Toronto’s garbage trucks are about to become less wasteful. Thanks to a collaboration between the city of Toronto and Quebec-based Effenco, 60 of the city’s waste-collection vehicles will be converted into hybrid models — with the aim of eventually transitioning toward a fully electric system. The Repower Project has the potential to dramatically reduce the emissions and fuel consumption of Toronto’s waste-collection fleet. It is one of several ambitious initiatives that will receive funding as part of a federal government strategy to decarbonize the transportation sector.
Last week, Minister of AI and Digital Innovation Evan Solomon announced plans to distribute $21 million in funding to projects including a low-energy defrosting and defogging system for commercial EV trucks in Oakville, a McMaster University-developed AI-powered tool kit for EV bus optimization and charging for Canadian public transit agencies. The city of Toronto will receive $4.97 million to support the transformation of its garbage truck fleet. The hope is that these investments will help address market barriers and increase adoption of lower-emission medium- to heavy-duty vehicles that are particularly well suited to the Canadian landscape, as Solomon explained in a statement: “We’re enabling homegrown breakthroughs — right here in the GTA and southwestern Ontario — that are driving electric vehicle performance, safety and reliability in uniquely Canadian conditions.”
As industry experts have pointed out, although Canada is a global leader when it comes to developing cleantech solutions, the country falters when it comes to adopting those same solutions at scale. The market is driven by demand, and unless startups can demonstrate that there are clear customers for their products, they will struggle to secure the capital necessary to bring their ideas to market. The public sector plays a crucial role here — across all levels of government, it spends more than $200 billion each year. And municipalities, which account for 80 per cent of public-sector purchasing power, are instrumental.
“Cities play an outsized role in helping to stimulate innovation adoption around climate change, and they have an outsized burden when it comes to reducing carbon, because the vast majority of emissions happen within urban environments,” explains Tyler Hamilton, the senior director of climate at MaRS who has worked closely with Effenco over the past few years “It just makes sense for cities to play a leading role.” But given the current economic landscape, harnessing the catalytic effects of municipal procurement can be challenging. “It’s no secret that a lot of municipalities have massive infrastructure issues and expenses that way exceed their revenues,” he says.
These deficits often prevent city leaders from investing in unfamiliar solutions, in spite of their commitments to decarbonize. Even in the case of the Repower Project, many within Toronto’s fleet-management department were initially hesitant about experimenting with novel technology for their vehicles. “Any new technology comes with risk,” Hamilton says. “They don’t want to go down a path of testing it out only to find it doesn’t work — or that the startup behind it goes out of business later.”
Certain factors helped push the Effenco collaboration forward. Early in the process, Hamilton and his team facilitated an introduction between the Montreal startup and the multinational automotive manufacturer Martinrea, which sparked so much interest that the larger corporation added Effenco to its portfolio in 2023. Even before the acquisition, Hamilton adds, Martinrea’s backing “changed the conversation,” paving the way for a pilot project that was successful enough for the city to expand its fleet. While the Repower Project provides a framework for how cities can successfully support sustainable solutions, any pilot involves upfront costs. That’s why higher-level support — like the federal funding announced last week — remains a key piece of the puzzle to drive homegrown innovation.
Carbon Upcycling breaks ground on groundbreaking new facility
Last week, construction began on Carbon 1 Mississauga, a collaboration between Calgary-based carbon capture company Carbon Upcycling and Ash Grove Cement — and a first-of-its-kind project for the country. Situated at Ash Grove’s existing plant in Mississauga, the facility, which received $10 million in federal funding, aims to capture carbon dioxide generated during the cement production process, which will then be incorporated into sustainable building materials.
QScale sets its sights on a site in the GTA
Quebec-based QScale, which specializes in large-scale data centres and other infrastructural projects to support AI, has expressed interest in setting up an outpost in the Greater Toronto Area. According to information the company shared with The Logic, the proposed facility could cost as much as $4 billion and stands to be one of the country’s most expansive data centres — which means it will require significant energy to operate. (QScale is still waiting on a full signoff from Hydro One, which will be providing power to the site.)
T.O. recycling gets new bot helpers and Blue Box takeover
Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport is experimenting with a new AI-enhanced system to optimize its recycling processes. Created by Canadian firm Intuitive AI, the Oscar Sort station has a scanner that uses AI to distinguish between litter and recyclable materials, and a friendly interface that shows users where to dispose of waste. The new bot isn’t the only shakeup in the city’s recycling scene: as a result of new provincial legislation, Toronto’s Blue Box program will be fully privatized in a matter of months. Circular Materials, which collects and recycles materials and then returns them to producers to use in new products, will handle the city’s blue bins beginning Jan. 1, 2026.
Cohere and Bell team up to deliver sovereign AI
AI business solutions firm Cohere and telecommunications giant Bell are joining forces to provide corporate and government bodies with access to large language models (LLMs) and other enterprise AI tools. Cohere will be leveraging Bell’s compute infrastructure to host its AI systems — and Bell will be able to leverage Cohere’s GenAI tools for its own clients.
Ontario pulls plug on Starlink contract
The Ontario government has negotiated a fee to cancel its $100-million contract with Starlink, effectively cutting ties with the satellite internet provider’s parent company, Elon Musk–owned SpaceX — and following through on Premier Doug Ford’s pledge earlier this year to nix deals with those who “encourage economic attacks” on Canada. The Starlink agreement, which was established last November, was meant to hook up 15,000 homes in northern Ontario with consistent internet access by June 2025.
Growcer acquires U.S. rival
Ottawa’s Growcer, which makes modular vertical farms, has bought Freight Farms, a company specializing in container-based hydroponics, which recently declared bankruptcy. By acquiring its most significant North American competitor, the Canadian startup gains approximately 600 new customers across 30 different countries.
QEA Tech unlocks energy savings in Japan
This week, Markham, Ont.-based QEA Tech, which uses drone tech and thermography for energy audits to improve the performance of commercial and residential buildings, kicked off its first assessment in Japan. The Tokyo National Museum commissioned a comprehensive review of its building envelope, which QEA Tech conducted in collaboration with Japan-based Drone Frontier. The fact that the two companies were able to complete this review in a non-invasive manner was important to the institution, which houses many historical artifacts that are especially susceptible to environmental shifts.
By the numbers
$2.6 billion: The total amount of venture capital investment in AI in Ontario in 2024 and 2025, according to the Vector Institute’s latest annual report.
$167.4 million: How much AI-powered tax software firm Blue J Legal raised in its recent series D round of funding.
$108 million: The size of a major new cross-country investment to support Canadian ventures developing sustainable manufacturing technology, anchored by $37 million in funding from Next Gen Manufacturing Canada (NGen).
$4.5 million: The amount raised by Friendlier in its recently closed funding round. The Guelph, Ont.–based venture, which helps food-service providers avoid single-use packaging, has facilitated the reuse of more than 3.3 million containers across Canada.
3: The number of Canadian spacetech companies collaborating to develop a novel AI-enhanced lunar rover that might someday be deployed to carry out autonomous transportation and logistical tasks on the moon. Canadarm manufacturer MDA Space, software startup Mission Control and Canadensys Aerospace Corporation have received $14.6 million from the Canadian Space Agency to work together on the project.
Rebecca Gao writes about technology for MaRS. Torstar, the parent company of the Toronto Star, has partnered with MaRS to highlight innovation in Canadian companies.
