In November of last year, as part of Budget 2025, the federal government committed some $80 billion in spending to “rebuild, rearm, and reinvest” in Canada’s armed forces, including almost $7 billion for the new Defence Industrial Strategy. But while the feds dropped their spending commitments, the actual strategy behind them only came some three…
Canadians are just as concerned about AI harms as they are excited about its economic benefits, according to a BetaKit analysis of public consultation feedback compiled by the federal government. In February, the federal government released the results of the 30-day public consultation it had held last year to inform its upcoming AI strategy. The…
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM Something shifted in the world’s energy system in 2025, and the numbers are hard to argue with. For the first time in modern history, clean energy generation grew faster than global electricity demand, meaning every new watt of power the world needed last year came from renewables, not coal,…
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM A 2023 poll found that the average person has about 11 negative thoughts about their body and self-worth every day. That is a lot of internal commentary, and most of it passes unnoticed. What makes this more than a mood issue is a cognitive pattern called confirmation bias. When…
Episode Description: This week: a 58-day protest campaign just convinced Etsy to ban all animal fur starting this August. Germany spent decades digging coal out of the ground, leaving craters 200 feet deep. This month, the last one opened for swimming. And Cambodia unveiled the world’s first statue dedicated to a landmine-detecting rat. Arielle and…
The provincial government announced today that Alberta is opening a new office to support the development and protection of intellectual property (IP). Officially dubbed the Alberta Intellectual Property Office (AIPO), the entity is being funded with $8 million as part of the Province’s recent update to its Alberta Technology and Innovation Strategy. “As a country,…
At MaRS Impact Health in Toronto Thursday morning, industry leaders gathered on stage to share contrasting perspectives on what Canadian governments should—and should not— do to support the growth in Canada’s life sciences sector. “If I’m ever a patient on the table, don’t give me the best Canadian [option] … I want the best of…
Toronto-based human resources and global payroll software Borderless AI has added a new feature that allows employees to get paid in cryptocurrency. “Companies that adapt and offer flexible options to employees, including crypto, go a long way in building an invested workforce.” With Crypto-Native Payroll, launched Thursday morning, companies using Borderless can allow their employees…
Toronto-based AI scaleup Cohere announced Friday morning it will join forces with Germany’s Aleph Alpha to create a “transatlantic AI powerhouse.” Gomez said the deal is “built on the bedrock of shared Canadian and German values.” Following weeks of talks between the two companies, first reported by German newspaper Handelsblatt, Cohere officially made the announcement…
The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) has opened a new loan program to help 1,000 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) adopt AI. Launched on Friday morning, the $500-million LIFT initiative (which stands for “Lead with Innovation and Focus on Technology”) connects SMEs with consultants who will help them figure out where AI can best…
