Canada falls to fifth in StartupBlink’s 2025 rankings, even as Toronto and Calgary show strong growth in the global startup ecosystem.

Canada Falls to Fifth in Global Startup Ecosystem Rankings

Canada has dropped to fifth place in StartupBlink’s 2025 Global Startup Ecosystem Index, ending a five-year streak in the top four. Despite a strong showing from top cities like Toronto and Calgary, Canada’s national ecosystem growth lags behind rising contenders—most notably Singapore.

StartupBlink ranks 118 countries and over 1,400 cities based on startup quantity, quality, and business environment. This year’s results reflect a challenging moment for Canada’s innovation sector, which is now under pressure from faster-growing peers.

Singapore Overtakes Canada Amid Sluggish Growth

Singapore’s nearly 45 percent growth rate propelled it past Canada to claim the fourth spot. In comparison, Canada posted the second-lowest ecosystem growth rate among the top five, at just under 19 percent.

Even more concerning, the 13 countries ranked directly below Canada—including Sweden, Germany, and France—all experienced faster ecosystem expansion. The StartupBlink report suggests Canada is at risk of sliding further unless structural improvements are made.

Dependence on U.S. Funding Raises Long-Term Concerns

The report highlights Canada’s heavy reliance on the U.S. for funding and customers—a structural vulnerability, especially in the current global trade climate. StartupBlink also notes the country’s weaker recent economic performance, which may be limiting domestic investment and expansion.

This year, only 39 Canadian cities made the top 1,000 list—down from 46 in 2024—indicating a shrinking national presence in the global startup scene.

Toronto Leads the Pack with Exceptional Growth

Toronto continues to defy the national trend. The city moved up to 21st in the global city rankings, marking its fourth consecutive year of growth. With a 30 percent ecosystem expansion and a total index score nearly double that of runner-up Vancouver, Toronto has firmly established itself as Canada’s innovation capital.

“The gap between [Toronto and Vancouver] has widened further this year, solidifying Toronto’s position in a tier of its own nationally,” notes the report.

Calgary Re-Enters the Global Top 100

Calgary made an impressive comeback, jumping 15 spots to rank 92nd globally. Its 29.6 percent growth rate nearly matched Toronto’s, signaling renewed momentum after falling to 107th place in 2024. This marks the city’s first return to the top 100 since 2020.

Diverging Paths for Second-Tier Cities

While Vancouver rose to 39th place globally, Montréal dropped to 46th due to a slower growth rate of just 13.4 percent. Ottawa also stumbled, falling 19 places to land at 86th.

These diverging trajectories highlight a growing imbalance across Canada’s top innovation hubs, suggesting that regional strategies may be needed to ensure more uniform progress.

Decline Echoes Drop in VC Activity

The StartupBlink report arrives just days after the Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association (CVCA) revealed a five-year low in Q1 2025 venture capital deals, especially at the seed stage. The findings point to a broader cooling across Canada’s startup investment climate.

Stay tuned to Maple News Wire for more insights on innovation, tech, and Canada’s evolving startup ecosystem.

Prime Minister Mark Carney urges scaled AI use across government, appoints Canada’s first Minister of AI and Digital Innovation.

Newly elected Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has issued his first mandate letter to cabinet, calling for the widespread deployment of artificial intelligence (AI) across government operations. The directive emphasizes AI as a key tool to boost productivity, enhance efficiency, and stretch scarce public funds to catalyze private sector investment.

Carney’s push to “deploy AI at scale” aligns with mounting pressure from Canada’s technology sector to integrate AI more aggressively in public services.

Canada Appoints First Minister of AI and Digital Innovation

The policy shift follows Carney’s recent appointment of Evan Solomon—the former journalist—as Canada’s first-ever Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation. Solomon will also oversee the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario).

The announcement marks a continuation of the Trudeau government’s $2-billion Canadian Sovereign AI Compute Strategy. Carney’s campaign had also pledged an additional $2.5 billion toward broadband and data centre development.

Tech Leaders Respond as AI Becomes a Baseline Expectation

Industry figures have welcomed the move. Shopify CEO Tobi Lütke responded to the mandate on X, saying “well said,” and noted that more AI memos like his own were “dropping every day.”

Lütke previously told his staff that AI use is now a “baseline expectation,” and teams must demonstrate that AI is not suitable for a task before requesting additional resources or staffing.

AI-Driven Job Shifts Begin as Government and Industry Align

The private sector is already adjusting. OpenText, Canada’s enterprise information giant, laid off 1,600 employees earlier this year in what CEO Mark Barrenechea described as an “AI-first transformation.” The company plans to hire 1,000 people in high-impact areas, with an emphasis on AI fluency, including prompting and programming.

A mandate email obtained by BetaKit confirmed AI proficiency is a prerequisite for new roles, while existing employees are expected to upskill.

Meanwhile, companies like Bell Canada have begun using AI to automate customer service operations, reportedly saving $20 million in labor costs via Google AI tools. Though major players like Microsoft insist AI won’t replace jobs outright, usage patterns indicate a shift in workforce dynamics.

Carney’s vision may reshape public administration and policy implementation. As one senior government official observed, “We’re no longer just talking about digital transformation—we’re executing it, powered by AI.”