Technology

Canada’s most dynamic tech

ecosystem

With hundreds of startups, Canada’s fastest-growing scale-ups and some of the world’s biggest tech companies, Waterloo is the most dynamic tech ecosystem in Canada. Our companies are working on everything from fintech, autotech and artificial intelligence to cybersecurity, cleantech and quantum.

Tech Data Book

Compare talent, cost and quality-of-life data for North America’s top tech hubs

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Waterloo at a Glance

Waterloo is the #1 small tech talent market in North America according to CBRE.

4,889

The University of Waterloo has 4,889 students enrolled in computer science, which is more than Stanford and UC Berkeley combined.

9.6%

9.6% of Waterloo’s workforce is in tech, which means we have double the talent density of Pittsburgh, Columbus or Detroit.

343,000

The Toronto-Waterloo Corridor is home to 343K+ tech workers working at more than 15,000 companies.

Our vibrant tech ecosystem

Velocity Incubator, University of Waterloo

Our Ecosystem

We invent the
future every day
in Waterloo

The Waterloo tech ecosystem starts with a collaborative community that includes Canada’s top innovation hub (Communitech), Canada’s most productive incubator (Velocity) and Canada’s #1 private business accelerator (Accelerator Centre). Add one of Canada’s top technology universities – the University of Waterloo – with its massive tech enrollment and your company has the local support and talent to drive innovation and growth.

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Top Talent

Canada’s leader in
entrepreneurial
and work-ready
talent

For four consecutive years, CBRE has ranked Waterloo #1 in Canada for tech talent quality and quality-to-cost, driven by the University of Waterloo, which is home to the largest global top-25 computer science program. Waterloo is the 3rd fastest-growing tech talent market in North America and, as part of the Toronto-Waterloo Corridor, is a global tech superpower that is home to 15,000+ tech companies and 343,000+ tech workers.

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Download AI Ecosystem Map

Get a full list of
artificial
intelligence
companies
working in
Waterloo

Waterloo is emerging as a global leader in applied artificial intelligence. Our community has deep roots in math and computer science, Canada’s highest-quality tech talent pool and a top-rated artificial intelligence research institute.

Download the Waterloo AI Ecosystem Map for a full list of the 135+ exciting startups, scale-ups and multinational companies in our community.

Tech Density

3rd largest

technology

cluster in North

America

Most of what happens in Waterloo’s tech community takes place in a 10km/6.5mi corridor, which is connected by a new and efficient light rail transit system (LRT). Along this LRT line you’ll find the Accelerator Centre, Velocity, Communitech, Google’s Canadian Engineering HQ, offices for McAfee, Ford, SAP, ApplyBoard and Faire, the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University and, within a short walk, Conestoga College’s tech-focused campus.

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Zoom out and you’ll find an exceptional tech cluster – the Toronto-Waterloo Corridor: