Canada’s Global Innovation Cluster for digital technologies, known as DIGITAL, is making significant strides in healthcare innovation by investing $10.5 million across four pivotal projects from Canadian startups. These initiatives are harnessing artificial intelligence (AI) to transform various aspects of healthcare, with a total investment value of about $26 million, including contributions from private sector partners.
Established in 2017, DIGITAL collaborates with industry partners to foster digital innovations through joint research and development efforts. François-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science, and Industry, emphasized the government’s commitment to equipping businesses and researchers with necessary tools to exploit AI effectively and safely, ensuring broad benefits for Canadians.
Among the funded projects, the largest allocation from DIGITAL is directed towards Swift Medical’s $9-million venture focused on AI-powered wound treatment. This Toronto-based firm is enhancing wound care through AI-driven assessments and predictive technologies, which include the creation of 3D wound models to alleviate the discomfort of manual measurements.
Additionally, Vancouver-based RxPx is developing an “AI Clinical Buddy System” to optimize clinical trials. This system aims to improve patient recruitment and engagement through AI-driven personalization. Meanwhile, Toronto’s Gotcare is leveraging AI to refine its patient matching services for in-home and virtual care, emphasizing proximity, specialization, and cultural competency.
The final investment supports Montréal-based AlayaCare in integrating AI into its health record platform used by over 700 home care providers across North America and Australia. This project focuses on enhancing natural language processing, conversational interfaces, and decision-support tools for clinical supervisors and caregivers.
These initiatives highlight DIGITAL’s role in positioning Canada at the forefront of healthcare innovation, demonstrating a robust commitment to advancing medical technology through artificial intelligence.