GOVERNMENT FUNDING

 The Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB) and Australia-based JOLT announced a $194-million loan agreement to enable the expansion of JOLT's electric vehicle charging network across Canada. The CIB investment will facilitate the installation of up to 1,500 new curbside EV chargers in urban centres, ensuring Canadians have access to convenient charging options. JOLT's EV charging stations combine innovative technology with affordable, fast charging for a reliable user experience, the CIB said. Each station provides up to seven kilowatt-hours of free, fast charging per car per day, equivalent to approximately 50 kilometres of driving range. The CIB and JOLT's partnership supports the goal of increasing the quantity and availability of electric vehicle charging options which will make EV ownership more accessible, the CIB said. The CIB said it has spent about $650 million to date deploying 5,500 public fast charging ports. By providing loans for the build-out of EV charging infrastructure, the CIB aims to alleviate consumer range anxiety, accelerate EV adoption and significantly reduce transportation sector emissions. Canada will need nearly 40,000 public chargers built each year to meet the country’s goal of eliminating new gasoline-fueled vehicle sales by 2035. CIB

First Nations Bank of Canada (FNBC) announced the approval of $140 million in loans under the Indigenous Land Development Loan Program, in partnership with the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB). The loans will help advance critical infrastructure projects to  support economic growth and sustainability in Indigenous communities across Canada. Many of the projects funded under the program had been delayed for years due to funding challenges. Through this initiative, Indigenous-owned FNBC is working alongside the CIB to provide financing solutions towards essential infrastructure projects, including new housing subdivisions, community centres and economic development projects such as urban reserve development. FNBC is lending approximately $3 of its own funds for every $1 of CIB financing. Since initiating the intake process only a few months ago, FNBC has obtained initial approval for approximately $140 million in Indigenous land infrastructure projects, requiring only $30 million in CIB loan proceeds. These initial CIB approvals are with five Indigenous communities in two provinces and one territory (British Columbia, Saskatchewan, and Yukon). One of the projects funded in northern B.C. is with Doig River First Nation's development corporation for the creation of a new eight-acre economic hub, called Naache Commons, on urban reserve land in Fort St. John The financing deal comes nearly a year after CIB committed to providing $100 million in loans for FNBC. In November 2023, CIB said it would invest almost $1 billion in Indigenous infrastructure. FNBC

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) announced more than $116 million under the Agricultural Clean Technology (ACT) Program to support 119 projects across Canada to help keep farmers on the cutting edge with clean technologies. Some recipients received $2 million in funding – the highest amount provided – for various projects. The 534 projects announced to date under the ACT program total more than $314 million. AAFC

Jonathan Wilkinson, minister of Natural Resources Canada (NRCan) announced at the 2025 Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada Convention 32 projects representing a total investment up to $50 million. The investment is aimed at supporting the development of Canada’s critical mineral value chains to create good jobs, support economic opportunities, bolster Canada’s energy security by reducing reliance on authoritarian governments and contribute to a resilient and secure future. The investments will support infrastructure development, innovation and data collection while partnering with Indigenous communities on the engagement, participation and capacity building needed to achieve Canada’s potential as a world leader in sustainable and responsibly sourced critical minerals. This support includes:

• Up to $38.5 million in conditional funding, pending final due diligence, under the Critical Minerals Infrastructure Fund (CMIF) for eight projects to undertake pre-construction activities, such as engagement with Indigenous communities, environmental reviews and other planning and design work.
• Up to $6.4 million under the Critical Minerals Research, Development and Demonstration program for two projects to help drive innovation in Canada’s critical minerals sector and to develop cutting-edge technologies that will foster a resilient Canadian economy.
• Up to $2.5 million under the Indigenous Natural Resource Partnerships program for two projects to increase the economic participation of Indigenous communities and organizations in the development of natural resource projects that support the transition to a clean energy future.
• Up to $1.5 million under the CMIF Indigenous Grants program for 18 projects to increase Indigenous engagement, capacity building and knowledge gathering and sharing activities related to clean energy and transportation projects that would enable critical minerals development.
• Up to $1 million under the Critical Minerals Geoscience Data initiative for two projects to advance the availability of valuable data and insights on the location, quality and economic feasibility of critical mineral resources in Canada.

Wilkinson also announced a two-year extension of the 15-percent Mineral Exploration Tax Credit (METC) for investors in flow-through shares until March 31, 2027. The METC provides important support to junior exploration, mining and mineral processing companies. This extension is expected to provide $110 million to support exploration investment across Canada, including in discovering new mineral deposits, developing mining sites and driving regional economic growth, particularly in Indigenous northern and remote communities. In addition, Wilkinson announced the official launch of a second Call for Proposals under the Critical Minerals Infrastructure Fund, with up to $500 million in funding available for energy and transportation infrastructure projects necessary to accelerate mining and enable the development and expansion of critical minerals in Canada. This new call for proposals follows the first one launched last year, which has now conditionally approved more than 31, pending final due diligence, projects with over  $300 million in support, spurring job creation and economic growth. NRCan

Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) announced 22 organizations across the country that are together receiving $39.2 million in funding through the fourth phase of CanCode. This investment will allow these organizations to offer 100,000 training opportunities to teachers and 1.5 million opportunities to students from kindergarten to grade 12, helping them learn digital skills like coding, data analytics and digital content development, as well as skills in AI. Since its launch, CanCode has equipped over 450,000 teachers with the necessary tools to integrate these digital skills into their classrooms. CanCode’s current focus on AI helps Canadian youth gain the knowledge and training they need to stay competitive in a rapidly changing workforce. ISED

The Treasury Board of Canada Secretariat (TBS) announced a $10-million Government of Canada commitment to invest in carbon removal in government operations. The government is now launching a Request for Information (RFI) to engage the industry on procurement options for carbon dioxide removal services. Following engagement with industry, the government will launch a competitive procurement process to select carbon removal service providers. This RFI reinforces Canada’s commitment to climate action and invites stakeholders to contribute to next steps that will support carbon removal at a larger scale, The government said it has already made significant progress in greening its operations, having exceeded its 40-percent emissions-reduction target for greenhouse gas emissions from its facilities and conventional fleet, one year in advance of its initial target. TBS

Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED) announce a total of more than $5.5 million to assist 18 promising projects in the Mauricie region. The recipients are Shawinigan Aluminium, HDI Technologies, Métal Dupont, Laurentide Environment, Les Équipements Gaétan, Atikamekw Sipi - Conseil de la Nation Atikamekw, Atelier d’usinage Gélinas, Matelas Avanti, Festival Western de St-Tite, Domaine du Lac‑Édouard 2013, Synapse Electronics, La Cité de l’Énergie, Fût Mauricie, Placeteco, Usinage URS (Usinage R. Sauvé), Structure Robko, Chambre de commerce et d’industrie du Haut-Saint-Maurice and Ray Metal. These investments will enable the acquisition of new equipment, support increased production and stimulate innovation, among other things. CED

Pacific Economic Development Canada (PacifiCan) announced $5 million for Konscious Foods, a Richmond, B.C.-based sustainable food producer known for its plant-based sushi and seafood products, to scale up manufacturing and bring their products to global markets. Konscious Foods’ line of nutritious and convenient frozen sushi meals incorporate Canadian-grown ingredients, including quinoa, tomatoes and carrots. With PacifiCan’s support, Konscious Foods will expand manufacturing and create new jobs. This investment will also help the company expand to new markets. PacifiCan

Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED) announced a total of $4.14 million in loans to Gatineau’s Imprimerie Gauvin. This funding will help the business add a full ink-jet colour printing line with highly automated finishing, as well as install new complementary production equipment. The project value is estimated at $6.6 million. As Quebec faces the threat of customs tariffs on all Canadian exports to the U.S., it is more necessary than ever to invest in the productivity Quebec’s small, medium-sized and large businesses, CED said. Investissement Québec, the Government of Québec’s financial arm, has launched the Initiative Grand V, which aims to stimulate investments and accelerate the shift towards innovation and sustainable productivity to propel the growth of homegrown businesses forward. CED

Fisheries and Oceans Canada announced more than $3.7 million in for seven multi-year projects to combat aquatic invasive species across the country. This funding is a result of a national call for proposals under the $8.75-million Aquatic Invasive Species Prevention Fund (AISPF). The AISPF aims to strengthen partnerships between federal, provincial and territorial governments, Indigenous communities, stakeholders and the general public. These partnerships will facilitate on-the-ground, preventative actions against aquatic invasive species, as well as education, outreach, detection and response activities. Fisheries and Oceans Canada

Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions (CED) announced a total of $1.5 million  in contributions for Plastitel Products Inc. and Laval économique.

• Plastitel specializes in contract thermoforming of strategic plastics for the medical, transportation and water treatment industries, with expertise in complex moulding processes such as twin‍-‍sheet moulding. The business will receive a repayable contribution of up to $900,000 from CED to acquire and install state-of-the-art digital production equipment. This equipment will enable Plastitel to improve its production capacity and competitiveness.
• As part of its mission as an ORPEX organization, Laval économique will receive a non‍-‍repayable contribution of $600,000 over three years (April 1, 2024, to March 31, 2027). The aim of CED’s assistance is to offer advisory services and guidance to businesses in the Laval region to support their efforts to develop and diversify export markets. CED

Pacific Economic Development Canada (PacifiCan) announced $1.35 million for the University of British Columbia’s Okanagan campus (UBCO) to create Western Canada’s first airborne sensing lab. This lab will help B.C. small and medium-sized businesses develop remote sensing technologies for environmental monitoring, security and hazard detection. With this funding, UBCO will equip a small aircraft with infrared, radar and hyperspectral sensors, enabling the collection and analysis of high-resolution data. The airborne sensing lab will help local companies test and refine new technologies, accelerate existing projects and gain a competitive edge in the global sensor data market, which is projected to reach $25 billion by 2027. Many of the lab’s key partners are local companies developing artificial intelligence software that analyzes sensor data, helping to strengthen the Okanagan’s growing digital technology sector. This project builds on the UBC Survive and Thrive Applied Research (STAR) lab, a PacifiCan-funded initiative that’s developing high-impact technologies for the health, sports, and defense sectors. PacifiCan

The Canada Water Agency announced more than $1.2 million over four years to support four partner-led projects though the Lake of the Woods Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative under the Freshwater Action Plan. The projects funded include:

• $450,000 for Grand Council Treaty #3 to participate in collaborative processes and actions to reduce phosphorus, as well as coordinate community engagement on nutrients and algae blooms in Lake of the Woods.

• $395,000 for the Lake of the Woods Water Sustainability Foundation to develop a phosphorus management plan for the Rainy River – Lake of the Woods Watershed.

• $380,800 for Trent University to study phosphorous sources and nutrient interactions.

• $24,150 for the Métis Nation of Ontario to continue engagement with the northwestern Ontario Métis community to foster collaboration, participation and capacity building on phosphorus reduction actions and nutrient and algae science in the Lake of the Woods Basin.

The Lake of the Woods Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative funds projects that tackle toxic algae blooms. Canada Water Agency

The Government of Canada released the eligibility criteria for its AI Sovereign Compute Infrastructure Program and is inviting eligible proponents to submit non-binding statements of interest. Eligible proponents include not-for-profit organizations, for-profit organizations, academic institutions and consortia. The government plans to invest up to $705 million through the program to expeditiously build a state-of-the-art Canadian-owned and located high-performance supercomputing system that will anchor national AI-specific computing infrastructure to meet the needs of researchers and a cross-section of industry R&D. Proposals should align with the program's objectives, address the AI compute needs of Canadian researchers and a cross section of industrial research and development, and encourage cross sector partnerships to drive technological advancement and innovation. Following this phase, the government will launch a full proposal phase to further refine the program requirements. Statements of interest (maximum 15 pages) should be sent to aiscip-picsia@ised-isde.gc.ca by April 14, 2025. Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada

RESEARCH, TECH NEWS & COLLABORATION

Bioscience sector grows to be second-largest industry in Prince Edward Island

Private sector company revenues in Prince Edward Island’s bioscience sector reached more than $612 million in 2023, making bioscience the second-largest industry in P.E.I., according to a report from the PEI BioAlliance.

The bioscience industry has grown by 84 percent since 2018, said the economic impact analysis, prepared by Jupia Consultants Inc.

Exports of manufactured products outside of Canada, including pharmaceutical ingredients, diagnostics, vaccines and natural health products for human, animal and fish health, were $460 million.

Investment attraction topped $38 million and capital expenditures were $111 million, highlighting the significant growth and expansion of PEI businesses.

Spending on salaries rose to $115 million, with an average annual salary of $79,300, making the bioscience cluster the highest-paying private sector employer in the province. The sector currently employs 2,200 people.

The sector is a major contributor to provincial, federal, and local governments’ tax revenue, with an annual contribution of $106 million in 2023, almost doubling over the previous five years, according to the report.

Through the aligned efforts of business, academia, research and government partners, the PEI bioscience cluster has surpassed 2025 growth targets and is well on its way to becoming a billion-dollar industry by 2030, the report said.

PEI’s bioscience sector recently captured international headlines with two landmark transactions.

In September 2024, Agilent Technologies completed its acquisition of biopharmaceutical manufacturer BIOVECTRA for US$925 million.

In February 2024, Merck Animal Health acquired Elanco Animal Health’s aqua business for US$1.3 billion in cash with PEI fish vaccine manufacturing assets a key part of the transaction.

The rapid growth of the bioscience has put pressure on two key enablers of continued success: the availability of skilled personnel and the availability of specialized R&D and manufacturing facilities.

To address these challenges, the Government of Canada and the Government Prince Edward Island recently broke ground on the $50-million BioAccelerator in the BioCommons Research Park in Charlottetown.

This unique-in-Canada 62,000-sq-ft multi-function facility will provide lab and manufacturing facilities and services to research organizations, entrepreneurs and small and medium-sized companies that are the economic drivers of future growth, the PEI BioAlliance said.

 “The sector’s economic success means positive benefits for Islanders through high-paying jobs and increased government revenues,” Roy Francis, CEO of the PEI BioAlliance, said in a statement.

“These revenues enable government investments in housing, health care, education, roads, climate change mitigation and many other programs and services important to Islanders.” PEI BioAlliance

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Natural Products Canada (NPC) announced an investment of $1.7 million into seven early-stage companies, bringing NPC’s total to $10.6 million in investments in 88 Canadian opportunities. The seven companies are recipients of NPC’s commercialization programs and represent highly innovative bio-based and natural products. NPC’s investment will enable a total of $4.6 million in pivotal activities to help the seven companies address key challenges in their go-to-market journey. The recipients include startups from across the country developing sustainable, bio-based products ranging from allergen-free pet food to soil and water remediation. They are:

• ALT-PRO Advantage (Ontario and Nova Scotia).
• BioSun Products (Quebec).
• Black & Blue Foods (Ontario).
• Chinova Bioworks (New Brunswick).
• Henri Nutrition (Quebec).
• Magna Engineering (Alberta).
• Tersa Earth Innovations (British Columbia).

"The work we do to develop and de-risk these opportunities ensures Canada can meet the demand for innovative, bio-based solutions that address global challenges such as climate change, food security and chronic health issues,” said Shelley King, CEO of NPC. As of March 31, 2024, NPC-supported companies had attracted $53 for every $1 received from NPC. NPC’s commercialization programs are designed to accelerate the path to market, which can be more time-consuming and resource-intensive for deep tech, high-innovation companies within the bioeconomy. NPC LINK

See also: Game-changing companies are moving the needle on Canada’s bioeconomy

The Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) has introduced a new funding opportunity: the Policy Innovation Partnership Grants, providing up to $6 million over 15 years. This initiative supports long-term research partnerships between postsecondary institutions and government departments, driving impactful research to inform public policy development. The first competition focuses on enhancing Canada’s productivity, with flexibility to evolve research priorities over time. Only one partnership will be funded per competition, with reviews every five years to assess impact. Applications are due by September 10, 2025, with funding released in January 2026. To learn more, join SSHRC’s webinar on March 26 (French at 11:00 a.m. ET, English at 1:00 p.m. ET). SSHRC

Concordia University partnered with the National Bank of Canada on a $1.5-million research project to advance the development of trustworthy artificial intelligence systems. The collaboration will develop techniques to seamlessly integrate AI into the software development lifecycle and verify that AI-generated software components are trustworthy, secure and reliable. The partners will also train graduate students in AI-based software system development and give students internship opportunities with National Bank. The initiative, led by Emad Shihab, a professor at the Gina Cody School of Engineering and Computer Science, is co-funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada. Concordia University

The B.C. Centre for Innovation and Clean Energy (CICE) launched the Call for Carbon Dioxide Removal Innovation, aimed at developing early-stage carbon dioxide removal (CDR) solutions. With $3 million in non-dilutive investment available for Canadian innovators, the initiative supports early-stage, hard-tech CDR solutions that reduce greenhouse gases and unlock economic growth and job creation. The funding opportunity includes support from affiliates of Shell Canada, who may consider purchasing CDR credits from successful applicants. The call is open to Canadian climate tech companies developing CDR solutions in Canada, with priority given to those in British Columbia. Eligible technologies include, but are not limited to, direct air capture and storage, mineralization, ocean alkalinity enhancement, and biomass carbon removal and storage. Applications will be accepted until April 30, 2025. CICE

Calgary-based Promise Robotics, an AI company turning off-the-shelf industrial robots into autonomous production systems for home construction, announced plans to expand deployment of its production lines at a new 60,000-square-foot existing warehouse in Calgary. To begin operation in the summer of 2025, the facility will be able to produce up to 1 million square feet of housing annually. The expansion harnesses Promise Robotics' AI brain and robotic tooling to address housing shortages in Canada and the U.S., the company said. The new robotics factory in Calgary builds on the success of Promise Robotics' Factory-as-a-Service facility in Edmonton. The company’s complete factory solution eliminates complex processes for home builders, taking them from blueprint digitization to AI-powered robotic manufacturing instructions, to produce homes ready for on-site assembly. Promise Robotics

Texas-based Firefly Aerospace’s Blue Ghost Mission 1 successfully soft-landed on the Moon’s surface on March 2. Firefly’s 6.6-foot-tall (more than two metres) Blue Ghost lunar lander touched down on the Moon’s near side around 3:34 a.m. ET. Firefly is only the second private sector company ever to complete such a feat. Blue Ghost will spend 14 days conducting science and technology demonstrations, including collecting lunar samples, drilling into the subsurface, conducting X-ray imaging and capturing high-definition imagery. During this mission, three Canadian companies that received funding from the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), through its Lunar Exploration Accelerator Program (LEAP), will demonstrate their technologies:

• A narrow field-of-view sample imaging system on the Blue Ghost lander (Canadensys).
• A global lunar navigation system (NGC Aerospace).
• Material samples tested for lunar dust adherence (Integrity Testing Laboratory).

With LEAP, the CSA said it is helping accelerate the development of new lunar technologies, which will contribute to Canada's competitive advantage in space. CSA

NordSpace, based in Markham, Ont., plans to build a rocket-launch facility near St. Lawrence, Newfoundland and Labrador. The community is located on the southeastern Atlantic shore, just across from the French islands of St. Pierre and Miquelon. Known as “Spaceport Canada,” the proposed St. Lawrence site will have at least two launch pads and a launch control centre. The facility will be able to support the launch of the company’s Taiga suborbital and Tundra orbital rockets, both of which will use NordSpace’s in-house designed and 3D printed single-piece Hadfield engines. NordSpace is planning launches from Spaceport Canada by 2027. Maritime Launch Services is building Spaceport Nova Scotia near Canso on Nova Scotia’s Atlantic coast. The Telegram, SpaceQ

All pipeline permits going east, west or south received in Saskatchewan are pre-approved, effective immediately, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe said on Twitter. “We encourage all provinces and the federal government to do the same,” he said. Moe posted his note directly to the social media accounts of both U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Moe’s post comes as Canada’s federal and provincial leaders scramble to reduce interprovincial trade barriers as a response to Trump’s tariff threats and moves to coerce Canada into becoming the “51^st state.” Moe, along with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, have argued that pipelines to Canada’s east and west coast — and even the Arctic — could have pre-empted Trump’s tariff takeover and made the country more resilient to the prospect of an economic assault. Western Standard

Canada’s first planned small modular reactor (SMR) is a U.S. design that will require enriched uranium that Canada doesn’t produce, raising concerns that the Donald Trump administration in the U.S. might weaponize nuclear fuel against allies for political purposes. Canada’s 17 operating reactors are of the homegrown CANDU design, which consume natural, non-enriched uranium. Canada possesses uranium in abundance and has long made its own fuel. But the new BWRX-300 SMR to be built at the Darlington, Ont. nuclear site is being designed by U.S. vendor GE-Hitachi Nuclear Energy and will require low-enriched uranium. The same reactor is being planned for deployment in Saskatchewan. Russia controls about half of global uranium enrichment capacity. A bloc of nuclear power nations known as the Sapporo 5, which includes Canada (even though it has no uranium enrichment capacity) Japan, France, Britain and the U.S., claim control of the other half of the world’s enrichment capacity. In late 2023, the Sapporo 5 agreed to collaborate on increasing that capacity and invest at least US$4.2-billion over three years to do it. Fuel for the Darlington SMR, to be provided by Urenco USA, would be enriched at a plant in New Mexico, supplemented by France’s Orano. “We haven’t done our due diligence in terms of having other partners,” said Akira Tokuhiro, a professor in Ontario Tech University’s nuclear engineering department. “Canada needs to really invest and make a concerted effort to find and establish the nuclear supply chain without the United States.” The Globe and Mail

The opening of a Canadian naval refuelling facility, near the entrance of the Northwest Passage in the Arctic, scheduled for later this year now appears to be in limbo. The Nanisivik Naval Facility was announced in 2007 by Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper as a new docking and refuelling installation that would support Royal Canadian Navy ships in Arctic operations. It was envisioned as operating year-round with a deep water port and airstrip to boost Canadian sovereignty in the region. Department of National Defence (DND) officials said the facility would be operational starting in 2012. But construction didn’t begin until 2015 and the opening of the installation has been continually delayed. Last year, DND officials suggested it would open in the summer of 2024. A report by the Auditor General of Canada issued two years ago noted the opening would be in 2025. Now DND admits it doesn’t have an opening date. “The site is not yet operational,” DND spokesperson Andrée-Anne Poulin said in an email to the Ottawa Citizen. “We are still finalizing the work plan for the site and we will have more information to share in due course.” Today the installation includes unheated fuel storage facilities, a site office, a wharf operator’s shelter, a helicopter landing pad and an unheated storage building, CTV reported. Ottawa Citizen

The Indigeous-led $520-million Tilley solar project with nearly 70,000 solar photovoltaic panels is expected to become operational this spring in southern Alberta. The project will provide 23.6 megawatts – enough clean electricity to power 20,000 typical homes for year. The initiative, located about 200 kilometres southeast of Calgary, will reduce Alberta’s greenhouse gas emissions by 14,200 tonnes annually – the equivalent of removing 4,350 cars from the roads. The Tilley solar farm is a joint venture between Alexander Business Centre, the business arm of Alexander First Nation, and First Nation Power Development Inc., a B.C.-based organization that connects First Nations with renewable energy projects. Developed in collaboration with renewable power developer Concord Green Energy and the Canada Infrastructure Bank (CIB), the project is intended to serve as a model for other Indigenous-owned clean energy projects. At its peak, the Tilley project, which is about 500 kilometres away from Alexander First Nation, will generate 280 full-time jobs and $20 million in labour income, the CIB said. The Globe and Mail

Canada devotes 16 times more space to golf course than to renewable energy, ranking seventh in areas covered by golf courses worldwide, according to a study by German researchers. Canada has about 2,500 golf courses covering almost 1,200 square kilometres. While the land requirements of renewable energy projects are often criticized, this study highlights how vast areas are allocated to golf courses, which serve a relatively small, often affluent population, said a media release by EurekAlert. The study, published in Environmental Research Communications, shows that in countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom, far more land is allocated to golf courses than to renewable energy facilities. In the top 10 countries with the most golf courses, an area equivalent to that used for golf could support up to 842 gigawatts of solar and 659 GW of wind capacity – exceeding current installed capacity in many cases. Golf courses typically require large amounts of water and chemical treatments, leading to a significant environmental impact. In contrast, renewable energy installations such as solar farms and wind turbines offer a sustainable land use option while directly reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the study’s authors said. Lead author of the study is Dr. Jann Weinand, head of the Integrated Scenarios department at the Institute Jülich Systems Analysis at Forschungszentrum Jülich (Jülich Research Centre). EurekAlert

London, U.K.-headquartered energy giant BP will scrap a target to increase renewable generation 20-fold, to 50 gigawatts, by 2030, returning the focus to fossil fuels, as part of a strategy shift to tackle investor concerns over earnings, two sources told Reuters. BP's shares have underperformed rivals in recent years and the oil major has already dropped its target to cut oil and gas output by 2030. BP’s earnings reports show the company has 8.2 gigawatts of renewable generation capacity, and that for 2019, BP's net wind generation capacity reached 926 megawatts. The company did not give a figure on total renewable capacity for that year. Across the energy sector, major companies that shifted their portfolios in response to the need to lower carbon emissions and curb climate change have returned the focus to oil and natural gas, where returns have become easier as fossil fuel prices have rebounded from pandemic lows. The investor environment has also been transformed by the re-election of U.S. President Donald Trump, a climate skeptic and advocate of fossil fuels. Reuters

Drug costs in Canada – accounting for 88 percent of prescription drug expenditures – increased by 14.1 percent from 2022 to 2023, according to a new report by the Patented Medicine Prices Review Board (PMPRB). Dispensing costs, representing the remaining 12 percent, grew by 4.5 percent. Private insurers typically covered 88 percent of the total prescription costs, leaving beneficiaries responsible for the remaining 12 percent. Other highlights of the report include:

• Prescription drug expenditures for private plans rose by 12.9 percent in 2023, returning to the pre-pandemic growth trend. Between 2018 and 2023, prescription drug expenditures in private drug plans grew at a compound annual growth rate of 7.1 percent.

• Over the decade spanning 2013 to 2023, drug costs showed the fastest growth among drug utilization measures, rising by 92 percent and outpacing growth in the number of claimants (30 percent) and claims (39 percent).

• Drug costs jumped by 14.1 percent in 2023, rebounding from three years of moderate increases (four to five percent) during the pandemic. The primary driver was the increased use of higher-cost medicines (called the drug-mix effect), averaging 6.3 percent from 2018 to 2023 and peaking at 9.2 percent in 2023.
• By 2023, medicines costing over $10,000 and $25,000 annually represented one-third and one-sixth of total drug costs, respectively. Though a growing number of these high-cost drugs were reimbursed by private plans, they were used by only 1.5 percent and 0.4 percent of claimants, respectively. Notably, the top five percent high-cost claimants accounted for nearly two-thirds of total drug costs in private plans.
• Private drug plans typically reimburse prescriptions with a longer days’ supply than public plans whose data is collected and analyzed by National Prescription Drug Utilization Information System, with privately insured claimants making fewer claims and incurring lower costs annually. However, privately insured claimants pay more out-of-pocket costs than active beneficiaries in public plans.

The PMPRB protects and informs Canadian consumers by reviewing the prices of patented medicines sold in Canada, and by reporting on pharmaceutical trends. PMPRB

Several scientists are questioning Microsoft’s claim of a quantum computing breakthrough with its new “Majorana 1” chip. On February 19, the company revealed the Majorana 1, claiming it would accelerate the timeline for quantum computers capable of solving meaningful, industrial-scale problems from decades to just years. The company said it had created what it calls the “world’s first topoconductor,” a new type of material that can control Majorana particles to create more reliable qubits. But several experts, including leading theoretical physicist John Preskill, said in a post on X that the company had yet to release any performance data to back up its claim. One major issue is that Microsoft has made similar claims before—only to retract them later. Scott Joel Aaronson, an expert on quantum computing, addressed the issue in a blog post. Jonathan Oppenheim, a professor of physics at University College London, also pointed to what he said were gaps between the research paper and Microsoft’s official announcement. “There is a massive disconnect between the scientific article, and their public claims, but the most obvious one is that they haven’t shown that they have a topological qubit. The editors even took the rare step of highlighting this,” Oppenheim told Fortune. Fortune

Polluting emissions from data centres have resulted in more than US$5.4 billion in healthcare expenses across the United States over the past five years, according to a study by University of California Riverside and the California Institute of Technology. The research identifies Google as the primary contributor to these healthcare costs, accounting for US$2.6 billion during the five-year period studied. Microsoft and Meta follow as the next largest contributors, with the collective impact of technology companies growing significantly year-on-year. Healthcare costs attributed to data centre pollution reached US$1.5 billion in 2023 alone, representing a 20-percent increase from the previous year. Data centres require substantial electrical power to function, with much of this energy derived from fossil fuel sources that produce greenhouse gas emissions. These emissions have established links to respiratory diseases, cancer and other health conditions affecting communities near these facilities. Goldman Sachs estimates that AI-driven energy demand could result in data centres consuming 10 percent of all U.S. electricity by 2030, up from four percent in 2023. Technology Magazine

Evidence for Democracy (E4D) and a coalition of Canadian organizations, researchers and advocates have joined forces in solidarity with the Stand Up for Science movement in the United States. With growing concerns over political interference in science, funding cuts and restrictions on evidence-informed policymaking, this campaign underscores the urgent need to defend scientific integrity and accessibility, EVD said. On March 7, 2025, scientists, advocates and supporters in the U.S. will rally to defend science as a pillar of social, political and economic progress. In response, E4D has launched an open letter for Canadian organizations, scientists and citizens to support our American colleagues. “When scientific integrity is threatened anywhere, it affects us all,” Sarah Laframboise, executive director at Evidence for Democracy, said in a statement. “We are calling on Canadians to reaffirm their commitment to evidence-informed decision-making and ensure that science continues to serve the public good.” The open letter calls for three key policy actions:

• Secure and Expand Scientific Funding: Restore and increase research funding to support long-term scientific innovation.
• End Censorship and Political Interference in Science: Prohibit restrictions on research and ensure public access to scientific data.
• Defend Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility in Science: Maintain and expand equitable access to STEM careers and research opportunities.

E4D invites individuals and organizations across Canada to sign the open letter and join the campaign. E4D

VC, PRIVATE INVESTMENT & ACQUISITIONS

The Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) booked a loss on its US$325 million investment in Northvolt AB, the Swedish electric vehicle battery maker that filed for bankruptcy protection last year. “At the time we made the investments, Northvolt represented an attractive growth opportunity supported by several other of the world’s most respected investors,” a spokesperson for OMERS said in an email to BNN Bloomberg. “Like many others, OMERS has now written down its stake.” The $138.2-billion pension fund made three investments in Northvolt, including participating in a private placement of equity and a convertible note. The Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec disclosed that it wrote down its US$150 million investment in Northvolt to zero, and Investment Management Corp. of Ontario has also marked down its investment, which was US$400 million. BNN Bloomberg

Montreal-based TandemLaunch , a venture creation studio and seed fund, closed TandemLaunch Ventures Fund IV (TLVIV) at over $37 million. The Venture Capital Catalyst Initiative joined BDC Capital, Fonds de solidarité FTQ and over 30 family offices and angel investors domestically and internationally to fund a target of 15 startups focused on deep tech and innovative sustainability solutions. TandemLaunch specializes in transforming university-born technologies into high-growth ventures. TandemLaunch, which has more than $90 million of assets under management, said TLVIV will continue fueling breakthrough innovation with capital and strategic guidance. TandemLaunch

Toronto-based Venn, an all-in-one financial platform built for Canadian businesses, raised $21.5 million in a Series A funding round led by Left Lane Capital, with participation from XYZ Venture Capital, Intact Ventures, and Gradient. The company is also officially rebranding from Vault to Venn, reflecting the evolution from solely providing multi-currency accounts to a holistic platform that includes global accounts, spend management, transfers, FX services, accounting automation and more. Venn plans to use the funding to deepen its current product offerings and expand horizontally to deliver an even more complete financial stack. BusinessWire

Vancouver-based VRIFY Technology Inc., which combines advanced AI with deep industry expertise to transform how minerals are found, raised $12.5 million in Series B funding. The round was led by New York-based venture capital firm LGVP, with continued support from Series A funders RCF Innovation and Beedie Capital. VRIFY said this investment will accelerate industry-wide adoption of DORA, an AI-Assisted Mineral Discovery Platform. VRIFY has designed DORA as a sector-wide R&D tool, placing the platform directly into the hands of the geologists and geoscientists tasked with finding the minerals the world needs to feed supply chains, secure borders and build energy solutions. CISION

Toronto-based pharmaceutical firm Paradox Immunotherapeutics raised US$10 million in financing led by biotherapeutics firm SymBiosis. Andy Zweifach, an operating advisor at SymBiosis, has joined Paradox as an independent director and executive chairman. Paradox said it will use the funding to advance the company’s therapeutic pipeline. Paradox is a preclinical-stage biotech that uses a drug discovery platform to combat protein misfolding diseases such as amyloidosis. Paradox designs and develops specialized antibodies that can selectively target and remove only the problematic or misfolded proteins while leaving healthy proteins in the body completely untouched. BusinessWire

Lavel, Que.-based cleantech firm Dispersa, which transforms food waste into chemicals for products like cleaners and soaps, raised $5.8 million in seed funding. The round was led by Nàdarra Ventures and backed by a consortium of all-Canadian investors, including new investors BDC Thrive Lab, Cycle Momentum, The51 Food & AgTech Fund, and Fonds d'investissement Eurêka, through Hidden Layers Capital. This round also saw significant participation from existing investors, including Good & Well, Dragonfly Ventures, BoxOne Ventures, and Front Row Ventures. Dispersa's proprietary technology combines synthetic biology and precision fermentation to create 100-percent waste-derived, affordable and high-performing surfactants, an alternative to surfactants produced by fossil fuel- and palm-derived chemicals. Dispersa said the funding will accelerate the company’s ability to commercially scale the production of its PuraSurf^® M product to service some of the largest multinational companies in the North American household, industrial and institutional sector. CISION

Montreal-based Avitia, an AI company providing end-to-end testing solutions to rapidly identify cancer mutations and applicable treatments, raised $5 million in seed funding. PacBridge Capital Partners made the investment. Avitia intends to use the funds to expand into new markets and enhance its platform’s capabilities. Avitia delivers advanced next-generation sequencing molecular testing solutions directly to laboratories via the company’s AI/machine learning platform. With its automated platform, any lab can conduct liquid biopsy assays on-site – reducing testing time and cost while improving patient outcomes. FinSMEs

Vancouver-based Nexera Robotics raised $4.5 million with backing from investors that included BDC Capital’s Industrial Innovation Venture Fund, Defined Capital, and RiSC Capital. Nexera’s “NuraGrasp” technology is designed to tackle one of automation’s biggest challenges: enabling robots to reliably handle diverse items in dynamic environments. The company said its technology combines compliant grasping methods with sophisticated AI and perception systems, allowing for unparalleled precision and adaptability in robotic handling. Nexera said the investment will support the company’s growth strategy, including expanding R&D efforts and strengthening global partnerships with system integrators and robotic picking solutions providers. Techcouver

Vancouver- and Toronto-based startup Merchkit raised $2 million in pre-seed funding to automate retail merchandising and product catalogue management using AI. The round was led by Afore Capital and Antler Canada, with participation from strategic retail and tech angel investors. Merchkit is building an AI-powered software platform designed to help retailers, marketplace and brands onboard, launch and optimize product listings at scale through automation. The company plans to use this capital to accelerate product development and add five more employees in AI development, data engineering and customer success roles to its three-person team. Founders Today

Montreal-based Paperplane Therapeutics raised $1.5 million in an all-equity seed funding round led by Glen Ventures, with financial support from the Government of Quebéc through Investissement Québec. Strategic investors including the Centre for Aging + Brain Health Innovation (CABHI), Cedars-Sinai Intellectual Property Company, Anges Québec, and Aventure Capital also participated. Paperplane specializes in therapeutic virtual reality solutions for pain and anxiety management in healthcare, such as during dental procedures. The funding will enable the company to continue its mission of deploying cutting-edge virtual reality therapies in the dental sector. Investissement Québec

Vancouver-based Opal, which provides a software-as-a-service platform designed to automate back-office operations for agencies, raised $1.5 million in pre-seed funding. The round was led by Founders Co-op with support from Exit North Ventures. The company intends to use the funds to accelerate the development of “Opal Spend,” an ad-spend platform built to connect ad-spend with accounting, invoicing and contract management. FinSMEs

Canadian asset owners representing about $53 billion in holdings are disappointed that Canada’s financial institutions have left net-zero emissions initiatives and are calling for them to follow through on climate commitments. The 34 signatories to an open letter include the Trottier Family Foundation, the Canada Post Pension Plan, United Church of Canada and the University of Victoria. Together, they’re raising concerns about departures from the UN-backed Net Zero Banking Alliance, which all of Canada’s six biggest banks quit in January following departures by the biggest U.S. banks ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration. The asset owners said membership in the banking alliance, as well as the Net Zero Asset Managers Initiative, signals a baseline level of accountability as well as consistent reporting to provide transparency and comparability. Signatories say they expect banks to follow through on net zero by 2050 commitments. They also call on banks to continue setting “robust” targets for 2030 and to provide standardized annual progress reports. Canadian banks that left the alliance, including RBC, TD, BMO, CIBC, Scotiabank and National Bank, said they have the internal capabilities to follow through on their climate commitments independently. BNN Bloomberg

Canadian investment firm Brookfield will buy U.K.-based National Grid’s onshore renewable energy business for US$1.74 billion. Brookfield, now based in New York, and its institutional partners including Brookfield Renewable Partners, will take control of 1.8 gigawatts of solar, wind and battery storage capacity in the U.S. as part of its purchase of the U.K.-based company’s subsidiary. National Grid said the transaction is part of its strategy to focus on networks and streamline its business. The deal is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close in the first half of the year. National Grid

The Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) will acquire Quebec-based Innergex Renewable Energy Inc.’s outstanding shares for $13.75 apiece, marking a 58-percent premium to its stock value before the deal was announced. The equity portion of the transaction is worth about $2.8 billion, while the Caisse will also assume the remainder of Innergex’s debt, bringing the total deal value to $10 billion. Hydro-Québec, Innergex’s largest investor, approved the deal and will sell its stake in the company at a $214-million loss. The deal is subject to approval by Innergex’s shareholders and regulars. Innergex Renewable Energy

Amsterdam-headquartered Prosus Group announced it will acquire Amsterdam-based food delivery conglomerate JustEat Takeaway, the parent company of Winnipeg-based SkipTheDishes, in a deal valued at approximately 4.1 billion euros (Cdn$6.2 billion). Prosus will pay 20.30 euros (Cdn$30.50) in cash for all issued and outstanding shares of JustEat Takeaway, which is publicly traded on the Euronext Amsterdam stock exchange, and take the company private upon completion. The price represents a 63-percent premium on JustEat Takeaway’s closing price of 12.43 euros per share before the deal was announced. A joint statement by the companies said the transaction provides an opportunity to couple Prosus’ investment expertise, tech and artificial intelligence capabilities with Just Eat Takeaway’s brand strength and solid fundamentals. Prosus Group

REPORTS & POLICIES

Quantum computing startups require more than viable technology: quantum researcher Barry Sanders

Despite recent successes in quantum computing, its future remains uncertain due to challenges in scaling and proving quantum advantage, according to an article by Dr. Barry Sanders, PhD, professor and scientific director of Quantum City at the University of Calgary.

“That scientific outcomes are not predictable is unsurprising, but creating a successful business in an unpredictable area requires an approach that goes beyond the standard,” Sanders says in a  commentary published in Nature Electronics.

Quantum computing was first proposed over 40 years ago and by 1994 researchers had developed algorithms showing its potential. In 1999, Canada’s D-Wave Systems (now headquartered in California) became the first quantum computing startup. 

Today, numerous quantum startups operate alongside major tech firms like AWS, Google, IBM, and Microsoft. The focuses of these startups include hardware, software or cloud services, with some achieving billion-dollar "unicorn" status. 

However, success in quantum startups requires more than viable technology, Sanders says. “Startup success depends on intelligent strategies.”

“Successful startups need to combine scientific and technological know-how with good business sense,” he says.

Founders must carefully decide on the most appropriate strategy, plan fundraising, and balance cash burn rate and runway. They must also decide whether to stay the course or pivot, though pivoting is often difficult for hardware companies. 

Annual recurring revenue can demonstrate corporate discipline and traction for proving that a market exists; it is partly for this reason that quantum-as-a-service, generalizing the notion of software-as-a-service, is growing, Sanders says.

Quantum startups, customers, investors, funding agencies and educators are key actors in the evolving quantum computing innovation ecosystem, and the activities and relationships between the different actors can be collaborative or competitive, Sanders notes.

Mentoring is key to success, and successful startups can benefit from joining quantum-focused incubators and accelerators at appropriate stages.

“Success will depend on being part of an appropriate innovation ecosystem, which for quantum computing currently consists of numerous startups as well as larger companies,” he says.

Quantum tech’s dual-use nature (civilian and military) adds complexity, with potential restrictions on talent and exports. But it can also attract government investment, providing non-dilutive funding. While valuable, such funding may come with conditions that could divert focus, so founders should evaluate it carefully, Sanders advises. 

“Patience is perhaps the most important quality needed to succeed in emerging technology such as quantum computing, which offers no guarantees that it can be realized at sufficient scale to be useful or that actual uses cases will emerge.”

Without clarity on what value quantum computers deliver, assessing the value of a quantum computing startup is inherently uncertain, “and thus there exists an unhealthy reliance on consultancy reports for assessing value,” he says.

AI’s history, with its cycles of hype and "AI winters," is a reminder that progress isn’t always linear. Quantum computing is likely to follow a similar path. 

“A certain courage and faith is needed for quantum computing startups, and the investment

needs to come from patient investors who understand the nature of emerging dual-use technologies and the inherent unpredictability of their risk and value,” Sanders says.

The Quantum City initiative is dedicated to bridging the gap between quantum research and real-world applications by supporting startups, industry partnerships, and talent development. University of Calgary

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Employers in Canada’s life sciences sector want prospective employees to have more ready-to-use skills: CASTL study

The most sought-after competencies of prospective employees by employers in the life sciences sector are regulatory compliance knowledge and hands-on laboratory techniques, according to a new study by the Canadian Alliance for Skills and Training in Life Sciences (CASTL).

Eighty percent of employers want employees with knowledge of Good Manufacturing Practices and 70 percent emphasized laboratory proficiency, the study says.

CASTL, headquartered in Charlottetown, P.E.I., is Canadia’s exclusive provider of National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training programs.

CASTL did the market study in partnership with BioTalent and the Future Skills Centre, to identify key workforce trends and emerging training and skills priorities.

It is projected that Canada’s life sciences sector will require 65,000 additional workers by 2029. 

The study’s other key findings include:

• Employers report that while new graduates possess strong theoretical knowledge, they often lack essential hands-on training in cleanroom operations, regulatory compliance and aseptic techniques (designed to prevent contamination by microorganisms).
• Skilled workers from adjacent fields such as pharmaceuticals and food manufacturing have transferable expertise, making targeted reskilling programs a valuable workforce solution. 
• Collaboration between post-secondary institutions, policymakers and industry leaders is crucial to aligning training programs with real-world needs. 
• Despite recognizing the importance of training, many companies, especially SMEs, cite cost constraints, time limitations and lack of accessible biomanufacturing-specific programs as significant challenges. 

Sixty-four percent of employers highlighted knowledge of manufacturing and production techniques as important skills for prospective employees, while 60 percent said documentation and reporting skills are necessary.

Hands-on technical experience in regulated sectors was valued by 58 percent of employers, while 58 percent prioritized quality control and assurance skills

Seventy-eight percent of employers require introductory training for new hires, while 62 percent highlight the need for similar training for current employees.

In terms of top roles and competencies, manufacturing/production technicians account for 35 percent of new hires. Laboratory technicians represent 15 percent of hiring needs.

Employers are calling for hands-on experiences in Good Manufacturing Practices adherence, cleanroom operations and regulatory compliance to ensure employees are job-ready.

To overcome the barriers to training, employers are implementing innovative strategies such as self-directed online learning modules and in-person workshops.

The study recommends:

• Prioritizing training in Good Manufacturing Practices and core competencies.
• Strengthening collaboration across sectors.
• Leveraging adjacent talent pools and promoting awareness of biomanufacturing career pathways. CASTL

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Canada needs to respond strategically to U.S. tariffs: Centre for Canadian Innovation and Competitiveness

Canada must be measured and calculating in its response to tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump, according to a commentary by the Centre for Canadian Innovation and Competitiveness.

Heated calls for retaliation – such as cancelling U.S. patents, enacting export tariffs and shutting off electricity to U.S. border states – may satisfy an emotional need for pushback and appeal to growing Canadian patriotic sentiment, Lawrence Zhang, head of policy for the Centre, says in the commentary.

“But they overlook a fundamental reality: In a trade war between a $26-trillion economy and a $2-trillion one, pyrrhic victories are the best Canada can hope for.”

The Ottawa-based Centre is affiliated with the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF) policy think tank in Washington, D.C.

While many Canadians may currently feel a surge of national pride and would accept “any level of damage” [as suggested by former prime minister Stephen Harper] to fight back against Trump’s annexation threats, the priority should be to address U.S. tariffs in a way that minimizes the damage inflicted upon Canadians rather than ignoring the pain, Zhang says.

Trump could be using the tariffs as leverage to secure an advantage in a potential premature renegotiation of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) to better serve U.S. interests, in which case Canadian negotiators will need to focus on the “art of the deal,” Zhang says.

“Or he truly is the “Tariff Man” he has claimed to be and intends to keep the tariffs regardless of Canada’s response, wherein Canada will need to pursue strategies to boost trade diversification and domestic productivity.”

A 25-percent import tariff on Canadian goods would decrease U.S. GDP by less than one percent, Zhang says.

But these same tariffs would decrease Canada’s GDP by 3.8 percent, with dollar-for-dollar retaliation leading to a 5.6-percent decrease. “To put this in perspective, a 5.6-percent decrease in GDP would result in roughly $4,300 less in economic activity per Canadian.”

If it becomes clear that Trump is using tariffs as an early negotiating chip to renegotiate CUSMA in favor of the U.S., that would be good news, Zhang says. It would indicate that Trump and the U.S. have not abandoned free trade in North America.

“In this case, Canada will need to swallow its pride and seek to make concessions in exchange for the termination of tariffs, keeping the ‘art of the deal’ in mind,” Zhang says.

In the past, Trump has pointed to issues such as discriminatory regulation and taxation of U.S. tech companies, Canadian banking regulations, supply management and softwood lumber stumpage fees as irritants to the U.S.

Canada’s inclusion on the USTR 301 Watch List for weak intellectual property enforcement is an “own goal” that the country could – and should – fix, Zhang says. The Office of the United States Trade Representative lists a range of unfair trade practices it claims Canada engages in.

Zhang argues that while tinkering with supply management or acquiescing in the seemingly perpetual fight over softwood lumber would be politically unpopular and damaging to certain industries in Canada, these concessions may be less harmful than an escalating trade war.

Meanwhile, scrapping measures introduced by the federal government in the last few years like the digital services tax, the Online News Act, and the online streaming levy – or making minor adjustments to banking regulations to encourage foreign competition, such as easing thresholds for private shareholders – “are relatively easy wins that could be accomplished with minimal impact on Canadians.”

“In other words, offering real concessions on these issues could help assuage Trump’s concerns. Many of these changes, such as reducing certain trade-distorting subsidies, could even save the federal government money.”

However, if it becomes apparent that Trump’s tariffs are permanent and cannot be negotiated away – whether aimed at economically subjugating Canada into becoming the 51^st state, igniting a U.S. domestic “manufacturing renaissance,” or generating revenue for the U.S. government – Canada will need to implement retaliatory measures, Zhang says.

When determining how best to retaliate, he says, the key principle should be to strategically select industries for tariffs that maximize political pressure on the Trump administration while minimizing long-term harm to Canadians.

As the federal government has outlined, this means enacting surgically precise reciprocal tariffs on final goods from Republican and politically vulnerable states in the lead-up to the 2026 U.S. mid-term elections, as well as on industries where Canadian consumers and businesses can easily find substitutes.

Retaliation must also be implemented gradually, Zhang says. Canada holds fewer cards in this negotiation than the U.S., so immediately resorting to extreme measures – such as cutting off electricity, restricting oil and gas exports, or imposing tariffs on potash – would be akin to taking the “nuclear option” from the start, he says.

While it is reasonable to penalize U.S. firms operating in America, targeting those within Canada would only make goods more expensive for Canadian businesses and consumers – without applying meaningful political pressure on the Trump administration, Zhang argues.

Since the post-World War II period, Canada has come to utilize its proximity to the U.S. for security, stability and access to an easy export market, he notes.

Because of this dependence, Canada has shown relatively low levels of R&D spending (particularly in business R&D expenditures) and a lack of focus on boosting domestic productivity, despite its high levels of wealth and education, he says.

“The perceived low costs of technological dependence on the U.S., combined with little government urgency around developing certain strategic technologies, have only reinforced this pattern. Complacency is comforting.”

While Trump’s tariffs indubitably pose an unprecedented threat to Canada’s economic well-being, they should serve as a wake-up call for Canadians to prioritize innovation and productivity, Zhang says.

“Indeed, policymakers have shown renewed fervor in dismantling domestic trade barriers and leveraging procurement as a means to drive domestic innovation,” he says.

While these are excellent first steps, bold action is needed, Zhang says. Canada must seize this rare opportunity to develop the self-sustaining innovation ecosystem that has long remained just out of reach, he adds.

This means reforming Canada’s R&D tax credit, pushing universities out of their comfort zones to align research with homegrown technological opportunities, and incentivizing capital expenditures on productive investments.

Canada will also need to embrace the innovation principle in tech regulation rather than copying Europe’s regulation-heavy approach – which even the European Commission is now reconsidering, Zhang says.

Additionally, he says, Canada must drastically improve access to capital for companies with the potential to scale globally and develop a techno-economic strategy that outlines, in detail, how the government can help Canadian firms in key sectors succeed on the global stage.

“Canada should resist the temptation of engaging in emotionally satisfying outrage and trade rattling,” Zhang says.

Instead, he says, Canada should look inward and acknowledge the significant number of trade barriers and policies that target U.S. companies that it has erected – “then make Trump an offer he cannot refuse by dismantling them.”

“And even if Canada manages to dodge this bullet, it should seize the moment and enact bold reforms that foster a more innovative, productive and globally competitive economy.” ITIF

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Nova Scotia introduces legislation to remove interprovincial trade barriers in the face of U.S. tariffs

The Government of Nova Scotia introduced legislation to help remove barriers to trade and investment between Nova Scotia and other Canadian provinces and territories that reciprocate.

The Free Trade and Mobility within Canada Act is the first of its kind in the country and will help foster an environment of mutual recognition of goods, services and labour mobility across all sectors, the government said.

“We want other provinces and territories to know that Nova Scotia is open for business; we’re ready to partner with other Canadian jurisdictions who are ready to do business with us,” said Premier Tim Houston, also the minister of Trade.

“This legislation just makes sense. It will allow goods and services to be sold in Nova Scotia without further testing or red tape and puts trust in other provinces and territories that have appropriate requirements to keep people safe,” Houston said.

University of Calgary economist Trevor Tombe estimated in a 2022 report that trade barriers between provinces were costing Canada as much as $200 billion a year.

Eliminating interprovincial trade barriers could help cushion the economic shock of U.S. tariffs, experts say.

Interprovincial exports contribute about 17 percent of Nova Scotia’s gross domestic product and make up about half of the province’s exports (about 48 percent of all goods and services).

In 2023, the value of Nova Scotia’s interprovincial exports was nearly $29 billion.

Nova Scotia’s new legislation specifically addresses:

• Goods manufactured and produced in a reciprocating province or territory will be treated the same as those produced locally in Nova Scotia. This will eliminate any additional fees or testing requirements for goods from these provinces and territories.
• Service providers and licensees that are properly certified or licensed in a reciprocating province will be recognized as if they are licensed in Nova Scotia. This ensures that businesses providing services can operate across provincial borders without the burden of additional licensing or certification.

As well, Nova Scotia would not apply any exceptions or "carve outs" in the Canadian Free Trade Agreement with a province or territory that passes a similar bill. Exceptions apply to detailed provisions in existing legislation that could be interpreted as a barrier to trade.

More than $530 billion worth of goods and services moves across provincial and territorial borders every year – equal to 20 percent of Canada's gross domestic product.

Canadian premiers have been working to reduce barriers between provinces for more than three decades, starting with the Agreement on Internal Trade in 1995, which aimed to make interprovincial trade relationships compliant with the North American Free Trade Agreement, Premiers revisited the topic in the 2017 Canadian Free Trade Agreement and their current work program is the 2024-2027 Internal Trade Action Plan to address outstanding trade irritants and barriers.

Additional side deals include the Alberta-BC Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement and the successor New West Partnership that includes Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Govt. of Nova Scotia

See also: Ending interprovincial trade barriers: from toilet seats and work boots to professional credentials and labour mobility

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Cost of transportation is the biggest obstacle to interprovincial trade: Statistics Canada report

The most commonly reported obstacle to interprovincial trade is the cost of transportation, according to a Statistics Canada (StatsCan) report.

In the 12 months preceding a StatsCan survey from June to October 2024, the cost of transportation was identified as the biggest barrier for interprovincial trade, for both businesses purchasing (27.4 percent) and selling (23.2 percent) goods or services.

Transportation cost also was the most commonly reported obstacle for businesses that purchased (37.6 percent) or sold (28.4 percent) goods or services outside of Canada.

This was followed by the obstacle of currency exchange (20.7 percent) for businesses that purchased and 11.1 percent for businesses who sold.

The vast majority of businesses that not did purchase (89.5 percent) or sell (88.2 percent) goods or services across provincial or territorial borders cited no need or interest in doing so.

More than two in five (41 percent) of businesses in Canada purchased goods or services from suppliers operating in another province or territory, while more than one in four (26.9 percent) sold to customers located in another province or territory.

On average, just over one-quarter (25.4 percent) of the total goods or services purchased by businesses in Canada came from suppliers operating in another province or territory in the 12 months preceding the survey.

Meanwhile, over one-fifth (22.1 percent) of the total sales of goods or services were sold to businesses in another province or territory.

Businesses in wholesale trade (63.9 percent) and manufacturing (56.4 percent) industries were the most likely to purchase goods or services interprovincially in the 12 months preceding the survey.

Similarly, businesses in the wholesale trade (61.9 percent) and manufacturing (50.8 percent) industries were also the most likely to sell goods or services interprovincially.

Over the 12 months preceding the survey, businesses in the territories were the most likely to have purchased goods or services from another province or territory, led by businesses in Nunavut (77 percent).

Conversely, businesses in Ontario (34.4 percent) and Quebec (33.3 percent) were the least likely to have purchased goods or services interprovincially.

The share of businesses selling goods or services to another province or territory ranged from 31.9 percent in Alberta to 12.6 precent in Nunavut.

In the 12 months preceding the survey, over half (53.7 percent) of businesses that purchased goods or services interprovincially purchased them from businesses in Ontario, while approximately one in three bought from businesses in Quebec (37.3 percent) and British Columbia (31.3percent).

Concurrently, businesses were most likely to have sold to customers in Alberta (45.7 percent), B.C. (45.1 percent) and Ontario (42.8 percent).

By way of comparison, 30.2 percent of businesses purchased goods or services from international suppliers and 14.5 percent sold goods or services to international customers over the 12 months preceding the survey.

Businesses in the wholesale trade (66.1 percent) industry were the most likely to have purchased goods or services from another country, while businesses in the manufacturing (41.9 percent) industry were the most likely to have sold internationally.

Businesses in B.C. were the most likely to have both purchased (36.4 percent) and sold (16.9 percent) goods or services outside Canada. StatsCan

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Canada’s agricultural sector is falling behind international competitors and needs to diversify and expand international exports: RBC report

Canada's agricultural sector needs to expand international exports especially in the face of U.S. tariffs, according to a new report from RBC.

Amid the tariff threat, Canada’s agriculture and agri-food sector is vulnerable as more than 60 percent of its exports go to the U.S., the report says.

Canada is poised to lead a new era of trade diversification, but only if it acts decisively, says the RBC Thought Leadership report, Food First: How Agriculture Can Lead a New Era for Canadian Exports.

The report outlines a plan to expand Canada's global market share by 30 percent and drive $44 billion in new agri-food exports by 2035.

While Canada's agricultural exports have quadrupled in value since 2000, its global market share has shrunk by 12 percent as competitors like Brazil and Australia expand into high-growth regions.

“With rising trade uncertainty and escalating tariffs in North America, Canada must accelerate efforts to diversify its trading partners, particularly in Southeast Asia, Africa, and the Middle East," report author Lisa Ashton, agriculture policy lead at RBC Thought Leadership, said in a statement.

RBC worked with the BCG Centre for Canada's Future to build a model projecting export market share potential. The Food First report introduces a national roadmap designed to unlock Canada's full potential as an agricultural powerhouse.

The Food First report is part of series of major initiatives tied to the RBC Trade Hub, a platform designed to provide data-driven insights, strategic recommendations and actionable solutions for Canada's trade future.

The key takeaways in the report are:

• S. trade tensions have cast a spotlight on Canadian food trade. American tariff threats pose a special challenge to Canadian agriculture and agri-food exports, as they now account for 20 percent of U.S. agri-food imports.
• Exports to the U.S. are growing. Over 60 percent or more of Canada’s $100 billion worth agriculture and agri-food exports go to the U.S. – and the value of those exports has quadrupled since 2000.

For example, thanks to large crushing facilities, roughly 96 percent of Canada’s canola oil and 65 percent of canola meal export volumes went to the U.S. in 2024. Canada supplies 85 percent of U.S. potash needs, which could go higher if the U.S. pulls back from Russia and Belarus, its only other major suppliers.

• Canada is falling behind competitors globally. Canada’s position in global agriculture and agri-food trade has slipped to 7^th from 5^th place, and could drop to 9^th by 2035 if corrective measures aren’t taken.
• Rivals are gaining ground in the world’s top growth markets. Emerging competitors like Brazil have gained ground in Africa and the Middle-East, while traditional rivals like Australia are gaining market share in Southeast Asia.

Brazil – now the world’s second-largest exporter of agriculture and agri-food products – is improving yields per inputs such as land, fertilizer use and labour, with agriculture total factor productivity growing by 53 percent between 2000 and 2022. For comparison, Canada’s agriculture total factor productivity grew by 27 percent. 

Canada has lost market share in two-thirds of the sectors that make up agriculture and agri-food trade, including meat (minus two percent), live animals (minus five percent) and beverages and spirits minus two percent).

The result for Canada, according to the report’s models, is $23 billion in forgone export value in 2023 as a result of market share loss from 2000, which is worth more than the steel and iron Canada exported to the U.S. in 2024.

“If tariff and non-tariff barriers become normalized, and trade becomes more politicized, Canada’s ability to compete internationally may be challenged anew, including by growing exporters like Kazakhstan that are seeking to gain market share, especially in Asia and the Middle East,” the report says.

• Canada can increase its global share by 30 percent. With the right investments, Canada can increase global share from 3.7 percent to 4.8 percent to regain 5^th place in exports. That could add $44 billion to agriculture and agri-food’s export value by 2035.

For example, India is one of the clearest opportunities – a market of 1.5 billion people whose economy and standard of living are growing rapidly.

India’s market will increasingly be an opportunity for Canada’s agri-food processing industries, especially plant-based proteins driven by Canada’s production of legumes – peas, lentils, and soybeans.

Also, Canada’s oilseed and agriculture waste processing can help meet expected growth in biofuel demand in Southeast Asia, where blending rates of biofuels with fossil fuels in markets such as Indonesia are expected to stay above 30 percent. This would raise biodiesel demand by 56 percent over the next decade in Indonesia.

• Having a clear plan is critical. To regain market share, Canada needs to focus on innovation, investment, export-oriented infrastructure, digital infrastructure and overseas agri-food promotion.

The key recommendations in the Food First report are:

• Innovation: Accelerate the adoption of precision farming and food processing technologies to increase productivity and efficiency.

For example, adoption of automated steering for tractors and variable rate technology for fertilizers and seeds remain low, at 27 percent and 16 percent, respectively.

Canada also needs greater connectivity among researchers, startups, funders and companies, preferably within agri-food innovation hubs like the ones grown in the U.S. Mid-West and Netherlands.

“That will require us to address the widening gap between private and public resourcing, which threatens Canada’s ability to develop partnerships in intellectual property and commercialization.”

Government spending on agri-food research and development has declined by nine percent on average annually over the past decade, the report notes.

• Capital: Scale up agri-food processing clusters to add value to raw commodities and expand Canada's footprint in global markets.
• Digital access: Close the 5G and high-speed internet gap in rural Canada to unlock the full potential of digital agriculture.

Deetken Insights estimates that if all Canadian farmers had access to 5G, it could add between $2.7 billion and $3.5 billion to Canada’s GDP by 2030, through input efficiencies and enhanced automation on farms.

• Export Infrastructure: Modernize ports, logistics and transportation networks to reduce bottlenecks and improve export reliability.

Canada’s roughly $20-billion a year investment on transportation infrastructure lags agriculture competitors such as Australia and the United Kingdom. Keeping up with these economies would require additional investments of between $13-20 billion.

• Global marketing: Strengthen market development efforts and regulatory alignment in high-growth regions like Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

The U.S. spends close to 20 percent of its agriculture support services budget on marketing and promotion, or triple Canada’s share of six percent.

In just 10 years, the world will need to feed close to 9 billion people, and many of them will have more income, and appetite, for higher quality foods like the kind Canada is known for, the report says.

To meet this demand, the world will need to produce 14 percent more food, feed and biofuels than is being delivered today and do it in a more disruptive trade environment.

“Moving from short-term reactionary tactics to strategic growth, Canada can use the U.S. tariff threats as a wake-up call to leverage agriculture and agri-food as a driving force for trade diversification while building Canadian self-sufficiency.” RBC

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Trump’s destroying U.S. science gives Europe the opportunity to lead the global research community

OP-ED by Richard L. Hudson

Richard L. Hudson is a co-founder and associate editor of Science|Business. This op-ed first appeared here.

If you were wondering what Trump means for global science, the French embassy here in Washington D.C. had something worth seeing this week. 

On stage at the embassy’s auditorium on February 24, Franco-American chemist Moungi Bawendi recounted the discovery of “quantum dots” for which he shared a Nobel Prize in 2023. It was a classic tale of scientific curiosity leading, after many years, to real-life products, in this case a key component in high-end video monitors and other devices. 

So what, he was asked, does he make of the Trump administration’s plans to slash the U.S. science budget?

“It’s going to be absolutely catastrophic for any sort of research,” Bawendi said. He is now a professor at MIT, one of the world’s richest universities, but even so, he said, “I don’t know if I am going to be able to fund any graduate students.” Apparently, “we can’t rely on the federal government to fund this anymore.”

That kind of horror is spreading through the American science community, the world’s largest and most productive. As ever with Trump, we don’t know yet how much of his plans are trash-talk or real. But we do know they are already echoing around the global scientific community.

At risk: U.S. participation in hundreds of multi-country climate and health research projects; the U.S. contribution to Europe’s ITER fusion reactor, the CERN high-energy physics lab and the International Space Station; the viability of U.S.-based research infrastructures that foreign governments have already co-funded; the reimbursement rate to universities for federal research; staffing levels at the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health  – all in turmoil, driven by a president with no understanding of and no interest in how science works. 

Lean on industry

So far, the American science community has done little more than moan. Many of its leaders are trying to rationalize cooperation with Trump’s minions, in hopes of saving a few extra bucks from the Republican chopper.

But there is no point in negotiating with a dictator. The only voices Trump will heed are those of the stock market and his billionaire cronies. And they will only speak up for science if they fear the loss of new technologies and products.

So, rather than lobbying a paralyzed Congress, academics should now be rattling their own friends in the defence, pharma, energy, aerospace and tech industries. 

Yet for the global scientific community – especially for Europe – this could be an opportunity. 

We have already seen the value of international cooperation in science and technology. It produced COVID vaccines in less than a year. It nearly eradicated polio and suppressed deadly measles (until the anti-vaxxers now in Washington mobilized).

Mobile phones are a global endeavour, starting with Nordic Mobile Telephone in the 1970s and moving to 5G and 6G in China, the U.S. and Europe. The satellites, electric cars and other gadgets that fuelled Musk’s billions are the product of decades of global research and development.

Weather forecasting, climate science, renewable energy: not a single significant innovation of the past century has come from one country working alone, though it was often the well-funded and highly respected US scientific community that catalyzed action. 

Europe can lead

So, if American science is out to lunch for at least a few years, who could step up?

Europe, to begin with. Its €93.5-billion Horizon Europe is already the most open large R&D program in the world, with 20 nations from Canada to South Korea joining the 27 EU member-states in every field of research and innovation. It is a template for how a multi-lateral, world-wide science program can operate, with or without US participation. 

Yes, Horizon has many problems: heavy paperwork, policy flip-flops, wide variation in effectiveness – from a super-successful European Research Council for fundamental science to unproductive budget-mummery in many industrial collaborations. But the EU is working on these issues as it shapes its next big R&D initiative, Framework Programme 10.

More difficult for Europe is its endless bickering over money and methods. Even before Trump, the “frugals” among EU members were urging budget restraint, rejecting calls to double the Framework budget.

In reaction, rival camps in the research community – universities, industries, small companies, eastern countries – have been battling one another for those budget scraps that might remain. They have been bickering for control over this and that pillar and cluster and partnership in the Framework Programme, ignoring the very real possibility that the entire structure could become collateral damage in the dash to boost defence and deliver the EU’s “competitiveness agenda.”

Just as the U.S. science community must unite and act, so must the European research world. And to be heard, it must enlist the aid of politically significant industries. 

Still, these are internal EU disputes; they will get resolved. Despite the political messiness, the Horizon model remains one proven way to unite researchers around specific scientific and technical goals. Because it works (more or less), it should be the first rallying point for a post-American approach to global science.

Rather than a world of competing sci-tech empires, we could build a truly multi-lateral science system, supported by many countries, enabling free movement of talent, permitting open access to ideas, and setting clear rules for commercial exploitation of results.

A world of new leaders

Nor is it only Europe that should lead. India, Brazil, South Africa, Canada, Australia, Korea, Japan – lots of greater and lesser science powers around the world should initiate Horizon-like efforts, in specific science and technology domains for which they have unusual expertise.

Nor should this exclude China, the world’s second largest scientific power. Despite its autocratic government and rivalries with the West, it has a great scientific workforce that can help solve global problems like climate change and pandemics. 

To be clear, I am not advocating a United Nations for science; notwithstanding the success of the International Panel on Climate Change, most serious endeavours in science or technology need a clear leader whose vision inspires others to join with their money and talent.

But who is better placed than Brazil to initiate a new, global research program on rainforest preservation, or Canada on Arctic research and exploitation?

With the madness of King Donald, the world’s scientific community has a rare opportunity to reinvent how it works. We could see many initiatives, from many countries. But because Europe has already had 40 years of experience in successful cross-border R&D, it should be first to move.

Now is the time for Europe to lead in global R&D, and to put the money where its future lies. Science|Business

THE GRAPEVINE – News about people, institutions and communities

The Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI) announced the appointment of Christine Aquino as vice-president, external relations and communications.  Aquino comes to the CFI from the National Research Council (NRC) where she has been director general of the communications branch for the past five years. She previously served as senior director for strategic communications at the NRC. Her significant experience also includes more than 10 years at the Royal Canadian Mint where she was the director of communications and public affairs, leading several national communications strategies. Prior to joining the Mint, Aquino worked in Canadian federal politics as the director of communications for a cabinet minister in various government portfolios. CFI

Mount Royal University (MRU) in Calgary appointed Arlene Strom as its second chancellor. Strom retired at the end of 2023 from oilsands producer Suncor, where she most recently held the positions of chief sustainability officer, general counsel and corporate secretary. She previously held a number of leadership positions within the company. Prior to joining Suncor, she practiced corporate and securities law in Calgary. Strom succeeds Dawn Farrell, who was appointed MRU’s first chancellor in 2020 and completed her term in February 2025. MRU

Kirsten Sutton is the new chair of the board at the British Columbia-based Quantum Algorithm Institute. Sutton currently leads the NoW of Work’s technology programs, helping organizations responsibly adopt AI. Her career spans over 30 years in technology, software development, IT infrastructure and cybersecurity. She served as chair of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade and a member of Canada’s Task Force for Women in the Economy. Quantum Algorithm Institute

Mira Murati, former chief technology officer at OpenAI, has joined forces with several former OpenAI executives to launch a new artificial intelligence startup. The company, called Thinking Machines Lab, will focus on building AI models and products that support more “human-AI collaboration” across every field of work. Other key executives on Murati’s team include: John Schulman, who co-founded OpenAI in 2015 and will be chief scientist at Thinking Machines Lab; Barret Zoph, who served as OpenAI’s vice-president of research and will be the new startup’s CTO; and Lilian Weng, OpenAI’s former vice president of safety. Financial Post

Western University’s Design Thinking Program received a $1.35-million commitment from the Royal Bank of Canada. The investment will support the program and fund 10 scholarships, each valued at $15,000, for engineering and computer and data science students. This commitment builds on a partnership in 2019 between Western and RBC through which the RBC Design Thinking Program was launched. While housed in the Faculty of Engineering, the RBC Design Thinking Program is open to students from across campus. A long-standing partner with Western, RBC has invested more than $12 million to enhance the student experience through learning opportunities and financial aid. Western University

Ontario Tech University and Humber Polytechnic have partnered to help meet the demand for a highly skilled nuclear workforce. Ontario Tech leads the initiative through its industry-driven programs, including Canada's only accredited undergraduate Nuclear Engineering degree. Humber complements this with its expertise in training and applied research and its leadership in delivering clean energy programming that is essential for building, maintaining and expanding the nuclear energy infrastructure supply-chain. Ontario Tech and Humber said they’re working alongside select post-secondary institutions across the country to cultivate a workforce capable of supporting Canada's largest and most critical nuclear developments. Humber Polytechnic

Marc Miller, federal minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada is calling for the postsecondary sector to diversify its source countries for international students, instead of relying so heavily on students from India. “Universities and colleges have been going to one or two source countries,” Miller said at a media roundtable in Brampton, Ont. “You have to be able to invest more in the talent you’re bringing here, and that includes going to more countries.” Miller also said Canada needs to return to relying on “quality” over “quantity” of immigrants. “I think we do need to make sure that the Canadian brand does focus on excellence, on quality, and less quantity.” In the last three years, Canada’s population has grown by 2.9 million – an average influx of 81,000 new people every month. Many of those have come in on temporary visas; there are now three million non-permanent residents in Canada, according to a November 2024 report by Statistics Canada. National Post

The board of governors at Loyalist College in Belleville, Ont. confirmed that the college will be indefinitely suspending 24 programs as part of its efforts to address a projected $40-million loss of revenue for the coming year. Quinte News reported that the cut programs include Architectural Technology, Biotechnology-Advanced, Civil Engineering Technology, Cloud Computing, Environmental Technology, Financial Technology, and Wireless Information Networking. Mark Kirkpatrick, president of Loyalist College, said the federal international student cap was a driving factor in the college’s financial situation. With the announced program cancellations and a 20-percent reduction in staffing, the college still anticipates a $1.5-million budget shortfall for the upcoming year. Belleville Intelligencer, Quinte News

Researchers at McMaster University have discovered an explanation for spontaneous and unusual blood clotting that continues to occur despite treatment with full-dose blood thinners. Their discovery, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, is expected to influence how doctors test for, and treat patients with, unusual or recurrent blood clotting, with the potential to improve patient outcomes. The researchers found this new blood-clotting disorder has certain similarities to vaccine-induced immune thrombocytopenia and thrombosis (VITT) — a rare, aggressive clotting disorder that was caused by certain discontinued COVID-19 vaccines. The research reveals that certain patients can develop severe blood clotting due to antibodies that closely resemble those that cause VITT, even in the absence of known triggers for such antibodies, such as blood thinners (heparin) or prior vaccination. The newly identified disorder has been termed VITT-like monoclonal gammopathy of thrombotic significance (MGTS). “By understanding how to diagnose VITT-like MGTS, we can develop more effective treatment strategies that go beyond traditional anticoagulation,” said co-first author of the study, Theodore (Ted) Warkentin, professor emeritus in McMaster’s Department of Pathology & Molecular Medicine and a hematologist in the Department of Medicine at Hamilton Health Sciences’ Hamilton General Hospital. The research was funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Public Health Agency of Canada, and the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. McMaster University

University of Toronto (U of T) researchers in the Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering have used machine learning to design nano-architected materials that have the strength of carbon steel but the lightness of Styrofoam. In a paper published in Advanced Materials, a team led by Tobin Filleter, professor of mechanical engineering, describes how they made nanomaterials with properties that offer a conflicting combination of exceptional strength, light weight and customizability. The approach could benefit a wide range of industries, from automotive to aerospace. “Nano-architected materials combine high performance shapes, like making a bridge out of triangles, at nanoscale sizes, which takes advantage of the ‘smaller is stronger’ effect, to achieve some of the highest strength-to-weight and stiffness-to-weight ratios, of any material,” said Peter Serles, a recent U of T PhD graduate (now at the California Institute of Technology) and the first author of the new paper. However, the standard lattice shapes and geometries used tend to have sharp intersections and corners, which leads to the problem of stress concentrations, he said. This results in early local failure and breakage of the materials, limiting their overall potential. To design their improved materials, Serles and Filleter worked with professor Seunghwa Ryu and PhD student Jinwook Yeo at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science & Technology (KAIST) in Daejeon, South Korea. The KAIST team employed the multi-objective Bayesian optimization machine learning algorithm. This algorithm learned from simulated geometries to predict the best possible geometries for enhancing stress distribution and improving the strength-to-weight ratio of nano-architected designs. Serles then used a two-photon polymerization 3D printer housed in the U of T’s Centre for Research and Application in Fluidic Technologies to create prototypes for experimental validation. This additive manufacturing technology enables 3D printing at the micro and nano scale, creating optimized carbon nanolattices. These optimized nanolattices more than doubled the strength of existing designs, withstanding a stress of 2.03 megapascals for every cubic metre per kilogram of its density, which is about five times higher than titanium. U of T

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