Over the past few decades, Montreal has bloomed. Bloomed into an intricate set of innovation ecosystems. A world-class technology hub. An AI beacon. Most importantly, Montreal has blossomed into a creative metropolis, or should we say, into a metropolis of creatives that dare to think, act, and do things differently.
At Prompt, a consortium that forges and funds high-impact industrial R&D partnerships, and at Hacking Health, a grassroots healthcare innovation movement with chapters all over the world, and together with all key actors in the community, we pioneer a new model of collaborative innovation, where frontline actors work with experts to invent tomorrow, where government funds are deployed to empower collaboration in R&D.
We bring together some key ingredients. Research-driven universities. Local businesses. Major global companies. Multiple communities in healthcare, 5G, AI, cybersecurity, UX, telecom, digital media, and more. Frontline users and actors. And spaces for them to work together. With these pieces in place, we multiply people’s ability to make their dream a reality.
We are proud members of Technopolys and of Quebec Innove, bringing the best of Montreal to the world. Prompt is part of a flourishing group of 9 sectoral organizations (known as RSRI – Régroupements sectoriels de recherche industrielle – in French) helping businesses and researchers work together, supporting 1400 graduate students, 414 publications, 67 patents, and 283 technology transfer agreements, and 297 new products, in all key industrial sectors.
Join us, and help us help you make your dreams a success story.
Luc Sirois, Executive Director, Prompt; Co-founder, Hacking Health
Innovation Drives Growth
Innovation is the lifeblood of growth and prosperity. Companies innovate to create new market opportunities, increase revenue, and outperform the competition. Without innovation to bring new technologies, processes, and products to market, Canada would not be the economic powerhouse that it is today. But innovation is not just a tough business nut to crack. Multiple stakeholders – academia, enterprise, government – must come together in order to generate tangible results such as increased revenue, new jobs, and bigger investments.
Introducing Prompt:
Collaborative Innovation
This is where Prompt comes in: we make collaborative innovation happen. We bring together the right people, the right projects, and the right opportunities, and we help governments fund multi-million research and development (R&D) that has driven over $180 million in economic value to date. Our work creates university-industry R&D partnerships that increase the competitiveness of the Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) industry across Quebec.
The Right People
To innovate in telecommunications, digital infrastructure, microelectronics, and the other fields we cover, companies need access to high caliber R&D. They need access to new ideas to create new value, reduce technical risk, and generate massive opportunities. What they need is access to university research talent. At the same time, university researchers want to work on cutting-edge research; they seek to test theories and identify real-world issues that affect the performance of new materials, processes, and capabilities. They want a hands-on understanding of requirements and user needs. Prompt channels funds to the work that brings companies and university researchers together.
The Right Projects
We also identify promising projects and sectors to fund. We work with our funding partners in government to shape programs that support the projects with the biggest impacts. Over the course of 15 years of building partnerships and supporting value-driven research, we’ve seen breakthroughs in artificial intelligence, big data, advanced analytics, optics-photonics, and so much more.
The Right Opportunities
Prompt provides more than funding; we give our partners the tools and the framework to succeed. As a representative from French multinational Thales put it, “Prompt catalyzes innovation.” For every dollar a company invests in R&D, Prompt is able to create a multiplier effect for impact. As a result, Prompt is helping to create a leadership position for Quebec and Canada in emerging opportunities in 5G technology, sustainable mobility, healthcare AI, cybersecurity, and other cutting-edge areas. By combining these three pillars – people, projects, and opportunities – Prompt is helping Montreal and Quebec bring innovation to life.
Combining Light and Silicon for a Faster Future
Prompt brought together global telecommunications components maker TeraXion and researchers from the Université de Sherbrooke and Université Laval. They were able to evaluate a new material to increase the speed of data and network connections while reducing component footprint, power consumption, and cost. As a result, TeraXion is confidently pursuing new business in the industrial, aerospace, defense, and public safety sectors.
Kickstarting a Career in Semiconductors
Prompt funded an R&D project combining Montréal’s École de technologie supérieure (ETS) and semiconductor company Octasic, which enabled graduate student Frédéric Plourde to come away with much more than a Master’s degree. Frédéric not only invented a critical new algorithm for Octasic’s wireless market, he joined their R&D team after graduation. As a result of working with Prompt, Quebec-born Octasic was able to easily sustain its growth locally and recruit some of the brightest young engineers in the province.
