News That Matters To You

By Mark Lowey
Canada’s push for sovereign cloud and AI infrastructure is often a misguided attempt to solve complex data security challenges with expensive, domestic-only solutions, say tech and policy experts. Instead of fixating on physical server locations, policymakers should prioritize encryption, jurisdictional legal frameworks and regulatory reform to ensure control an d protection of sensitive data, they argue.

By Mark Lowey
Canada’s risk-averse regulatory environment and unpredictable drug access and pricing are pushing clinical trials abroad, leaving patients without the novel medicines they need. To reclaim its standing in global health innovation, experts argue the country must embrace regulatory flexibility and agility, provide patients with access to clinical trials, standardize drug pricing, and create dedicated pathways for made-in-Canada health technologies.

By Danielle Burns
Legislative efforts to ban minors from AI chatbots may inadvertently handicap the next generation by limiting access to essential future workforce tools, reports Danielle Burns, Research Money's project manager. Experts argue that shifting the focus from blunt age-based restrictions to robust design standards, privacy protections, and AI literacy will better safeguard youth without sacrificing innovation.

By Mark Lowey
Canada’s life sciences sector requires a strategic overhaul to transform world-class research into domestic commercial success and improved patient access. Industry leaders argue that aligning regulatory frameworks with economic development is essential to secure national health sovereignty and compete globally.

By Mark Lowey
Canada holds a world-class resource in its rich and diverse population-based health data, yet the nation struggles to leverage this asset due to fragmented provincial systems and reliance on foreign cloud servers. Experts say data sharing among provinces and with entrepreneurs, and a "buy Canadian" procurement strategy, are essential to secure national sovereignty, boost economic growth, and ensure the sustainability of the public health system.

By Mark Lowey
Canada must bridge the gap between world-class scientific discovery and commercial health innovation to build a robust, self-sustaining life sciences economy, experts said at Research Money's 25th annual conference in Ottawa. By prioritizing domestic procurement and aligning research funding with commercialization, Canada can transform its health care sector from a cost burden into a global engine for prosperity, they said.

By Mark Lowey
Canada is failing to meet the core principles of the Canada Health Act, leaving many patients without access to life-saving clinical trials, health advocate Louise Binder told the opening session of Research Money's annual conference. She and Independent Senator Colin Deacon from Nova Scotia said by reforming outdated, risk-averse approval systems, the country can translate its world-class research into better health outcomes and economic growth.

By Mark Lowey
Health Emergency Readiness Canada (HERC) is the agency responsible for coordinating and supporting Canada's industrial response to health emergencies. More than 16 months after its launch, HERC is still operating under an interim head, and neither the agency nor its Life Sciences Fund have specific budgets. HERC also doesn't have its own website yet as a government agency, and continues to refine its internal processes and governance processes.

By Mark Lowey
Full AI sovereignty remains out of reach for Canada , due to the interconnected and interdependent global supply chain required for building the AI stack, say Sean Mullin and Jaxson Khan at the Munk School of Global Affairs & Public Policy at the University of Toronto. But the country can make choices and take steps now to protect its most sensitive data and avoid economic coercion by being too dependent on foreign suppliers, they say.