Mitacs renews partnership with India to support talent mobility and research collaboration

March 2, 2026 

Vancouver, BC – Mitacs has renewed engagement with India to bring top-tier talent to partner with Canadian postsecondary institutions on innovation projects. The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and Mitacs have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to expand talent mobility between India and Canada across disciplines from science, engineering, and mathematics to the humanities and social science. 

The MOU builds on the recent official visit to India by the Right Honourable Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada, to create new partnerships and joint cooperation, including investing in talent. Prime Minister Carney and His Excellency Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India, recognized this flagship MOU initiative to strengthen institutional linkages, deepen academic collaboration across disciplines, and build future-ready skills through hands-on research and professional training. 

The Mitacs-AICTE MOU, in effect for three years, will support 300 highly qualified senior undergraduate students from India to travel to Canada each year through the Mitacs Globalink Research Internship (GRI) Program. The first cohort will be in Canada in summer 2027. Under the supervision of faculty at Canadian institutions across STEM and social science disciplines, Globalink participants complete a 12-week research internship at a Canadian university to gain valuable research experience, training, and mentorship through projects that advance innovation and commercialization. For businesses and organizations gaining access to top-tier talent, the strengthened research and innovation capacity helps bridge research to commercialization, accelerating market entry and growth. 

Today’s announcement of the Mitacs-AICTE MOU is part of broader engagement with the Government of India, institutions and researchers, that recognizes Mitacs’ role as a trusted partner in talent mobility to drive innovation, productivity and competitiveness. Mitacs and India’s efforts to strengthen research ties and support talent development date back to 2009. Since 2018, Mitacs has supported more than 4,000 applied research projects connecting Indian and Canadian institutions, strengthening collaboration across academia, industry, and government. Most recently in November 2025, the Fields-Mitacs Summer Research Program was launched by Mitacs, the Fields Institute, and the Department of Computer Science at the University of Toronto. As a targeted mobility program in mathematics, it enables Canadian researchers to partner with elite talent from India’s top academic institutions, with the first cohort of students coming to Canada in 2026.  

Strong international collaboration is important to attract and develop top talent—from undergraduate to graduate students, and postdoctoral researchers—in priority sectors such as artificial intelligence, quantum, life sciences, clean energy, and critical minerals. Together, these efforts align with the Government of Canada’s recent investments in talent attraction and retention, including $1.7B to launch the Canada Global Impact+ Research Talent Initiative. Mitacs’ initiatives to attract and support highly-skilled international talent to complement Canada’s existing research excellence also include the Mitacs Accelerate Global Excellence Award and the Mitacs Accelerate Industry Postdoc. 

Quotes 

“Through this important partnership between Mitacs and the All India Council for Technical Education to support talent mobility, we are connecting world-class talent with the high calibre of Canadian postsecondary institutions to advance innovation, research excellence, and the workforce of tomorrow. This agreement reflects our strategic commitment to fostering global collaboration that accelerates commercialization and strengthens economic growth and productivity.” 

Dr. Stephen Lucas, CEO, Mitacs

“With India as one of the strongest Indo-Pacific partners, this agreement between Mitacs and the All India Council for Technical Education opens pathways to enhanced bilateral cooperation and innovation. Top research talent from India will collaborate with world-class Canadian research institutions to accelerate R&D, while deepening industry–academic collaboration and creating new opportunities for talent mobility and commercialization.”

Christopher Cooter, High Commissioner to India of Canada

“The Memorandum of Understanding between Mitacs and the All India Council for Technical Education strengthens our relationship with Canada and creates collaboration across sectors representing our shared priorities, including quantum computing, AI, and advanced manufacturing. Through talent mobility and knowledge exchange, we are advancing commercialization and digital transformation while building the workforce of tomorrow to solve global challenges.”

Dinesh Patnaik, High Commissioner to Canada of India

“The partnership between All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and MITACS marks a significant step forward in strengthening the shared research excellence of India and Canada. By leveraging complementary strengths and resources, this collaboration aims to accelerate innovation, product development, and translate cutting-edge research into real-world impact. It will also play a pivotal role in nurturing the next generation of researchers and innovators, thereby contributing meaningfully to the evolving technological landscapes of both nations.”

Prof. Yogesh Singh, Chairman, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE)

About Mitacs 

For over 25 years, Mitacs has helped grow the economy and develop the workforce of tomorrow, connecting industry with academia and global partners to solve real-world challenges. We support business-academic research collaboration through internships, co-funded with businesses, for undergraduate to graduate students and post-doctoral fellows.   

As a national innovation connector, Mitacs takes a talent-first approach to strengthen innovation capacity and drive global competitiveness. We serve as an essential research-commercialization bridge, accelerating market entry and growth for new products and services.   

This is a critical time for Canada to think big and take bold action. Mitacs is ready to help build a strong and resilient Canadian economy, powered by ideas, talent and innovation.   

Mitacs is funded by the Government of Canada, the Government of Alberta, the Government of British Columbia, Research Manitoba, the Government of New Brunswick, the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, the Government of Nova Scotia, the Government of Ontario, Innovation PEI, the Government of Quebec, the Government of Saskatchewan, and the Government of Yukon. 

About the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) 

The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), under the Ministry of Education, is the apex statutory body responsible for the planning and coordinated development of technical and management education in India. As the national regulatory council, it prescribes norms, standards, and grants. The council also fosters research, innovation, & cross-border collaboration.