In this episode of Disruptors x CDL: The Innovation Era, hosts John Stackhouse, Senior VP of RBC, and Sonia Sennik, CEO of Creative Destruction Lab, dive into one of the most transformative technologies of our time: Artificial Intelligence. With the potential to revolutionize industries from healthcare to energy, AI is reshaping the global economy — and Canada is both a leader in research and a laggard in adoption.

This week, Geoffrey Hinton, Professor at the University of Toronto, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics for his research in artificial intelligence that began in 1987.

Join John and Sonia as they discuss Canada’s AI ecosystem and the country's challenges in keeping pace with global AI adoption. They’re joined by three visionary guests: Sheldon Fernandez, CEO of Darwin AI, Kory Mathewson, Senior Research Scientist at Google DeepMind, and Gillian Hadfield, a Schmidt Sciences AI2050 Senior Fellow. Together, they explore the opportunities and barriers in AI adoption, the creative applications of AI, and the role Canada must play in the future of AI.

This episode is packed with insights for business leaders, policymakers, and anyone curious about how AI is changing our world. Whether you’re an AI enthusiast or a skeptic, this episode will challenge your thinking on the role of technology in shaping the future.

Tune in to learn how AI is both an opportunity and a responsibility, and how Canada can lead the charge in this new innovation era.

Sign up to receive RBC Thought Leadership's newsletter, flagship reports and analysis on the forces shaping Canadian business and the economy.

Are we ready for the AI era or are we stuck in an imagination gap? In this special 200th episode, recorded live at Creative Destruction Lab’s Super Session, John Stackhouse and Sonia Sennik sit down with Minister Evan Solomon, Canada’s first-ever Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation. From national sovereignty and productivity to global competition and culture, Solomon outlines a bold vision for Canada’s AI future - what he calls a “Gutenberg moment” in human progress.

Drawing on findings from the new RBC Thought Leadership report The AI Imagination Gap, this episode explores why Canadian enterprises are hesitating on AI adoption and how the right mix of policy, ambition, and imagination can close the gap. Minister Solomon speaks candidly about the four key pillars of Canada’s AI strategy: scaling champions, adoption, trust, and sovereignty, and offers tangible insights into how SMEs, researchers, and public institutions can all benefit from AI’s abundance, if the right supports are in place.

This wide-ranging conversation dives into Canada's AI spine, the importance of protecting national culture through digital sovereignty, and how government, startups, and citizens alike must embrace this pivotal moment with urgency, collaboration, and creativity.

Download AI Report:

Bridging the Imagination Gap: How Canadian Companies can become global leaders in AI adoption

From Arctic sovereignty to wildfire response, Canada’s challenges are increasingly being solved by the low earth orbital satellites less than 1000km from the earth’s surface. In this episode, co-hosts John Stackhouse and Sonia Sennik dive into the pivotal role that satellite communications have in Canada’s future. Prompted by Prime Minister Mark Carney’s call for enhanced Canadian defense, the conversation explores how innovation in low earth orbit will shape global competitiveness and security.

Mike Greenley, CEO of MDA Space, offers a compelling look at how Canada’s satellite and robotics capabilities are fueling both surveillance and strategic infrastructure in space, including the next generation of the Canadarm. Dan Goldberg, CEO of Telesat, discusses their $6B Lightspeed constellation and how low Earth orbit networks will revolutionize broadband access across Canada and beyond. Finally, planetary scientist Dr. Margarita Marinova outlines a bold vision of an emerging space economy - from fire detection to lunar research, and what it means for Canadian innovation.

What does it take to transform a startup into Canada’s second-largest company in just a decade? Sonia Sennik and John Stackhouse discuss his conversation with Harley Finkelstein, President of Shopify, live from C2 Montreal.

Harley discusses how Shopify embraced anti-fragility, continually reinvented itself beyond e-commerce, and leveraged AI to reshape retail and empower creators globally. He highlights the essential entrepreneurial mindset needed to foster innovation in Canada, urging ambitious entrepreneurs to think bigger, build stronger networks, and seize the opportunities emerging at the forefront of technology and commerce. Tune in to explore how crises become catalysts, why relentless ambition matters, and how Shopify’s success story could inspire Canada's next wave of global companies.

AI is moving beyond passive outputs toward autonomous action. In this episode, John Stackhouse and Sonia Sennik explore Agentic AI, a new class of AI systems that can reason, plan, and take initiative with limited human oversight. These systems represent a major evolution beyond traditional and generative AI, capable of real-time adaptation and complex decision-making.

They’re joined by Adel El Hallak, Senior Director of Product Management at NVIDIA AI Enterprise, and Jacomo Corbo, CEO and Co-Founder of PhysicsX. Adel shares insights from his work delivering secure, scalable AI platforms for enterprise, while Jacomo draws on deep experience deploying AI in high-performance engineering contexts, including Formula 1 and advanced manufacturing.

Together, they unpack how agentic AI is already being deployed, the economic opportunities at stake, and the roadmaps and ethical considerations businesses need to navigate as AI agents become a force in real-world operations.

Carbon offsets aren’t enough. To truly tackle climate change, we need a global industry dedicated to pulling carbon out of the air and at massive scale. Join hosts John and Sonia inside the innovation race to scale carbon removal technologies, featuring insights from leading voices in the field.

They speak with Dr. David Keith, a pioneering climate scientist and founder of Carbon Engineering, who unpacks the technological, policy, and economic hurdles to direct air capture and other approaches. You’ll also hear from two recent XPRIZE Carbon Removal winners, Mike Kelland of Planetary Technologies and Jim Mann of UNDO about how their startups are using ocean alkalinity and enhanced rock weathering to permanently sequester CO₂, while also delivering benefits to farmers and marine ecosystems.

Together, they explore whether the world can build a scalable, measurable, and credible carbon removal industry – one capable of drawing down billions of tons of CO₂ annually.

Early detection remains the single most effective strategy for treating cancer, significantly enhancing survival rates and outcomes. Join hosts John Stackhouse and Sonia Sennik as they explore how groundbreaking innovation and technology are reshaping cancer detection, treatment, and prevention.

Physician and entrepreneur Jesse Salk discusses his pioneering Duplex Sequencing Technology, dramatically improving diagnostic accuracy. Peter Liu, CEO of Oxford Cancer Analytics, explains how advanced machine learning and proteomics are enabling more precise and accessible cancer screening. Andrea Seale, CEO of the Canadian Cancer Society, shares exciting advances like lung cancer breathalyzers and convenient at-home blood tests. Listen in to discover how these innovations, combined with inspiring personal stories, are bringing renewed hope to one of humanity's most pressing health challenges.

The “Buy Canadian” movement has surged during talks of tariffs, often highlighting consumer goods. How can Canadian tech companies take advantage of this sentiment? Join John Stackhouse and Sonia Sennik in a conversation about Canada's emerging era of supporting local businesses and products. This episode explores how recent geopolitical shifts and consumer trends are prompting Canadians to prioritize local products, businesses, and technology solutions.

Featuring insights from Dax Dasilva, CEO of Lightspeed, who discusses how technology can empower retailers and hospitality businesses through unpredictable times, and Derek Jouppi, creator of Buy Canada Tech, a platform designed to help Canadians discover homegrown digital alternatives. The discussion touches on the topics of community investment, economic nationalism, and the long-term benefits of fostering a robust Canadian entrepreneurial ecosystem. Discover why supporting local is not just a trend but a crucial step toward economic resilience and national unity.