Canada produces world-class research but struggles to turn it into world-class companies.

Canadian startups do well in their early stages. But they hit a wall when they try to grow past $100 million in revenue. At that point, the system abandons them.

This "scaling gap." comes from five problems: a lack of late-stage investment capital, a small market for government and corporate customers willing to buy Canadian, low supply of experienced senior leaders, high friction access to cutting-edge research, and limited computing power for building AI systems.

The solution is a national mission — "10x." Canada should aim to create 1 centacorn (a company worth $100 billion or more), 10 decacorns (worth $10 billion+), and 100 unicorns (worth $1 billion+) within 10 years. If successful, this could add $45–70 billion to Canada's annual GDP and create over 200,000 high-skilled jobs.

To get there will require major changes. Create a Canadian Prosperity Fund—a government-backed investment fund that can write $50–500 million checks into promising Canadian companies. Make the federal government a "first customer" by directing departments to buy Canadian technology. Fast-track immigration and offer financial incentives to attract experienced leaders from abroad. Build "AI Factories"—data centers with thousands of specialized computer chips—and give Canadian companies priority access. Reform the tax system to match American incentives for investors and founders.

The AI era represents the biggest technological shift since the printing press. Canada helped pioneer the research behind it. Now comes the harder part: turning that research into companies that can compete and win on the global stage.

Read the full memo: