News That Matters To You

By Mark Lowey
Canada needs a national digital industrial strategy or risks becoming a consumer instead of a leader in the technologies that will define the 21st century, say Namir Anani and Erik Henningsmoen from the Information and Communications Technology Council. They urge policymakers to invest in sovereign digital infrastructure, accelerate SME digital adoption, and develop digital talent to secure Canada's digital and economic future.

By Mark Lowey
Canada lags other countries in taking a "skills-first" approach to its workforce, fully utilizing and rewarding those skills, and focusing them on entrepreneurship and innovation, economists and a university professor said at a Future Skills Centre webinar. Canada also needs to address its aging workforce, recognize immigrants' skills, and support equity, diversity and inclusion in the workplace, they said.

By Mark Lowey
Canada needs a new business innovation agency to deliver its core national programs and be a centre of expertise in working effectively with entrepreneurs, says Iain Stewart, former president of the National Research Council. In a working paper for the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy, he argues that the current federal innovation system is “misaligned” with the goal of promoting a more innovative and productive business sector.

By Mark Lowey
The federal government's Budget 2025 aims to boost Canada's productivity by allowing businesses to write off a larger share of capital investments faster, with hopes to catalyze $500 billion in private sector investment by 2030. The budget also includes a $1.7-billion, 13-year plan – beginning with $879 million over the next five years – dedicated to recruiting international researchers.

By Jacqueline Robins
Proposed reforms to the Science Research and Experimental Development tax credit program do not go far enough to help Canadian entrepreneurs scale their businesses, according to the University of Ottawa's Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Kyle Briggs and The Council of Canadian Innovators. Briggs argues the program still favours large and foreign firms, and calls for structural changes to better support early-stage companies and domestic IP retention.

By Mark Lowey
Generative artificial intelligence could boost Canada's productivity by up to $78 billion by 2030, Scale AI and Deloitte report. However, Canada must address challenges like sluggish tech investment and a "trust deficit" to fully capitalize on AI's potential and avoid repeating missed opportunities.

By Jeffrey Crelinsten
In Part 2 of our conversation with Anastasia Mourogova Millin, we unpack bold ideas on rethinking risk, financing innovation, and protecting natural assets. You’ll hear why climate resilience can outpace market returns, how Canada can keep its IP at home, and the dangers of privatizing nature. Plus, we explore practical policies—from indigenous-led community investments to renewable-powered data centers—that could reshape our economic and environmental future.

By Mark Lowey
Government-funded innovation programs can help companies overcome barriers, but Catherine Beaudry at the C. D. Howe Institute finds a significant gap remains in understanding how effective these programs are and how to improve them. Understanding the relationship between public support and firms' capacity to innovate and overcome financial and other barriers is essential for effective policy design, she says.

By Robert D. Atkinson
"Mission-oriented innovation" risks diverting resources from economic growth, developing advanced technologies, and increasing productivity, argues Robert D. Atkinson, founder and president of the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation. Atkinson suggests policymakers should instead focus on "mission-enabled innovation" that unlocks growth-oriented innovation.