Two Outaouais tech firms land federal AI money, one of them a Gatineau home-care platform

Tashi Farmilo

Two Outaouais companies, a Gatineau home-care platform and a Cantley software startup, were named July 15 among 63 Quebec businesses sharing $13,852,374 in federal contributions to develop or adopt artificial intelligence, money the government says will help consolidate more than 1,700 jobs as small firms race to stay competitive in a fast-changing economy. The funding, announced at Waste Robotics in Trois-Rivières, flows through Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions under its Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative (RAII).

Aidexpress, based in Gatineau, is the bigger local recipient at $500,000. The company runs an online platform that matches families across Quebec and the Ottawa area with caregivers, nurses and support workers, aimed at helping older people and those losing their independence stay in their own homes longer. It has operated since 2014, working to make booking a personal support worker feel less like cold-calling agencies and more like ordering a service through an app. Artificial intelligence is the logical next step: getting the right worker to the right client faster, and cutting the administrative load that weighs on a small operator.

Bloks, incorporated in Cantley in 2021, takes a different approach. Its AI assistant sits in on meetings, writes up notes and action items, then pulls in relevant emails, files and calendar events so nothing needs to be dug up later. The product is pitched largely at people in finance, venture capital and wealth management, where recalling who said what carries weight. The company is run by Marc Gingras and Rian Robertson, whose earlier ventures include Tungle, a scheduling tool acquired by BlackBerry, and Foko, later bought by another software firm. Bloks is receiving $300,000. Both Outaouais contributions are repayable, meaning the companies are expected to pay the money back.

The two firms are a small part of a much larger announcement. The RAII funds companies either building AI products or folding the technology into their existing operations. Most of the funded organizations are in Montreal, but the money reaches into the Capitale-Nationale, Montérégie, Laval, the Outaouais and beyond. The initiative runs until March 31, 2031, and ties into the federal government's national AI strategy, branded "AI for All," announced in June.

The Honourable Evan Solomon, Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation, made the announcement on behalf of Industry Minister Mélanie Joly, who framed the funding as a way to help smaller companies grow. "By investing in Quebec organizations through the RAII, we are helping innovators transform their ideas into growth, increase their productivity and create good jobs," she said. "In this way, we are strengthening Canada's AI leadership and building a more prosperous future for all."