Toronto is emerging as a technology hub and attracting increased investment, including ours, because of forward thinking government and amazing access to technology, an incredible talent pool and leading educational institutions, as well as industries and markets in healthcare and financial services.
Dr. Rick Huijbregts, VP of Digital Transformation and Innovation, George Brown College
Future-ready talent is the catalyst that propels business in the 21st century, and Toronto’s biggest asset is its people. The City develops, attracts, and retains local and international talent like no other location on the continent. Why? Because we build doors, not walls. And those doors open to highly-skilled economic immigrants as well as world-leading academic institutions and academic-industry partnerships.
Toronto is the largest centre of education, research and innovation in Canada. The breadth and depth of Toronto’s internationally-renowned educational institutions play an integral role in its ability to attract the best businesses and the brightest minds. Innovative post-secondary programs such as the DMZ at Ryerson University; OCAD University’s Strategic Innovation Lab; Humber College’s groundbreaking Barrett Centre for Technology Innovation; George Brown College’s Food Innovation and Research Studio; Sheridan College’s Oscar-winning animation program; and York University’s new academic-industry joint venture to fund 3D Film Innovation, support skills development as well as incubate and accelerate new companies.
The city also boasts many other leading post-secondary programs such as Seneca College’s Office of Research and Innovation, which offers a focus on applied research in manufacturing, and the University of Toronto’s Mechanical and Industrial Engineering program, which houses a research laboratory focused on advanced manufacturing and materials engineering.