawa deploys $750 million earmarked for early growth-stage financing. Wiebe appeared last week in a Saskatoon court and a Crown attorney elected to pursue the charges on a summary basis. That means they are regarded as less serious criminal offences that could carry a maximum penalty of two years less a day in jail if there is a conviction. Wiebe is set to return to enter a plea on June 30. The Globe and Mail

Ontario Superior Court of Justice judge Robert F. Goldstein sentenced Pelik Inc. executive director Stephan Katmarian to six months in jail followed by 18 months of probation after he sold investors notes in a never-launched digital asset called Peblik Token, which he falsely said was backed by ownership in a Northern Ontario mine. Between January 1, 2018, and August 8, 2019, Peblik raised about $480,000 from 32 investors, all of whom lost their investments. The Ontario Securities Commission charged Katmarian with four offences in 2021. He was ultimately acquitted of all but one – fraud. Katmarian is appealing his conviction. Ontario Securities Commission

Ontario Superior Court Justice Anne Molloy found Frank Sronach, businessman, billionaire and founder of auto-parts giant Magna International, guilty of one count of sexual assault and one count of indecent assault at his trial in Toronto. Molloy found Stronach guilty on charges related to two of three female complainants and said in one case his conduct was “gross and disgusting.” The allegations against Stronach, 93, date back almost 50 years, spanning the period between 1977 and 1990. Stronach's sentencing is set for September 17. He is also scheduled to face another trial in Newmarket, Ont., next year involving six complainants, after the case was split into two proceedings. Stronach is a recipient of the Order of Canada, and holds multiple honourary degrees from universities in Canada and abroad. CBC News

The University of Saskatchewan (USask) is expanding access to advanced genomics tools for researchers through its new Omics Resource Centre (ORC). Based at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine, this specialized centre has been operating since fall 2025. It’s already supporting projects across the USask campus and beyond, offering genetic sequencing, research consultation and sample processing resources – all aimed to make genomics services more accessible. High-precision short-read DNA and RNA sequencing – the centre’s primary service – allows scientists to read and analyze the complete set of genetic instructions in an organism’s cells, providing them with information about biological functions, evolutionary relationships, inherited disorders and regulatory elements of any organism. One recent addition is the AVITI24 sequencing platform, which allows researchers to capture multiple layers of information from different biological contexts at once, including DNA, RNA, protein, cell structure, spatial contexts and cellular responses. “The focus of ORC is to bring the latest technologies to animal research and other research areas,” said genomics laboratory manager Dr. Martin Mau, PhD, who leads the facility. ORC forms one pillar of IntegrOmes (Integrated Genomics for Sustainable Animal Agriculture and Environmental Stewardship) initiative, a $17.5-million research investment supported by USask and the governments of Canada and Saskatchewan. The project aims to advance beef and bison genetics and strengthen sustainable livestock production. It also expands access to genomic tools for scientists to expand their research work and assist livestock producers with their management goals. USask

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NASA’s planned base on the Moon should include a biocontainment facility to protect Earth from potentially hazardous biotic contaminants from space

A biocontainment facility designed to protect Earth from potentially hazardous biotic contaminants from space should be part of a planned NASA base on the Moon, according to a paper co-authored by an Idaho-based consultant and a McGill University researcher.

“Humanity is entering a new era of space exploration, but our planetary protection strategies have not kept pace with the risks associated with returning extraterrestrial samples to Earth,” said paper co-author Frederick I. Moxley, director of Strategic Threat Analysis and Research Laboratories, an Idaho-based consultancy.

“The proposed facility would essentially act as a firewall between Earth and any potentially hazardous live organisms that could accompany returning future space missions.,” said Moxley, whose co-author is Anthony Ricciardi, James McGill Professor of Biology and the director of the Bieler School of Environment at McGill University.

In their paper, published in the journal Ambio, Moxley and Ricciardi argue that all extraterrestrial material collected from the Moon, Mars or beyond should first be transported to a secure lunar-based quarantine and research facility, rather than directly to Earth.

The authors recommend that all incoming extraterrestrial samples be handled exclusively through advanced robotic systems within the lunar facility, minimizing the possibility of human exposure and accidental release.

While the existence of extraterrestrial life remains unconfirmed, Moxley and Ricciardi caution that the introduction of any novel form of life to the Earth’s biosphere would pose unpredictable ecological consequences. The history of invasive species on Earth serves as a warning, they said.

“Decades of research on invasive species have demonstrated how an organism introduced to the wrong place at the wrong time can spread uncontrollably with potentially devastating and irreversible long-term impacts on ecosystems,” said Ricciardi, an expert on biological invasions. “This research justifies a strong precautionary approach against introductions of extraterrestrial origin.”

Among the concerns raised in the study are catastrophic scenarios involving the crash or malfunction of a spacecraft carrying contaminated material or astronauts exposed to extraterrestrial environments. The scientists argue that no existing facility on Earth can guarantee absolute containment, eradication or control of an unknown alien micro-organism in the event of an accident.

They argue that the Moon “may become humanity’s first line of biological defence.” McGill University

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