Montréal is a powerhouse for innovation with a vibrant culture and robust startup ecosystem. Its collaborations with the government of Quebec offer a mutually beneficial relationship that shapes the direction of innovation and technology. Montréal serves as the breeding ground for tech unicorns like Hopper, and hosts notable IPO successes such as Lightspeed and Nuvei. The 2022-2027 Quebec strategy to support research and investment in innovation will invest more than $7.5 billion over the next five years to build on Canada’s strong reputation as a leader in innovation. The Quebec Entrepreneurial Plan 2022-2025 will invest $121.7 million to support growth with a focus on women, youth, ethnoculturally diverse, First Nation and Inuit, LGBTQ2+, and disabled entrepreneurs. Montreal is also committed to bring together entrepreneurial key players with the ongoing construction of a new international innovation hub “Ax-C space” opening in 2025.

Montréal’s AI sub-sector is mature, far-reaching, and underscores developments in other sectors across the ecosystem. AI is largely supported by public and private sectors. Nationally, the Federal Government announced in 2024 a total of $2.4 billion for infrastructures, research and support programs. Provincially, startups, including those in AI, have access to investment capital through the $120 million Impulsion PME program and various investment funds such as i4 Capital. The government also provides $21 million over three years to Mila - Quebec AI Institute to support socially beneficial AI research. In the private sector, Microsoft earmarked $500 million to expand its cloud computing and AI infrastructure in Quebec over the next two years.