The Empire Club of Canada
Friday, May 29, 2026
Artificial intelligence is advancing at an unprecedented pace—reshaping industries, redefining work, transforming student learning, and accelerating global competition in real time. Jurisdictions that move quickly will lead; those that hesitate risk falling behind. Ontario is at a pivotal moment—and must act decisively.
On Friday, May 29, 2026, the Empire Club of Canada will convene a thought-provoking panel bringing together leaders from universities, industry, and Canada’s AI ecosystem to examine how Ontario can respond with urgency and turn this moment into sustained economic growth, productivity gains, and global competitiveness—while maintaining public trust.
Drawing on the insights of the Council of Ontario Universities’ AI Task Force, this discussion will focus on the actions required now to move beyond early-stage adoption toward leadership in the global AI economy. The conversation will examine how Ontario can rapidly prepare students for an AI-driven workforce through accelerated curriculum transformation and AI-enabled learning; build secure, Canadian-based data and computing infrastructure to ensure sovereignty and strategic control; and support industry in scaling AI adoption to drive innovation, investment, intellectual property creation, and productivity across key sectors.
The panel will feature Vivek Goel, President and Vice-Chancellor, University of Waterloo and Chair of the COU AI Task Force, a leading voice on advancing AI talent and responsible adoption; Shannon Bell, Executive Vice President, Chief Digital Officer and Chief Information, OpenText, with deep expertise in scaling Canadian innovation in highly competitive global markets; and Glenda Crisp, President and CEO of the Vector Institute, at the forefront of Canada’s AI research and talent ecosystem. Together, they will bring a cross-sector perspective on what it will take for Ontario to act decisively and compete at speed. The panel will be moderated by Vass Bednar, Managing Director, Canadian Shield Institute.
Brief remarks will also be delivered by The Honourable Nolan Quinn, Ontario’s Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security; and Karim Bardeesy, Member of Parliament, Taiaiako’n—Parkdale—High Park and Parliamentary Secretary to the Minster of Industry.
This event will also serve as the official public launch of the Council of Ontario Universities’ AI Task Force report. Attendees will gain early access to its findings and engage directly with leaders shaping Ontario’s response to one of the most consequential technological shifts in decades.
Join us for this timely discussion for policymakers, leaders, and innovators seeking to understand not just how AI will shape Ontario’s future—but what must be done now to lead.
Empire Club of Canada will host this event as part of Toronto Tech week
Toronto Tech Week is a citywide celebration of the people building what’s next. From May 25–29, 2026, founders, investors, and builders come together for hundreds of community-led events across Toronto, connecting tens of thousands of people around Canadian tech. Torontotechweek.com
Meet the leaders shaping Ontario’s AI future — view the full AI Task Force here: https://ontariosuniversities.ca/news/cou-launches-ai-task-force-report-on-may-29-2026/
The Honourable Nolan Quinn is Ontario’s Minister of Colleges, Universities, Research Excellence and Security. Prior to his expanded mandate, Nolan served as the Minister of Colleges and Universities and the Associate Minister of Forestry.
In his role as Minister, Nolan leads the delivery of world class postsecondary education in Ontario by spearheading growth in labour market driven programs and ensuring that students graduate ready to excel in careers that meet our province’s workforce needs. With an enhanced directive to strengthen and secure research in Ontario, Nolan is building on the province’s long history of innovation, further cementing Ontario as a leader across critical, economy-driving sectors.
Nolan was born and raised in Cornwall, Ontario. His leadership as a small business owner and dedication to community service inspired him to run as MPP for Stormont-Dundas-South Glengarry in 2022. Now in his second term, Nolan continues to advocate for his community, ensuring it remains an incredible place to live, work, and run a business.
Together with his wife Kimberly and their three young children, Nolan is a proud resident of St. Andrew’s West. He is also an avid hockey Dad, advocate for mental heath, and gardener – all while juggling bedtime stories, scraped knees, and endless requests for snacks.
Karim Bardeesy was elected in April 2025 as the Member of Parliament for Taiaiako’n–Parkdale–High Park, representing the Liberal Party. He serves as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry, advancing innovation and economic growth.
A lifelong public servant, Karim co-founded the Dais at Toronto Metropolitan University — a public policy think tank focused on technology, education, and democratic renewal. He previously served as Deputy Principal Secretary to Premier Kathleen Wynne and Executive Director of Policy under Premiers Wynne and Dalton McGuinty, where he led transformative initiatives to improve infrastructure, expand student support, and give Ontarians better and bigger pensions. Karim began his career in journalism, writing for The Toronto Star, The Globe and Mail, and Slate.
He holds degrees from McGill University and Harvard Kennedy School, and has taught courses on public policy and leadership at Toronto Metropolitan University and the University of Toronto. Karim’s dedication has earned him two teaching awards and, recently, the King Charles III Coronation Medal for strengthening Canada’s democracy.
Raised in Bathurst, New Brunswick, Karim lives in Toronto’s Roncesvalles Village with his wife and two children. He is the son of immigrants from Egypt and England.
Dr. Vivek Goel is the University of Waterloo’s seventh President and Vice-Chancellor. He is a distinguished scholar with extensive achievements in research, teaching and leadership across both public and private sectors.
Before joining the University of Waterloo, Dr. Goel has served in senior roles at the University of Toronto, including as vice-president and provost and vice-president of research and innovation, and as founding president and CEO of Public Health Ontario. A recognized leader in evidence-based health policy, Goel has contributed extensively to shaping Canada’s public health systems and academic landscape. He is a member of the Order of Canada, the Order of Ontario and a recipient of the King Charles III Coronation Medal.
Glenda Crisp is the President and CEO of the Vector Institute. Glenda is a seasoned data and technology leader with over 35 years of experience. She has hands-on experience with the development and execution of enterprise data and analytics strategies, leading technology and enterprise architecture functions, and driving remediation of data breaches and ransomware attacks.
She has worked primarily in the financial services industry, both directly for large financial institutions and as a consultant. She is an independent board member for OCAD University and The Globe and Mail, and has prior experience on not-for-profit boards and advisory groups. Most recently, Glenda was the Head of Data and Analytics for Thomson Reuters, responsible for defining and driving the enterprise data and analytics strategy focused on delivering high-impact commercial outcomes.
Prior to joining Thomson Reuters, Glenda was the Executive Enterprise Data and Architecture at National Australia Bank, responsible for shifting the technology portfolio to a multi-cloud architecture, building cloud-native data hub and advanced analytics/AI platforms and operationalizing a Privacy and Data Ethics function.
In 2022 and 2023, she was named a top 100 Global CDO (Corinium’s Business of Data Global Leaders in Data and Analytics Top 100) and in prior years, recognized as one of the top 100 CIOs in North America by CIO Magazine.
Shannon Bell is Executive Vice President, Chief Digital Officer and Chief Information Officer at OpenText, overseeing IT, Cyber Security, Privacy, Commercial Network and Cloud Platforms and Operations, along with Product and Engineering for AI and supply
chain solutions.
With over 25 years of experience, she is a seasoned technology leader known for driving large-scale transformations, integrations, and innovative solutions across global markets.
Prior to OpenText, Shannon spent four years at Rogers Communications leading IT, digital, cloud, and data, including the technology integration of the Shaw acquisition. She previously held senior leadership roles at Amdocs, where she led product strategy for Digital, Intelligence, and BSS, following the acquisition of Bridgewater Systems.
Her career spans leadership roles across Canada, the U.S., and Europe with companies including NewStep Networks, MetaSolv Software, Axiom Systems, and Newbridge Networks. Shannon is passionate about harnessing data and AI to accelerate business growth and advance the future of digital innovation.
Vass is the Managing Director of SHIELD. Recognized as one of Canada’s sharpest policy minds, she is known for cutting through corporate jargon and bureaucratic inertia to ask the questions others won’t. With a career spanning think tanks, government, academia, and media, Vass has built a reputation as a fearless and independent voice on the policies that shape our daily lives. In 2020, she co-founded the Master of Public Policy in Digital Society program at McMaster University, where she also taught courses on policy design. Vass is a Senior Fellow at the Centre for International Governance Innovation, a Fellow at the Public Policy Forum, and an advisor to both the Canadian Anti-Monopoly Project and Social Capital Partners. She is the co-author of The Big Fix: How Companies Capture Markets and Harm Canadians and writes for the The Globe and Mail’s Report on Business where she focuses on the policies, technologies, and corporate forces that shape our everyday lives and economic futures.
