The Time is Now - An Open Letter to Premier Ford from Ontario CEOs

Dear Premier Ford,

Ontario’s current economic strategy is not working.

As leaders of Ontario’s fastest-growing technology companies, and members of the Council of Canadian Innovators, we write to you at a time of economic crisis.

Ontario is experiencing a trade war with its biggest trading partner, declining GDP per capita, high unemployment rates, and an increasingly precarious investment climate. Without a deliberate shift in economic strategy, the province risks further erosion of its competitiveness, sovereignty, and long-term prosperity.

For too long, provincial economic policy has prioritized short-term foreign direct investment (FDI) wins over long-term domestic wealth creation. Billions in public funds have been allocated to foreign branch plants with little consideration for economic spillover effects. In agriculture, healthcare, critical minerals, high-IP manufacturing, and cyber technologies, there is no cohesive strategy to turn Ontario’s raw materials, ideas and data into sustained economic strength.

Trade policies, particularly in the U.S., have permanently altered the economic landscape. Ontario must adapt with a strategy that prioritizes homegrown innovation as a core policy.

Ontario has an opportunity to reclaim control over its economic destiny.

To that end, we call for the following immediate actions within your first 100 days after being sworn into office:

Strengthen Capital Support for Ontario Firms

• Immediately reduce regulatory barriers that prevent high-growth Canadian companies from accessing capital markets.
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• Prioritize Venture Ontario and Invest Ontario funding for high-growth domestic firms rather than continue to subsidize foreign companies.
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Build Domestic Capacity in Key Sectors

• Develop value-added strategies for Ontario’s critical industries—including agriculture, healthcare, critical minerals, cybersecurity, and manufacturing—ensuring that these sectors generate strong and lasting economic returns within the province.
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• Implement a domestic-first procurement strategy that prioritizes Ontario-made solutions in cybersecurity, AI, and public sector technology adoption.
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• Review the mandates of Regional granting agencies and programs to ensure public funding delivers measurable returns for Ontario’s economy.
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End the Era of Low-Value FDI and Demand Spillover Analysis from Investments

• Mandate a comprehensive spillover analysis for all foreign investment deals and subsidies and assess long-term economic impact before public funds are committed.
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• Shift investment attraction strategies to focus on Canadian-owned firms that create enduring prosperity.
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• Establish clear benchmarks for economic benefit when negotiating technology and manufacturing investments. If deals don’t directly strengthen Ontario’s innovation economy, they don’t deserve provincial support.
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Strengthen Ontario’s Cybersecurity and Innovation Ecosystem

• Immediately implement the Defence Security Investment Tax Credit committed to during the provincial election campaign to help meet Canada’s two per cent of GDP NATO commitment, prioritizing domestic companies in innovative critical technologies such as artificial intelligence and cybersecurity.
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• Develop an inter-ministerial Cybersecurity Innovation Council to align government and private sector security needs, with a mandate established within 6 weeks.
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Overhaul Procurement to Prioritize Domestic Innovators

• Expand Supply Ontario’s mandate to prioritize homegrown technology solutions and ensure public sector procurement strengthens domestic firms.
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• Prohibit Request for Proposals that name foreign-owned technology vendors or products.
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• Launch a full review of non-Canadian technology contracts to assess their economic impact and determine where domestic alternatives should be prioritized.
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Lower Healthcare Costs by Accelerating Innovation Adoption

• Accelerate the implementation of the Health Innovation Pathway within 6 weeks.
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• Prioritize Ontario-based health technology solutions for integration into the public healthcare system within 6 weeks.
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• Develop a cross-ministry working group with Ontario Health to enhance procurement of local healthtech innovations.
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Rebuild Economic Resilience in the Face of Global Instability

• Create an Economic Resilience Task Force within 4 weeks to develop a long-term strategy for mitigating Ontario’s vulnerability to foreign economic shocks, including renewed U.S. trade hostility.
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• Revamp Ontario’s trade strategy to diversify products, reduce reliance on U.S. markets and aggressively expand economic alliances in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.
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• Invest in strategic R&D programs that anchor intellectual property (IP) ownership within Ontario rather than allowing Canadian-born innovation to be offshored.
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Address Ontario’s Talent Crisis with an Industry-Driven Approach

• Enhance funding for the Ontario Skills Development Fund with a focus on high-growth innovation sectors within 6 weeks.
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• Expand corporate-led training initiatives within 3 weeks, modeled after successful programs like Montreal’s CloudCampus and Calgary’s Applied AI Lab.
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• Strengthen work-integrated learning programs in partnership with post-secondary institutions and domestic industry leaders.
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Premier Ford, Ontario is at an inflection point. We need a strategy that positions Ontario as a sovereign economic force—one where local companies scale, innovation stays here, and prosperity is built to last.

We are encouraged to see research and security be linked as part of Ontario’s renewed mandate. The two are inextricably linked and must be met with ambition to scale across all strategic sectors to ensure economic security in a 21st century economy.

The actions taken in the first 100 days of this government will determine whether Ontario remains vulnerable or takes control of its economic future. We urge you to choose the latter.

Signed,

Jayiesh Singh, Able Innovations Inc., Toronto, Ontario

Ron J. Mac Donell, AffinitiQuest, Ottawa, Ontario

Meti Basiri, ApplyBoard, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

David Suydam, Architech, Toronto, Ontario

Josh Ogden, AVSS - Aerial Vehicle Safety Solutions Inc., Ottawa, Ontario

Carol Leaman, Axonify, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Frank Baylis, Baylis Medical Technologies Inc., Mississauga, Ontario

Ben Fluter, Bloom Care Solutions, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Bob Macdonald, Bond, Toronto, Ontario

Saad Siddiqui, Bonsai, Toronto, Ontario

Andrew Graham, Borrowell, Toronto, Ontario

Humera Malik, Canvass Analytics, Toronto, Ontario

Gennady Pekhimenko, CentML, Toronto, Ontario

Phil Harris, Cerio, Toronto, Ontario

Harry Zarek, Compugen Inc., Richmond Hill, Ontario

Sana Remekie, Conscia AI, Toronto, Ontario

Bruno Couillard, Crypto4A, Ottawa, Ontario

Candice Faktor, Disco Inc., Toronto, Ontario

Jon Lipinski, Ecopia, Toronto, Ontario

Chris Ford, Electric Mind, Toronto, Ontario

Dan Mathers, eleven-x, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Andrew Lo, Embark, Mississauga, Ontario

Paul Donald, Encircle, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

J.Paul Haynes, eSentire, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Patrick Blanshard, eShift, London, Ontario

Casper Wong, FinanceIt, Toronto, Ontario

Michael Garrity, FinanceIt, Toronto, Ontario

Hamoon Ekhtiari, FutureFit AI, Toronto, Ontario

Dr. Pouria Ghods, Giatec Scientific Inc., Ottawa, Ontario

John Bianchini, Hatch, Mississauga, Ontario

Mike Cook, IDENTOS Inc., Toronto, Ontario

Debbie Gamble, Interac, Toronto, Ontario

Leerom Segal, Klick Health, Toronto, Ontario

Pierce Ujjainwalla, Knak, Ottawa, Ontario

Cato Pastoll, Loop Financial, Toronto, Ontario

Marcella Arthur, Lorica CyberSecurity, Toronto, Ontario

Adam Belsher, Magnet Forensics, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Kurtis McBride, Miovision, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Purya Sarmadi, MedMe Health, Toronto, Ontario

Dr. Karen Cross, Mimosa Diagnostics, Toronto, Ontario

Mike Andrade, Morgan Solar Inc., Toronto, Ontario

Ryan Denomme, Nicoya, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

John Sinclair, Novari Health, Kingston, Ontario

Sina Sadeghian, NuBinary Inc., Toronto, Ontario

Niraj Bhargava, NuEnergy.ai, Ottawa, Ontario

Jason Tham, Nulogy, Toronto, Ontario

Marc Porcelli, Outcome Performance Ltd., Toronto, Ontario

Ronald Glibbery, Peraso Tech, Toronto, Ontario

Nick Kadysh, PharmAla Biotech, Toronto, Ontario

Caitlin MacGregor, Plum, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Dave Wessinger, PointClickCare, Mississauga, Ontario

Yvan Couture, Primal, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Clive Kinross, Propel Holdings, Toronto, Ontario

Edward Kholodenko, Questrade, Toronto, Ontario

Hamid Arabzadeh, Ranovus, Ottawa, Ontario

David Ross, Ross Video, Ottawa, Ontario

Chad Walsh, Sciteline, Toronto, Ontario

Vikram Chopra, Shabodi, Mississauga, Ontario

Jason Cassidy, Shinydocs, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Daniel Barankin, 6ix, Toronto, Ontario

Duncan Weatherston, Smile Digital Health, Toronto, Ontario

Peter Faist, Staffy Health Inc., Toronto, Ontario

Paul Vallee, Tehama, Ottawa, Ontario

Derek Ting, TextNow, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Sachin Aggarwal, Think Research, Toronto, Ontario

Craig McLellan, ThinkOn, Toronto, Ontario

Paul Vedam, TierOne, Mississauga, Ontario

Steve Hulford, Underknown, Toronto, Ontario

Joseph Fung, Uvaro, Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Mathew Micheli, Viral Nation Inc., Mississauga, Ontario

Darren Anderson, Vive Crop Protection, Mississauga, Ontario

Reza Chaji, VueReal Inc., Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario

Devin Tuinstra, Wily Global, Burlington, Ontario

Charbel Safadi, Zafin Labs, Toronto, Ontario

Ronen Benin, Zero to One Strategic, Toronto, Ontario

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Primary Contact: Skaidra Puodziunas Director, Government Affairs (Ontario) Council of Canadian Innovators \ Conseil Canadien des Innovateurs spuodziunas@canadianinnovators.org