9-10 February 2026/9-10 février 2026 | 8:00AM - 4:00 PM EDT | By invite only

SYNOPSIS

The Canadian Global Affairs Institute and Department of National Defence (DND) are hosting an upcoming two-day, invite-only event, AI in Defence Conference. This jointly hosted symposium will focus on the use, integration and application of AI, as a critical enabler of Canada’s defence capability and sovereignty, incorporating both government and industry perspectives.

PROGRAM

• Full program (with biographies)
• Programme complet (avec biographies)

PROGRAM OVERVIEW

Monday, February 9, 2026

Registration and Networking (8:15–9:00)

Opening Remarks (9:00–9:25)

• Dave Perry, President, Canadian Global Affairs Institute
• Major-General Dave Abboud, Commander, Canadian Forces Intelligence Command

The Adversary’s Advantage—and How We Keep Ours (9:30–9:55)

• Major-General Timothy Arsenault, Deputy Commander, Canadian Joint Operations Command

Canada’s Path Forward: Lessons in Cooperation and Innovation (10:00–10:40)

• Lidia Korczynska, Director, Data Policy and Digital Innovation (DPDI), Department of National Defence
• Dr. Sara Schlemm, Defence Policy Officer, Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS), Department of National Defence
• Desmond Stewart, Project Manager, Information Technology Infrastructure in Support of Command and Control (ITISC2),Department of National Defence
• Moderator: Riley White, Triple Helix and Oliver Wyman

Health Break (10:40–11:10)

 Accelerating AI Integration Across Defence (11:10 – 12:00)

• Chris Allison, Director General, Data Analytics & Information Management (DAIM), Department of National Defence
• Kathy Morely, Director, Digital Procurement and Investment (DPI), Department of National Defence
• Julia Scouten, Director, Joint Defence Cloud Program (JDCP) and President of Women in Defence and Security (WiDS), Department of National Defence
• James Scott, Field Chief Technology Officer (CTO), Canada, Dell Technologies
• Moderator: Dr. Alex Wilner, Triple Helix and Norman Paterson School of International Affairs

Networking Lunch (12:00–13:00)

Aligning Innovation and Operational Need (13:00–13:40)

• Major Paul Owens, Policy Officer, Continental Defence Policy, Department of National Defence
• Trevor Grosse, Managing Director, Archean Strategies
• Samuel Witherspoon, CEO, Anvil
• Dan McKinney, Defence Industry Lead, Amazon Web Services
• Moderator: Dr. Alexander Salt, Triple Helix
  
  

Discussion Area 2: Building Strategic Partnerships & Culture of Responsible Innovation (13:45–14:35)

• Candice Ross, Director, Defence Industrial Strategy (DIS), Department of National Defence    
• Major-General Travis Morehen, Director General, International Security Policy (IS Pol), Department of National Defence
• Deepak Dutt, Founder, Zighra
• Allen Dillon, CEO and Co-founder, Sapper Labs
• Moderator: Charlotte Duval-Lantoine, Canadian Global Affairs Institute

Health Break (14:35–15:05)

Inside the Ecosystem (15:05–15:45)

• Sohail Manoussi, Cohere
• Blaine Matton, Bell
• Moderator: David Perry, Canadian Global Affairs Institute

Summary and Reflections (15:50–16:10)
Chief Warrant Officer Jason Pickard, Digital Services Group (DSG), Department of National Defence

***

Tuesday, February 10, 2026

Registration (8:00–9:00)

Opening Remarks and Keynote (9:00 – 9:35)

• Captain Jeremy Banks, AI Lead, Gradient Ascent, Digital & Analytics, Canadian Special Operations Forces Command (CANSOFCOM), Department of National Defence

Breakout Instructions and Assignments (9:40 – 10:00)

• Alex Wilner, Associate Professor, Norman Paterson School of International Affairs, Carleton University

Health Break (10:00 – 10:30)

Breakout Solution Groups (10:30 – 12:00)

Participants will work in facilitated breakout groups aligned to the following themes:

1. Cyber Defence
2. Sovereignty
3. Infrastructure and Compute
4. Robotics and Autonomous Systems
5. Responsible AI
6. Command and Control (C2)
7. Logistics and Supply Chains
8. Defence Challenges in the Arctic

Networking Lunch (12:00 – 13:00)

What are our Priorities? (13:05-13:25)

• Lieutenant-General Darcy Molstad, Commander, Canadian Joint Forces Command

Report-Back Plenary (13:30 – 14:55)
Discussion based on findings of the breakout discussion. The plenary will identify overlapping themes, shared challenges and areas where joint Defence–Industry working groups may be formed post-conference.

Closing Remarks (15:00 – 15:20)

• Major-General Jeff Smyth, Chief of Air and Space Force Development (ASFD), Department of National Defence

REGISTRATION

By invite only.