Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada (ISED) works with Canadians in all areas of the economy and in all parts of the country to improve conditions for investment, enhance Canada's innovation performance, increase Canada's share of global trade and build a fair, efficient and competitive marketplace. Find our programs and initiatives below.
| Program or Initiative | Description |
|---|---|
| 2SLGBTQI+ Entrepreneurship Program | 2SLGBTQI+ entrepreneurs make important contributions to the Canadian economy, yet they continue to face systemic barriers in starting and growing their businesses. To help address these barriers and build a more inclusive economy, the Government of Canada is investing $25 million in Canada's first-ever 2SLGBTQI+ Entrepreneurship Program. |
| Accelerated Growth Service | The Accelerated Growth Service helps growth-oriented Canadian businesses access the key government services they need to grow and expand, such as financing, exporting, innovation and business advice. |
| AI Compute Access Fund | The AI Compute Access Fund offers up to $300 million in financial support to help small and medium-sized businesses access the advanced AI compute resources they need to develop and commercialize AI projects. |
| BizPal | BizPaL is a free online service that provides entrepreneurs with a tailored list of permits, licences and compliance requirements, from various government levels, that are needed to start or grow a business in Canada. |
| Black Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub | The Black Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub is a national initiative to conduct research and share research, data and best practices to strengthen the Black entrepreneurship ecosystem in Canada and address the unique challenges faced by Black entrepreneurs. |
| Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund | The Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund, administered by the Federation of African Canadian Economics (FACE) in partnership with the Business Development Bank of Canada, offers loans of up to $250,000 to help Black entrepreneurs and business owners across Canada start, grow and expand their businesses. |
| Black Entrepreneurship Program | The Black Entrepreneurship Program (BEP) is an investment of up to $265 million, including $130 million from the Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC), over four years (starting in 2020–21) that will deliver a national approach to provide Black entrepreneurs with improved access to loan capital and to ecosystem supports at the national and regional levels, as well as to improve and enhance the data on Black entrepreneurship. |
| Business Benefits Finder | The Business Benefits Finder helps businesses find government programs and services that match their needs by having them answer a few simple questions. |
| Canada at HANNOVER MESSE | Canada took centre stage as the 2025 partner country for HANNOVER MESSE, the world's leading trade show for industrial technology. |
| Canada Business app | The Canada Business app is a mobile one-stop shop that gives entrepreneurs easy access to thousands of government programs, tools and notifications to help start, grow and expand their businesses anywhere, anytime. |
| Canada Small Business Financing Program | The Canada Small Business Financing Program makes it easier for small businesses to obtain loans from financial institutions because the government shares the risk with the lenders. |
| Canadian Genomics Strategy | The Canadian Genomics Strategy will support Canada's genomics sector and position as a leader in the field. |
| CanCode | The CanCode program will invest $50 million over two years to support initiatives providing educational opportunities for coding and digital skills development to Canadian youth from kindergarten to Grade 12. |
| Community Futures Program | The Community Futures Program is a community-driven economic development initiative designed to assist communities in Canada's rural areas in developing and implementing strategies for dealing with a changing economic environment. |
| Computers for Schools | Computers for Schools refurbishes donated computers and distributes them to schools, libraries, not-for-profit organizations, Indigenous communities and eligible low-income Canadians across Canada. |
| Computers for Schools Intern Program | This program seeks to enhance the employability and marketability of youth through internships that enable them to develop the expertise and skills needed to actively participate in the digital economy. |
| Connecting Families | The Connecting Families Initiative will help hundreds of thousands of Canadians connect to the Internet and will distribute up to 50,000 computers to eligible households. |
| Cyber Security Innovation Network | The Cyber Security Innovation Network program will invest up to $80 million over seven years to support the creation of a pan-Canadian network to support the growth of Canada's cyber security ecosystem through industry-academia collaboration. The network is working to enhance research and development, increase commercialization, and further support the development of skilled cyber security talent across Canada. |
| Digital Skills for Youth Program | Digital Skills for Youth connects underemployed recent post-secondary graduates with small businesses and not-for-profit organizations where they can gain meaningful work experience to help them transition to career-oriented employment. |
| Digital Research Infrastructure | Digital Research Infrastructure makes sure that Canadian researchers have the digital tools they need to support scientific excellence. |
| Ecosystem Fund – Black Entrepreneurship Program | The Ecosystem Fund, delivered by the regional development agencies, supports Black-led not-for-profit organizations across Canada to offer and expand business support services like mentorship, networking, financial planning and training for Black entrepreneurs and business owners. |
| ElevateIP | ElevateIP will help business accelerators and incubators provide the tools Canadian startups need to better protect, strategically manage and leverage their intellectual property. |
| ExploreIP | ExploreIP is an online resource designed for businesses to explore licensing and collaboration opportunities with publicly funded institutions. |
| Get Connected | The Get Connected portal provides links to programs and initiatives that aim to ensure Canadians have access to high-speed Internet services and have extensive wireless coverage, no matter where they live. |
| Global Hypergrowth Project | The Global Hypergrowth Project is a scale-up service that supports growth in jobs, exports, R&D and new IP creation. This project brings together the combined strength of its government partners to help tailor support to each participating company's specific needs, offering solutions that are as unique as the companies themselves. |
| Global Innovation Clusters | A made-in-Canada model, the Global Innovation Clusters program is providing nearly $2 billion to encourage large-scale collaboration among industry leaders, SMEs and post-secondary institutions to develop and scale high-potential technologies in Canada. The program supports five industry-led clusters in key sectors of Canadian advantage to build world-leading innovation ecosystems: the Digital Technology Cluster, the Protein Industries Cluster, the Advanced Manufacturing Cluster, the Scale AI Cluster and the Ocean Cluster. |
| Horizon Europe | Horizon Europe is the European Union's latest research and innovation framework funding program. The program fosters opportunities for international collaboration and strengthens the impact of research and innovation in tackling major global challenges. |
| Health Emergency Readiness Canada | The Government of Canada is investing in growing Canada's biomanufacturing ecosystem and securing medical countermeasures to protect Canadians. |
| Indigenous Peoples and Intellectual Property | The Indigenous Peoples and Intellectual Property web page hosts the latest information, tools and events related to IP and Indigenous knowledge and cultural expression. |
| Indigenous Tourism Fund: Signature Indigenous Tourism Experiences Stream | The Indigenous Tourism Fund's Signature Indigenous Tourism Experiences Stream supports the sustainable growth of Indigenous tourism in Canada by investing in community-supported, market-ready Indigenous tourism experiences and destinations. |
| Industrial Decarbonization Team | The Industrial Decarbonization Team (IDT) facilitates and supports the development and financing of transformative projects in Canada's industrial sectors. The IDT aims to help Canada achieve its 2030 and 2050 emissions reduction targets, while building a more competitive, low-carbon Canadian economy. |
| Innovative Solutions Canada | Innovative Solutions Canada, a program with over $100 million, supports the scale-up and growth of Canada's innovators and entrepreneurs by having the federal government act as a first customer. |
| Intellectual Property Clinics Program | The IP Clinics Program is a grant program intended to encourage the development of IP clinics within law and business schools. |
| Intellectual Property Strategy | The Government of Canada is helping Canadian businesses, creators, entrepreneurs and innovators understand, protect and access intellectual property (IP) through a comprehensive IP Strategy. |
| Laboratories Canada | The Government of Canada, through Laboratories Canada (LabsCanada), has been investing in a national network of future-focused, IT-enabled laboratories. These facilities support the federal science that drives economic growth and enhances health, safety and security, creating a more resilient and brighter future for all Canadians. |
| More affordable telecom services | Tools and resources to help you decide which mobile or Internet plan is right for your needs and budget. |
| National Quantum Strategy | The National Quantum Strategy supports Canada's quantum sector and aims to solidify Canada's position among leaders in this fast-growing field. |
| Northern Ontario Development Program | The Northern Ontario Development Program invests in projects that support community economic development, business growth and competitiveness, and innovation. |
| Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy | Through the Pan-Canadian Artificial Intelligence Strategy, the Government of Canada is investing in efforts to drive the adoption of artificial intelligence across Canada's economy and society. The second phase of the strategy bridges Canada's world-class talent and research capacity with programs to that enable commercialization and adoption to help ensure that Canadian ideas and knowledge are mobilized and commercialized here at home. |
| Patent Collective Program | The Patent Collective Program helps small and medium-sized enterprises better leverage intellectual property in their drive to grow to scale and compete in the innovation economy. |
| Prime Minister's Awards | The Prime Minister's Awards for Teaching Excellence honour elementary and secondary school teachers for their remarkable achievements in education and for their commitment to preparing their students for a digital and innovation-based economy. |
| Policy direction to the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) | The Government of Canada has proposed a new policy direction to the CRTC to put in place new rules to improve competition and support consumers, leading to lower prices and better telecommunications services for Canadians. |
| Regional Economic Growth through Innovation | Regional Economic Growth through Innovation programs foster the right environment to enable businesses to grow and entrepreneurs and innovators to start businesses, creating the ideal conditions for the development of strong, dynamic and inclusive regional economies throughout the country. |
| Reliable telecom services | The Government of Canada is working with telecommunications companies and partners to improve the resiliency of Canada's telecom networks. Learn more about the services and projects under way to make Canadian telecom services more reliable. |
| Safeguarding Your Research | The Safeguarding Your Research portal provides information on how to safeguard your research and innovation. Canadian research and innovation are the product of collaborations and partnerships between governments, businesses, and academics— - both domestically and internationally— - across a wide range of subjects. |
| Strategic Response Fund | The Strategic Response Fund (SRF) will support large-scale innovation and Canada's industrial transformation. It replaces the Strategic Innovation Fund and builds on its mandate. The SRF includes a $5 billion investment to help firms in strategic sectors significantly impacted by tariffs to adapt, diversify and grow. |
| Strategic Science Fund | The Strategic Science Fund (SSF) is the government's key tool to support third-party science and research organizations. The selection of recipient organizations and corresponding level of support is determined through the SSF's competitive allocation process, with advice from an independent expert panel and informed by the Minister of Industry's and Minister of Health's overall strategy. |
| Tourism Growth Program | With $108 million in federal funding, the Tourism Growth Program will be delivered by Canada's regional development agencies over three years, starting in 2023–24. The program will support Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities, small and medium-sized businesses, and not-for-profit organizations in developing local, community-level tourism products and experiences to help more domestic and international visitors discover all that Canada has to offer. |
| Venture Capital Catalyst Initiative | Through the Venture Capital Catalyst Initiative, the government is seeking to build a portfolio of large funds-of-funds and alternative models that strengthen and broaden the Canadian VC ecosystem and increase the availability of late-stage VC over time. |
| Upskilling for Industry Initiative | By fostering partnerships between employers and training providers, the Upskilling for Industry Initiative seeks to develop and deliver demand-driven short-cycle upskilling programs that will meet the skills needs of employers from high-growth industries by providing them with access to a competitive workforce. |
| Universal Broadband Fund | The Universal Broadband Fund supports broadband projects across the country and is a key tool in providing high-speed Internet access to households across Canada, particularly in rural and remote communities. |
| WES Ecosystem Fund | The Women Entrepreneurship Strategy (WES) Ecosystem Fund invests in not-for-profit organizations to strengthen support networks and close service gaps for women entrepreneurs across Canada so they can start and grow successful businesses. |
| Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub | The Women Entrepreneurship Knowledge Hub, led by the Diversity Institute at Toronto Metropolitan University, provides research, data and insights to support and advance women's entrepreneurship in Canada. |
| Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund | The Women Entrepreneurship Loan Fund offers loans of up to $50,000, delivered through selected delivery organizations, to help women entrepreneurs in Canada, especially those from underrepresented groups, access the capital they need to start or grow their businesses. |
| Women Entrepreneurship Strategy | Launched in 2018, the Women Entrepreneurship Strategy is helping hundreds of thousands of women access the financing, networks and expertise they need to start up, scale up and expand into international markets. |