Small and medium-sized Ottawa tech firms in fields such as AI and quantum computing could gain access to new markets under a new agreement between wireless networking technology giant Ericsson and Export Development Canada.
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Small and medium-sized Ottawa tech firms in fields such as AI and quantum computing could gain access to new markets under a new agreement between wireless networking technology giant Ericsson and Export Development Canada.
The two organizations said this week the new partnership, which is valued at up to US$3 billion, will “expand investment in Canadian research and development, deepen domestic supply chains, and accelerate next-generation technologies," including 5G networks, cloud-based cellular networks, AI and quantum computing.
Headquartered in Sweden, Ericsson has more than 3,100 employees in Canada, including 1,700-plus in the National Capital Region. The company operates a massive R&D facility on Terry Fox Drive in Kanata that specializes in areas such as 5G and 6G working and artificial intelligence applications.
The latest agreement with EDC is part of Ericsson’s Global Corporate Partnerships program that aims to “connect Canadian companies with large-scale multinationals that can help open doors to new buyers and markets,” Ericsson Canada spokesperson Nathan Gibson said in an email to OBJ this week.
“It’s especially impactful for small and mid-sized Canadian tech firms developing innovative solutions, as it creates pathways to international opportunities they might not otherwise access,” Gibson added.
Under the new three-year partnership, EDC will provide financial support for Canadian-led innovation projects in the form of loans, guarantees and insurance that could be worth as much as US$3 billion.
While Gibson said Ericsson won’t be doing any additional hiring in Ottawa as a result of the new partnership, he said the agreement “could result in additional business coming in” to the city’s tech sector.
“This agreement is about enabling Canadian expertise to reach new markets and scale on the world stage,” EDC president and CEO Alison Nankivell said in a statement. “Together we are helping Canadian companies integrate into global supply chains, advance cutting-edge technologies, and contribute to a stronger, more competitive economy.”
The new partnership builds on Ericsson’s $634.8-million R&D agreement with the federal government announced last year.
Ericsson said that agreement would “advance next-generation communications technologies” such as 5G and 6G networks over a five-year term and further grow Ericsson’s partnerships with more than 20 Canadian post-secondary institutions.
Over the course of the five-year agreement, the company said it will create almost 200 jobs and more than 600 co-ops through its university partnerships, which include a 5G drone lab operated in conjunction with researchers at Carleton University.
Ericsson’s 270,000-square-foot Kanata site is the company’s largest R&D facility in North America. It includes more than 46,000 square feet of lab space for designing hardware and software, integrating and verifying products and conducting cutting-edge research.
– With files from the Canadian Press
