Abstract:
CSPC has held a series of panel discussions as part of our National Conversation on Innovation Strategy. These focused on exploring challenges and opportunities facing several sectors including: life sciences, advanced manufacturing, agriculture & agri-food, digital & high tech, and natural resources,

This symposium brings together leaders from industry, government, non-profits and academia to “connect the dots” across sectors and produce a short list of prioritized and actionable interventions. In short, we will work together to review sector findings and devise concrete, implementable actions and policy recommendations for those deemed to be most practical and impactful over the near term.

The event is timed to inform post-Budget deliberations and support follow-on work by CSPC and other stakeholders.

Summary of Conversations

This session functioned as a workshop to synthesize findings from previous consultations across five key sectors: agriculture, life sciences, advanced manufacturing, natural resources, and digital high-tech. Participants aimed to move beyond identifying well-known problems—such as the “valley of death” in financing and Canada’s declining business R&D performance—toward defining concrete implementation plans. Discussions highlighted that while Canada excels in higher education and research output, it struggles significantly with commercialization, technology adoption, and scaling companies domestically. Cross-sectoral groups identified shared barriers, particularly fragmented regulations and a lack of a unified industrial strategy or “North Star” to align national efforts. The dialogue focused on answering “who, what, where, and when” to drive action, emphasizing the need for coordinated, agile responses to navigate current geopolitical shifts and protect national sovereignty.

Take Away Messages/Current Status of Challenges

• Entrenched Regulatory Complexity: The regulatory environment is described as burdensome, outdated, and fragmented across jurisdictions, often acting as a primary barrier to innovation and speed-to-market for Canadian companies.
• Critical Capital and Scale-up Gaps: There is a severe dearth of late-stage capital and physical infrastructure required for scaling, forcing many companies to sell to foreign interests or relocate to grow.
• Systemic Risk Aversion: A deep-seated culture of risk aversion exists within government procurement and regulatory bodies, leading to a preference for established vendors over domestic innovators and stalling technology adoption.
• Fragmented Industrial Voice: Industry sectors often lack a cohesive voice to effectively engage with government, resulting in disconnected policies and an adversarial relationship rather than a collaborative partnership.
• Declining Innovation Performance: Despite high educational attainment and research output, Canada is experiencing a notable decline in business R&D expenditures and technology adoption compared to OECD peers.
• Data and Digital Silos: In sectors like health and digital tech, data remains heavily fragmented across provincial lines, preventing interoperability and the seamless flow of critical information.
• Lack of Domestic Sovereignty: The reliance on foreign hardware and software creates vulnerability, as Canada lacks the domestic “horsepower” and production capacity to be technologically independent in a shifting geopolitical landscape.
• Commercialization Disconnect: There remain weak links between academic research and market application, with intellectual property often failing to translate into commercial products due to restrictive or unclear frameworks.

Recommendations/Next Steps

• Implement “Tree Pruning” for Regulations: Initiate a structured review process to identify and remove outdated regulations within a set timeframe (e.g., 8–18 months) to reduce the cumulative bureaucratic burden on firms.
• Establish International Harmonization: Develop mutual recognition systems with trusted international partners (like the US) to allow immediate domestic approval of products already certified in those jurisdictions.
• Government as Risk Underwriter: The government should act as an underwriter for major innovation projects to de-risk private investment without removing the private sector’s responsibility for execution.
• Leverage Existing Public Infrastructure: Conduct a gap analysis of academic and public facilities to open them up for private SME use, specifically for testing, piloting, and scale-up activities.
• Define a National “North Star”: Establish clear, mission-driven national goals to align disparate sectors, provinces, and levels of government toward solving specific societal challenges.
• Foster IP Empowerment and Mobility: Shift the mindset from strict IP protection to “IP empowerment,” facilitating the flow of intellectual property and talent from academia directly into the commercial market.
• Adopt Agile Regulatory Approaches: Move from rigid “waterfall” project management styles to agile, iterative frameworks in regulation and scale-up to match the speed of modern technology cycles.

Revise Key Performance Indicators (KPIs): Change success metrics to measure meaningful economic impact, such as provincial revenue generation or domestic retention, rather than generic or aggregate output figures.