The technology revolution has had a monumental impact on the lives of Canadians and people around the world. From increased access to information, better means of communication, and the deployment of innovative solutions to some of our most pressing challenges, the effects and advantages of technology cannot be ignored.

Border closures and international travel restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic aren’t stopping some of the world’s top talent from collaborating with Canadian researchers this summer. Relying on video calls and other advanced technology tools, Hina Tomar, an undergraduate student at Aligarh Muslim University’s Zakir Husain College of Engineering and Technology, in India, is one of over 1,000 students from 12 countries working remotely on leading-edge research with universities in Canada during the summer of 2021.

Screening for lung cancer may soon be as routine as having your blood pressure taken and as convenient as picking up your prescriptions, thanks to a breakthrough innovation by a Moncton-based company. 

As a result of the AI and machine learning expertise of University of New Brunswick biomedical engineering master’s student and Mitacs intern Robyn Larracy, biotech firm Picomole Inc. has developed a first-of-its-kind screening tool that makes lung cancer detection as simple as breathing into a tube. The innovation is expected to be commercialized as early as 2024. 

A recipient of the World Economic Forum 2015 Technology Pioneer Award, Vancouver-based quantum computing company 1QBit is a leader among the most promising technology companies. The company works closely with Fortune 500 clients and leading hardware providers to solve problems in the areas of optimization, simulation, and machine learning. 

Researchers from the University of Winnipeg (UWinnipeg) and the University of Saskatchewan (USask) have taken on an ambitious challenge: build the ground for the next revolution in global farming and food production. With support from George Weston Limited and Mitacs, the team is filling a gap within the digital agriculture field by building a robotic system to create an open dataset of Canadian prairie crop plants and weeds.

A global pandemic didn’t stop Toronto entrepreneur Raghavender Sahdev from innovating. On the contrary, he spent the time propelling his start-up, NuPort Robotics, Canada’s first autonomous trucking company, which will help advance Canada’s trucking industry far into the future by using eco-friendly, self-driving electric trucks for short-haul shuttle runs between distribution centres, warehouses, and ports.

In urgent situations like natural disasters — or even the current pandemic — Canadian first-response teams rely on mobile radio systems to communicate in a fast and secure way. Manufacturers globally also use radio systems in their production plants. Enabling radio communications requires a complex infrastructure with hundreds of thousands of radio repeater sites spread across North America and the globe.

According to the US Federal Communication Commission, 5G “is a virtual cornerstone for critical 21st century opportunities related to economic growth, education, employment, transportation, and more. These new networks and technologies will enable…innovations not yet imagined.”

With the explosion in consumer and industrial demand for faster and high-capacity mobile networks, the 5G download speed of up to 100 times faster than current 4G technology will enable Canadian businesses to deliver a new generation of products and services and compete robustly in the global marketplace.

As trade volumes increase, terminal inspectors have less time to conduct container-quality inspections, exposing a vulnerability for the Canadian shipping industry.

Enter CANSCAN, a young company that uses artificial intelligence to secure shipping containers.

CANSCAN is developing an automated shipping container inspection system using high-definition cameras and machine-learning software to predict maintenance and other aspects of the containers.

Why is this helpful?

If, for example, a panicked person shouts for help, Zenbo may suggest calling 9-1-1 because it understands the underlying need for emergency assistance. This sort of empathic response could make robots an important companion in care homes, hospitals, and at home.