This essay from CCI’s CEO was originally featured in the CCI Newsletter and shared with subscribers on July 1, 2026. To receive our monthly briefing on the scale-ups shaping Canada’s future, the policies that matter, and insights you won’t find anywhere else—subscribe here.
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Hi CEOs,

Happy Canada Day, CEOs!

For your summer reading list, our team at CCI has pulled together a collection of some of the best essays, interviews, and long reads we’ve enjoyed so far this year. My hope is that you’ll find a few ideas worth sitting with, and maybe a few you’ll end up forwarding to a colleague or discussing over your morning coffee on the dock or terrace, wherever this summer takes you.

Alongside this reading list, we’ve also published three new editions of our By Canadian series, highlighting how CCI members are strengthening Canada’s innovation economy. I encourage you to check out the stories featuring MarineLabs, BUZZ HPC, and a collaboration between ICI Technologies and Formic AI.

And starting next Friday, you’ll begin receiving our new summer newsletter, Field Notes. Each edition will take you inside one of Canada’s most innovative cities, highlighting the companies building there, the people shaping the local ecosystem, and our recommendations for where to stay, meet, eat, and explore on your next business trip or summer stopover. Our first stop is Calgary during Stampede season. Yeehaw.

Thank you for being part of this community, and for everything you’re doing to build Canada’s economy.

Have a great start to your summer,

Patrick

THE CCI SUMMER READING LIST

Built to Start, Not to Scale

The Globe and Mail examines the financing gap facing Canadian scale ups, exploring the structural barriers that leave many companies struggling to secure the growth capital needed to compete globally.

Quebec just found out what not having digital sovereignty really means

The Logic’s Quebec correspondent looks at the province’s decision to award a $1.5-billion health-services digitization plan to a U.S. firm, and the concerns experts are raising about what that means for digital sovereignty and privacy.

What It Takes to Build a Business in Canada Right Now: Exclusive Poll

Be Giant examines the findings of the inaugural Upstart Index, highlighting the optimism of Canadian entrepreneurs alongside the affordability, regulatory, and capital challenges that continue to make scaling more difficult.

Inside Canada’s $500 Billion Defence Spending Gamble

The Walrus looks closer into Canada’s plans modernize our military and reduce reliance on foreign technology, and the potential pitfalls and pathways for success that lay ahead.

Public Buying Is a Hidden Growth Engine. It's Time for Canada to Use It Strategically

In BetaKit, CCI Vice President of Policy and Advocacy Laurent Carbonneau argues that governments should use procurement to strengthen Canadian innovation by rewarding investment in R&D, intellectual property, and domestic economic value.

B.C. can't reach 400K new tech jobs while chasing away software engineers

In Business in Vancouver, CCI Director of B.C. Affairs Kiersten Enemark explains how Premier Eby's cabinet can unlock B.C.’s competitiveness in tech by removing unnecessary licensing requirements.

Alberta's Strategic Procurement Office Doesn't Need to Reinvent the Wheel

In the Calgary Herald, CCI Prairies Director Jess Sinclair argues that Alberta's new Strategic Procurement Office should use government purchasing to strengthen domestic innovation, support local firms, and build long-term economic value.

Atlantic Canada's Innovators Are Global, but Their Home Market Isn't

The Digital Journal explores CCI's new Atlantic playbook, examining how procurement, intellectual property, AI, and capital policy can help more Atlantic Canadian companies scale while keeping economic value anchored in the region.

Foundations of Digital Sovereignty

In their eight-part policy series, the Canadian Shield Institute examines the governance, intellectual property, data, cloud, procurement, and infrastructure policies Canada will need to strengthen its digital sovereignty in the AI era.

Seize the quantum future – or let the U.S. own it. Which way, Canada?

In an essay for The Globe and Mail, Xanadu CEO Christian Weedbrook says that Canada should prioritize quantum literacy, similar to its AI literacy initiatives. By educating the public and businesses about quantum computing, Canada can foster innovation and ensure its place as a leader in this transformative field.