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Toronto has North America’s 4th-largest AI talent pool

  • 3rd in North America for tech talent, behind the Bay Area and NYC
  • The Vector Institute: $135M in funding, launched March 2017
  • #1 in Canada for seed-stage VC every year since 2021
  • Shopify is headquartered in Ottawa, not Toronto
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How Toronto’s tech scene grew

A talent pool built deliberately, not by accident.

The Vector Institute for AI launches

With $135 million in funding commitments over its first five years, and Geoffrey Hinton — one of deep learning’s founding figures — serving as Chief Scientific Advisor.

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The infrastructure behind the talent

CBRE’s 2025 Scoring Tech Talent report ranks Toronto third in North America for tech talent, behind only the Bay Area and New York, with an AI talent pool of 23,936 workers — the fourth-largest in North America. That pool didn’t happen by accident: the Vector Institute for AI launched in March 2017 with $135 million in funding commitments over its first five years, with Geoffrey Hinton serving as Chief Scientific Advisor. Toronto has led Canada in seed-stage venture capital investment every year since 2021.

Vector Institute

Launched 2017 with $135 million in funding, Geoffrey Hinton as Chief Scientific Advisor.

A correction worth making

Shopify is routinely described as a Toronto company. Its official headquarters is Ottawa, not Toronto — it maintains a large Toronto office, but the company itself was founded and remains headquartered elsewhere. Worth getting right, since it’s the single most-repeated fact about Canadian tech that isn’t quite accurate.

How Toronto businesses buy digital work

Internationally exposed, comparison-shopping, and generally more expensive to win as a client than anywhere else in Canada — Toronto has simply seen more options. Compete on genuine capability here, not on being the only option — Toronto’s buyers have real points of comparison and will use them.

AI and deep-tech-adjacent work

The most competitive, highest-expectation market in the country.

Trades and home services

English-first and local, competing against Canada’s deepest supplier pool.

Clinics, salons and studios

Online booking and published prices, expected as standard.

Shops, cafés and hospitality

A large, comparison-literate consumer market.

The full piece

Toronto: Canada’s deepest AI talent pool, backed by a $135 million research institute

Digital market analysis•2 min read

The infrastructure behind the talent

CBRE's 2025 Scoring Tech Talent report ranks Toronto third in North America for tech talent, behind only the Bay Area and New York, with an AI talent pool of 23,936 workers — the fourth-largest in North America.

That pool didn't happen by accident. The Vector Institute for AI launched in March 2017 with $135 million in funding commitments over its first five years, with Geoffrey Hinton — one of deep learning's founding figures — serving as Chief Scientific Advisor. Toronto has led Canada in seed-stage venture capital investment every year since 2021.

A correction worth making

Shopify is routinely described as a Toronto company. Its official headquarters is Ottawa, not Toronto — it maintains a large Toronto office, but the company itself was founded and remains headquartered elsewhere. Worth getting right, since it's the single most-repeated fact about Canadian tech that isn't quite accurate.

What the real picture produces

A capital-rich, research-dense market with the deepest technical talent pool in the country, and correspondingly the highest expectations and the most competition among suppliers.

The buyer

Internationally exposed, comparison-shopping, and generally more expensive to win as a client than anywhere else in Canada — Toronto has simply seen more options.

The practical read

Compete on genuine capability here, not on being the only option — Toronto's buyers have real points of comparison and will use them.

Sources

Caveats and sourcing

  • Verifiable — the CBRE talent ranking, the Vector Institute's funding and launch, the CVCA seed-funding claim, and Shopify's Ottawa headquarters.
  • Characterising claims — the description of the competitive buyer market is interpretation.

How well do you know Toronto’s digital economy?

Toronto quiz · 1 of 5

Where does Toronto rank in North America for tech talent, per CBRE’s 2025 report?

Why FastSites works here

In a market with more suppliers and more comparison-shopping than anywhere else in Canada, a clear published price is a genuine point of difference.

Built mobile-first. Compete on what you actually do well — Toronto buyers have real points of comparison and will use them.

More from the Canada series

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