Top business leaders and policymakers spoke with our reporters on stage at Toronto’s Arcadia Court on Monday. Here are the highlights from The Logic’s flagship journalism event. 

Using AI: Getting companies and governments comfortable using artificial intelligence is just as important as AI sovereignty, said AI and Digital Innovation Minister Evan Solomon, with the caveat that he doesn’t want Canada to be “a farm team for the U.S.” or other countries.

Widespread adoption, he said, will give the country a major economic boost, though he said there are “genuine concerns” about job displacement and “AI running out of control.” Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince, meanwhile, warned AI is inserting itself between almost every firm and its customers, threatening today’s business models.

Managing tariffs: Bank of Canada governor Tiff Macklem said that while global tariffs aren’t as steep as they were in April, concerns about the U.S.-led trade war with Canada are warranted. 

As tariffs continue to dominate the central bank’s decision making, Macklem said “there’s only so much we can do.” Last week, the bank cut its key interest rate to 2.25 per cent, likely its last adjustment for a while. Cutting borrowing rates more could spike inflation, Macklem has said. There are policy options that would help improve Canada’s productivity, including growing internal trade and improving east-west transportation, but those are outside the central bank’s mandate, he said.

Moving fast: Projects with buy-in from affected communities are the ones that will get built fastest, said Ehren Cory, the head of the Canada Infrastructure Bank, challenging the idea that consultations can clash with a need for speed. Bill Lomax, president and CEO of the First Nations Bank of Canada, said there is fear among some Indigenous communities that they will be run “roughshod” over major infrastructure projects the federal government has promised to fast-track. At the same time, he said many recognize that success for Canada can bring success to First Nations, too. 

Rethinking sovereignty: Canadians didn’t have to think much about economic sovereignty until recently, said Morva Rohani, executive director of the Canadian Web3 Council. “We don’t even know what [the] industries of strategic importance to us are beyond our natural resources,” she said, which means we’re ill-prepared to defend them with smart regulation and investments.

In international affairs, sovereignty is usually thought of as control over territory, said Jennifer Welsh, director of the Max Bell School of Public Policy at McGill University. But a new “expansive” definition of the word in the digital age could include multiple things, from elements of the supply chain, resources and critical minerals, she said.

Ramping up competition: In the financial sector, Mark Greenberg, global head of consumer at Kraken Digital Asset Exchange, said Canada needs to move from a stability-first mindset to a more competitive, forward-looking one. “We have to stop treating ourselves as if stability is the only thing that we can do,” he said. Andrew Graham, co-founder and CEO of Borrowell, welcomed banking regulators’ recent push on financial competition, but said “we are not where we need to be.” 

Quantum edge: Canada ought to secure its lead in quantum computing, speakers said. Stephanie Simmons, Photonic’s founder and chief quantum officer, said the country should consider mirroring quantum policies of states like Illinois that are matching U.S. federal funding dollar-for-dollar through the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency.

Beyond drumming up capital for the sector, keeping quantum talent in Canada “has actually been a major issue,” said Rafal Janik, chief operating officer at Xanadu. Earlier in the day, the Toronto-based firm announced plans to go public in a SPAC deal valuing it at US$3.6 billion. “We’re not only talking about funding companies, said Janik, “but… building that internal muscle of the federal government to have quantum expertise.”

Brain gain: Canadian universities are eager to poach star U.S. researchers who are worried about political backlash. But Canada’s immigration policy makes it hard to recruit talent, said University of Toronto president Melanie Woodin and University of Waterloo president Vivek Goel. Work permit approvals are too slow and the path to permanent residency is blocked for senior academics, they warned.

“They’re talking to top institutions in Canada, the U.K., around the world, and we need to marshal all of our resources,” said Woodin.

Read more from The Logic Summit 2025 here.