TORONTO — Leading Canadian tech entrepreneurs have launched Build Canada, a new platform to influence government policy on issues ranging from immigration, health care and transportation.

Former Shopify executive Daniel Debow is among those leading the initiative, after leaving the commerce company last week. Lucy Hargreaves, a former senior staffer in the Liberal government and head of corporate affairs at carbon-capture firm Patch, is also on the leadership team.

Shopify co-founder Tobi Lütke is one of a number of prominent entrepreneurs backing Build Canada. Its supporters also include Borrowell co-founder and CEO Andrew Graham, Wealthsimple co-founder Michael Katchen, SRTX founder CEO Katherine Homuth and League founder and CEO Michael Serbinis. 

The existence of the Build Canada group was first reported by The Logic last month.

The platform hosts policy recommendations, each one proposed by an entrepreneur, with the aim to influence government decisions. 

“This is an optimistic project,” Debow said in an interview, noting that the goal is “getting good ideas out.”

The recommendations focus on specific priorities including selling more Canadian products, increasing productivity and tax reforms to boost innovation and investment.

For example, the group proposes that Canada’s immigration system focus primarily on newcomers’ potential economic impact. Suggested measures include scoring those coming from high-paying jobs more highly in the points-based admissions system, making each family member do their own individual permanent residency application, and creating a new program for graduates of top universities. Martin Basiri, CEO of immigrant-finance startup Passage, led the proposal.

Another memo helmed by Vidyard CEO Michael Litt says Canada needs to “reclaim its confidence,” including by overhauling the Heritage Minute series to fund YouTube, TikTok and other social media creators that “want to talk about what makes Canada the greatest country on earth.”

A proposal from Serbinis suggests updating the Canada Health Act and Canada Health Transfer agreements to make medical records instantly available to patients and any doctor in the country that needs them. He also suggests establishing a new authority to oversee national health data-sharing standards. 

The group says the memos are each built around ideas from participating entrepreneurs, which are expanded upon using AI large language models before being reviewed by “seasoned policy experts.”  The proposals are “not pie in the sky,” Debow said, noting that each memo suggests specific regulatory or program changes to achieve its objectives.

Memo authors all have significant experience in the industries about which they’re writing, he said. “It’s a caricature to think that people who are involved in the technology industry don’t have deep context and understanding of all the industries that we have in our economy, and lots of parts of it.” While tech founders started Build Canada, it’s hoping to expand to entrepreneurs who’ve built businesses in sectors like agriculture, fisheries, health care or oil field services.

Many of the group’s members have been expressing concerns for some time about the performance of Canada’s economy, its companies and innovation policies. They’ve cited statistics such as the decline in the country’s economic output relative to its increasing population, the growth in the government workforce, and falling corporate investment. 

The opening statement on Build Canada’s website blames “small thinking, bureaucratic inertia, and special interests” for preventing Canada from realizing its potential as “the world’s richest country.” The initiative grew out of group chats in which founders were discussing the state of the country and the need to encourage economic growth, according to Debow. “We’ve forgotten that we’re a country of builders,” he said.

The creation of the Build Canada group comes at a time when Silicon Valley is enjoying unprecedented access and influence to the policy levers of the United States. Elon Musk is currently acting as a chief surrogate for U.S. President Donald Trump, directing the fate of budget bills and meeting foreign leaders. Trump has named several other venture capitalists and founders to key positions in his administration.

Sources previously told The Logic that Build Canada is non-partisan and is not directly affiliated with the Conservative Party, though its members widely expect the Conservatives to win the next election, one source said. 

A new non-profit, Build Canada’s Prosperity, was registered on Jan. 24 with Debow as its sole director, corporate filings show. The organization’s purpose is to “advance ideas to help grow Canada.” The group’s operating team members include Melody Kuo, a former Uber product manager, and Benjamin Parry, a former executive at Tim Hortons parent Restaurant Brands International.

In a post on X, Kuo said politicians had told the group to prove that “people actually want” the ideas being proposed and to make those ideas implementable. “They are listening. They are watching,” she wrote, linking to a post about Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre being active on X.

Poilievre, whose party leads polling ahead of this year’s federal election, has criticized lobbyists and said businesses will need to demonstrate popular support for proposals before a Conservative government would consider them. 

The group is non-partisan, and is not directly sending its memos to or taking meetings with politicians or departments to push its ideas, according to Debow. He said Build Canada has received positive feedback from people affiliated with several political parties. “This is a platform for individual entrepreneurs to get their ideas heard in the format that would be listened to in a policy conversation.”

A frequently-asked-questions section of the Build Canada website states that it is “a short-term project” and “not a lobby group.”

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated with comments from Daniel Debow.