In recent years, Canada has emerged as a world-class hub for tech companies. Cities like Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver host giant multinationals, attracting global talent. Smaller cities like Kitchener, Edmonton and Victoria house scrappy startups that push the envelope on innovation. And everywhere you turn, there are new post-secondary programs and incubators eager to nurture the tech juggernauts of tomorrow.
But it isn’t just “tech for tech’s sake.” These innovators funnel their hard work and ideas into reshaping various industries. They locate problems and inefficiencies and work alongside industry practitioners to develop solutions.
This post explores three exemplary Canadian industries (and the thinkers behind them) that drive technological innovation forward.
E-Commerce
You can’t have a conversation about Canadian tech without nodding toward digital retail. Not long ago, e-commerce was a middling concern to brick-and-mortar retail, confined chiefly to used marketplaces like eBay or Kijiji.
Canadian tech changed that. Of course, you have a juggernaut company like Shopify, a homegrown success story that helped democratize e-commerce for an entirely new class of vendor. Their forward-thinking approach to off-the-shelf platforms shook up the retail industry.
But you also have the countless app and web development companies in Canada that leverage emerging technologies (like AR, AI-powered chatbots, etc.) to match and exceed consumer expectations.
Real Estate
Just like how you can’t mention e-commerce without Shopify, you can’t discuss real estate technology without Nobul, the digital marketplace founded by innovator Regan McGee.
Deloitte recently tapped Nobul as the fastest-growing tech company in Canada. And it’s easy to see why. Finding a quality real estate agent used to be challenging; realtors often hid pertinent information and relied instead on aggressive sales tactics to pursue leads.
Nobul changed the dynamic entirely by applying open marketplace concepts and proprietary AI algorithms to the process. On Nobul, you can see transparent specs on agents (their transaction histories, commission rates, verified reviews, etc.). The algorithm matches you to relevant agents based on your input criteria. And then agents battle it out for your business, often offering reduced rates or better services.
Nobul kicked open the door for proptech (property technology). Now, several Canadian tech companies are working to elevate real estate.
Finance
Finance and technology are a match made in heaven. The former benefits greatly from the latter’s big data analytics, machine learning tools, blockchain technology and user-centric platforms.
In the past decade, Canada has fostered countless fintechs (financial technology companies). Companies like Wealthsimple and KOHO are particularly noteworthy, helping make investment accessible for average users. Essentially, they streamline the investment process, bringing to bear data analytics to help take the guesswork (and risk) out of growing your money. Elsewhere, startups in Canada are experimenting with blockchain technology for micro-investments, a practice beginning to gain traction.
There are several industries that could have made the cut; the healthcare, logistics and legal industries have also benefited from creative tech adoption. Still, the industries above lead the way in Canada, creating, leveraging and benefiting from innovative technologies.
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