Namir Anani is President & CEO of the Information & Communications Technology Council (ICTC), and Janet Lin is ICTC Board Chair.

 Canada’s future prosperity depends on whether we lead or follow in the technologies defining the global economy. 

Canada’s digital economy contributes more than $223 billion annually – over 10 percent of GDP – and employs 2.4 million people. By 2030, this could reach $250 billion and 2.76 million jobs.

But without bold, coordinated action, we risk becoming a consumer rather than a creator of the technologies shaping the 21st century.

ICTC’s Roadmap for Canada’s Digital Economy to 2030 calls for bold investment, smarter incentives, and a unified strategy aligning innovation, infrastructure and skills. The next five years will determine whether Canada has the resolve to compete at the front of the digital economy.

In the 20^th century, energy independence defined national resilience. Today, digital sovereignty plays that role.

Yet Canada ranks in the bottom half of Organisation for Economic Development and Co-operation nations for compute capacity. Without urgent investment in AI infrastructure, semiconductors and Canadian-owned data storage, we remain dependent on foreign providers – vulnerable to supply-chain shocks and geopolitical risk.

Canada’s innovation paradox is well known: world-class in research, lagging in commercialization. Fewer than five percent of Canadian patents are commercialized domestically, and too often promising firms – like Montreal’s Element AI—are acquired abroad.

Modernizing innovation incentives, strengthening IP protections, and closing this gap would keep innovation anchored in Canada and build globally competitive digital champions.  

Small and medium-sized enterprises account for 63 percent of private-sector jobs but still trail in digital adoption. AI integration alone could lift productivity by 1.5 percent annually over the next decade. Providing subsidies, training, and advisory support would help businesses  adopt AI tools, scale globally and drive growth. 

Canada’s most valuable resource lies not in the ground but in its people. Building a diverse, future-ready workforce must be a national priority.

Expanding STEM and digital education, modernizing credential recognition for skilled immigrants, and scaling reskilling opportunities will prepare Canadians for the jobs the digital economy demands. Inclusion is essential: women, Indigenous peoples and newcomers remain under-represented in the sector. Realizing this potential is both a social and economic imperative. 

 Five policy imperatives for Ottawa

Canada has the ingredients to succeed: world-class research hubs, abundant energy, skilled talent and democratic values that inspire trust. What we lack is urgency and coordination.

The next five years will determine whether Canada shapes the technologies of the future or is shaped by them.

To secure a sovereign, inclusive, and competitive digital future, Canada must act in five key areas. 

First, invest in sovereign digital infrastructure by establishing the country’s strategic digital foundations – scaling domestic AI compute capacity, securing semiconductor resilience, and enforcing data and cloud sovereignty to protect national competitiveness and security.

Second, close the commercialization gap by accelerating innovation-to-impact through modernized scaling incentives, stronger intellectual property protection regimes, and homegrown commercialization pathways that keep Canadian innovation and talent anchored in Canada.

Third, accelerate SME digital adoption by launching a National SME Digital Acceleration Program to expand the use of AI-driven solutions, advanced analytics and digital productivity tools, enabling small and medium-sized enterprises to compete and scale globally.

Fourth, make talent a national strategy by advancing a future-ready workforce agenda that scales STEM and digital education pipelines, modernizes credential frameworks for newcomers, and embeds inclusive talent development to fully leverage Canada’s human capital.

Finally, advance a unified digital industrial strategy by forging a National Digital Competitiveness Agenda that integrates innovation, infrastructure, sustainability and digital trust under one coordinated framework, positioning Canada among global leaders.

These five priorities are the foundation of a resilient digital economy. ICTC’s Board of Directors and executive call on all levels of government to act with urgency – and stands ready to collaborate with industry, academia, and communities to deliver on this vision.

If we act now, Canada can lead the world in AI, quantum computing, clean technology, advanced manufacturing and digital trust. Delay risks forfeiting prosperity, competitiveness, and sovereignty.

The choice is clear. The time to act is now.

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