Subject: CXP
Google deepens investment in Canada, announces three new offices in Toronto, Montreal and Waterloo
TORONTO, Feb. 6, 2020 /CNW/ - Ruth Porat, Senior Vice President and CFO at Google, is in Toronto today to announce the construction of three new Google offices in Canada along with significant funding for digital skills programming for Canadians. The news coincides with the launch of new research about Google's impact on the Canadian economy.
Google's Growth in Canada
Today, Google is pleased to announce the expansion of its presence in Canada with plans to build three new offices in Waterloo, Toronto and Montreal. By 2022, Google's Canadian offices will accommodate up to 5,000 employees. Google has a long history of investing north of the border. In 2001, Google opened its first Canadian office in Toronto with one employee. Nineteen years later, Google employs more than 1,500 people including engineers, game developers, sales leaders and AI researchers.
Google's Economic Impact in Canada
Google's investment in Canada extends beyond its growing offices. New data illustrates how Google is helping Canadian enterprises of all sizes unlock the prosperity of the internet. According to research released today from Public First, Google's search and advertising products helped generate an estimated $23 billion CAD in annual economic activity for more than 500,000 businesses in Canada last year alone - a total impact equivalent to approximately 1.1 percent of Canada's entire GDP.
"The open web allows any size company or individual creator in Canada to become a global business and reach customers," says Ruth Porat, Senior Vice President and CFO at Google. "Canada's digital economy is now bigger than its forestry, mining and gas industries, and the transition to digital reflects incredible momentum for Canadian businesses leveraging data and online technologies."
Investing in Canada's future workforce
To help Canada's workforce leverage the opportunities presented by digital technologies, Google.org is also announcing today a $2.5 million grant for NPower Canada, a charitable organization that launches underserved young adults into meaningful and sustainable careers. The grant will go towards scholarships for the IT Support Professional Certificate and the IT Automation with Python certificate, to equip Canadians with in-demand tech skills to land new jobs in Canada's booming digital economy.
"We're investing directly in programs that support digital skills training for all Canadians," says Sabrina Geremia, VP of Google Canada. "We're excited to partner with NPower Canada, which has a strong track-record of supporting successful digital careers in IT, and meeting the ongoing demands of Canadian employers."
Google for Startups Accelerator Launch
As part of today's announcements, Google will also be launching the first Google for Startups Accelerator in Canada. The Accelerator will be based in Waterloo, and will be Google's 12th accelerator globally. Google has been working with Canadian founders and ecosystem partners to invest in their potential so more Canadian startups can grow, scale and reach global success.
"Google is committed to helping the Canadian startup ecosystem thrive by investing in an Accelerator in Waterloo," says Steve Woods, Canada Engineering and Waterloo Site Lead. "As the Toronto-Waterloo corridor continues to be a global centre of tech talent and innovation, it's the perfect place for us to expand our footprint and help grow the next generation of founders in Canada."
Attributable quotes
Doug Ford, Ontario Premier
"Google has a global reputation for advancing innovative technology and many people from Ontario have played a pivotal role in the company's ongoing success. By expanding their footprint in Ontario, Google will continue to tap into some of the best talent in the world in one of the most business friendly environments in the world. Ontario is open for business and open for jobs and we welcome investments like the one announced by Google today."
John Tory, Toronto Mayor
"Today's announcement by Google means more jobs and more investment in our city - this is good news for Toronto and Canada. We are the fastest growing city in North America with one of the fastest growing tech and innovation sectors. I am proud that Google recognizes the importance of continuing to grow its presence here and in nearby Waterloo. These investments will ensure Google continues to contribute to our ongoing success story."
Tony LaMantia, President & CEO, Waterloo EDC
"Google has carefully and steadily grown its mandate and presence in Waterloo to become a major, collaborative anchor company in our globally significant tech scene. More importantly, it has strengthened our ecosystem by becoming a magnet for great local and global talent. I congratulate Google for their Waterloo expansion and, along with my peers in Toronto and Montreal, commend their commitment to the Canadian tech scene with genuine enthusiasm."
Pierre Fitzgibbon, Minister of Economy and Innovation and Minister Responsible for the Lanaudière Region
"Economic development and growing wealth are among the Québec government's priorities and these objectives will be achieved by strengthening innovation, boosting exports and increasing foreign investment in this province. The opening of this Google office in Montréal, which will have capacity to welcome up to 1,000 employees, is extremely heartening news. Earlier in December, Québec Premier François Legault met with company executives at Google's headquarters in Mountain View to praise all that Québec has to offer in terms of artificial intelligence and video gaming. Québec is an innovative society in the midst of rapid technological boom and has, once again, been able to attract one of the biggest players in the world."
Additional Resources
About the Economic Impact Report
Google commissioned Public First to estimate the economic activity generated by Canadian businesses, content creators and developers that use Google services. Estimates of the economic activity are based on top-down and bottom-up approaches to provide a reasonable range of potential impact given publicly available data and Google's privacy policies. The estimates in the study are based on data for the twelve month period between January 1, 2019 and December 31, 2019, and are referred to as 2019 estimates.
About Google Canada
Google's mission is to organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful. As a global technology leader, Google's innovations in web search and advertising have made its website a top internet property and its brand one of the most recognized in the world. Google Canada has offices in Waterloo, Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa with over 1,500 Canadian Google employees working on teams across Engineering, AI Research, Sales and Marketing.
SOURCE Google Canada
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