Waabi Raises Over $1 Billion as Toronto Emerges as World’s No. 3 Tech Talent Hub
Updated
Updated · CNN · Sep 4
Waabi Raises Over $1 Billion as Toronto Emerges as World’s No. 3 Tech Talent Hub
3 articles · Updated · CNN · Sep 4
Summary
More than $1 billion from Waabi’s Series C — the largest funding round in Canadian history — underscored Toronto’s rise as a major AI center.
Toronto’s ecosystem grew around Geoffrey Hinton’s University of Toronto research, drawing Google, Nvidia, Meta and Microsoft and helping the city rank third globally for tech talent in CBRE’s annual analysis.
Nearly $300 million from Sanofi for a Toronto AI Center of Excellence and more than $2 billion in planned federal AI spending are adding corporate and policy support.
Lower costs, easier immigration and proximity to 200 million people within a 90-minute flight help Toronto compete with Silicon Valley while keeping more founders and talent in Canada.
That AI buildup is gaining strategic weight as U.S.-Canada trade tensions worsen and buyers seek alternatives to relying solely on American or Chinese technology.