Government Purchasing Power as an Economic Lever: Turning Public Procurement into a Launchpad for Startups

A startup's most important contract often isn't its biggest — it's its first. Yet many Canadian startups win that first reference abroad before they win it at home. Governments are among the economy's largest buyers: Québec's public sector alone awards some $32B in contracts annually, nearly $6B of which is in IT. Public procurement may be the most powerful — and most underused — lever we have to build economic independence and lift productivity. Opening with data and international examples from Québec Tech's work, Étienne Bernard makes the case for public institutions becoming startups' first customers, then hosts a candid panel with entrepreneurs and federal and provincial decision-makers: what's working, what's stuck, and the high-impact changes we could make within twelve months to turn public procurement into a launchpad for startups.