Canada’s history is that of a nation of pioneers, builders, and warriors—and we can be that again.
I was thrilled to moderate a panel on ‘Building Canada’ with leading 🇨🇦 builders & investors @ruffoloj and @ddebow.
Where some of the discourse during @TOTechWeek has been concern, we focused on what gives us hope for the future and the actions that can be taken to remove the barriers to growth, entrepreneurship, and prosperity.
It’s time to expose a huge scam in AI startups: Contracted ARR
The reason many AI startups are crushing revenue records is because they are using a dishonest metric
The biggest funds in the world are supporting this and misleading journalists for PR coverage.
The setup: Company signs 3-year enterprise deals. Year 1 is discounted (say $1M), Year 2 steps up ($2M), Year 3 is full price ($3M).
They report $3M as “ARR” — even though they’re only collecting $1M right now.
The worst part: The customer has an opt-out option at 12 months! It’s not actually a 3 year contract.
In the chart below, by Q5 the company is trumpeting ~$100M “ARR” to press, while actual cash-generating, in-effect ARR is ~$35M. That’s ~3x inflation.
On top of this, enterprise AI companies are bundling full-time “forward deployed engineers” into deals massively reducing margins, sometimes producing Year 1 negative margins.
At some point customers are going to start triggering their opt-out clauses or aggressively negotiating down Year 3 pricing.
And a wave of enterprise AI companies may collapse.
The teams winning with AI in sales aren't the ones buying the most tools. They're the ones designing how the tools actually work together.
A sharp read by on why the gap between AI hype and AI revenue is an architecture problem, not a technology one. Article linked below👇
Building the next gen of Canadian champions isn't just about growing fast. It's about getting honest with who you're growing for. Here is a great piece on why the customers founders fear losing most are often the ones draining the business. 👇
Couldn't agree more with @motalwar . The physical economy is the part of the world everyone depends on & almost no one has built great software for yet. Teams quietly fixing that will be very hard to catch, and a lot of them are being built right here in Canada. Article below!
People ask us where we're finding the most interesting companies right now. We're excited about technology built around the physical world. Here’s my perspective, along with a market map of the Canadian private company landscape.
https://t.co/Ptzq4JGv2N
The quiet rewiring of Canada's financial system is underway.
Open banking is law. A federal stablecoin framework is on the books. The Real-Time Rail is closing in.
A genuinely exciting moment for Canadian financial sovereignty. Worth a read 👇
Very well done @MarkJCarney !! As Canada’s economic sovereignty is so tied to our future, a sovereign wealth fund is critical so that we supply the equity capital to support opportunities critical to Canada’s future.
PM Carney will announce plans to create a sovereign wealth fund Monday, a day ahead of the spring economic statement. As a refresher, I had outlined last fall the benefits of a sovereign wealth fund for Canada and how it would be funded. https://t.co/lVHeaY0RJn
As details began to emerge on Canada’s Sovereign Wealth Fund - check out @ruffoloj’s article from Oct, 2025 outlining why the country needs this type of grow capital via: @globeandmail
https://t.co/bD6tqnXuy1
Hypergrowth hides a lot. Until it doesn't.
A sharp take on the moment product strength stops outrunning organizational drag, and the counterintuitive move that gets companies back on track. Worth the read 👇Link below
Canada has the talent, the research, and the healthcare system to lead globally in health innovation. So why don't we? Our partner @DrEricHoskins tackles that question in his latest piece. A timely and important read. Article in the comments below👇
$100M. Entirely donor-funded. Faster and cheaper than the public equivalent.
The Jewish General didn't wait. That's the whole lesson.
Wrote about it with Lindsay.
Healthcare isn’t just policy, it’s sovereignty! Below is a thought piece on why a country that can’t care for its own people can’t truly govern itself 🤔. Link in comments.