Techcouver.com

The way Canadians search for real estate is becoming more conversational. B.C.-based Zealty has become the first Canadian real estate listing portal to operate directly inside ChatGPT, allowing users to search live property listings through natural language inside the AI platform. Launched in 2018 by Gary Little and Adam Major under the Holywell Properties brand, Zealty has long focused on bringing greater transparency to real estate search in British Columbia, including public access to sold data. President Hamidreza Etebarian says the ChatGPT integration marks the next step in simplifying how Canadians discover and understand real estate. As search shifts from rigid filters to conversational discovery, Zealty is putting a B.C.-based platform at the centre of a major change in how people find homes online. https://lnkd.in/gBb5wQSA

Another win for Vancouver’s agtech ecosystem. insporos has won Frontier Collective’s $20,000 Pitch Competition, taking home non-dilutive funding from Vancity after pitching at Vancity Innovation House 2026. Led by founder and CEO Mallory Flynn, the Vancouver startup is developing intelligent seed-sorting technology that analyzes individual seeds for defects and disease before planting, helping growers reduce waste, improve crop outcomes, and lower the risk of seed-borne disease. The recognition adds to a strong year for Insporos, which Techcouver.com also named one of 10 Homegrown B.C. Startups to Watch in 2026. https://lnkd.in/g6MQ8BNr

Inflation is changing how Canadians think about energy use at home. According to new research from BC Hydro, rising costs are prompting many households to look more closely at how they use electricity, with smart home technology emerging as one way to better manage consumption and bills. From smart thermostats and lighting to connected appliances and energy monitoring tools, Canadians are increasingly turning to technology to make their homes more efficient. For B.C. households, the message is clear: smarter energy use is no longer just about convenience. It is becoming part of how families respond to affordability pressures. https://lnkd.in/g4-Vjb3Z

The way Canadians search for real estate is changing. B.C.-based Zealty has become the first Canadian real estate listing portal to operate directly inside ChatGPT, allowing users to search live property listings through natural language inside the AI platform. Founded in Vancouver by Gary Little and Adam Major, Zealty has long focused on bringing more transparency to real estate search, including public access to sold data in British Columbia. Now, under President Hamidreza Etebarian, the company is pushing that mission into the AI era. As real estate search moves beyond rigid filters and toward conversational discovery, Zealty is putting Canadian property search at the forefront of a major shift in online behaviour. https://lnkd.in/gBb5wQSA

AI is no longer just changing how Canadians work — it is beginning to reshape how they think about their careers. A new study from Toronto-based Borderless AI found that 46% of employed Canadians say AI has already impacted their long-term career growth, with many workers actively building new skills around the technology. But the shift is not being felt evenly. Younger workers, university-educated Canadians, and those navigating a tighter labour market are feeling the pressure most acutely — even as traditional concerns like wages, job security, flexibility, and career advancement remain top of mind. The study also points to a major opportunity for employers: Canadian workers are open to AI, but they are still making career decisions based on compensation, flexibility, security, and growth. https://lnkd.in/eswGCwEK

Thomson Reuters is bringing CoCounsel Legal Canada to Vancouver. The new platform is designed specifically for the Canadian market, bringing legal research, analysis, drafting, and document review into one integrated AI-powered experience. Grounded in trusted Westlaw and Practical Law content, CoCounsel Legal Canada is being positioned as professional-grade support for legal professionals as firms and in-house teams move from AI experimentation toward adoption in day-to-day legal work. Thomson Reuters will host an in-person launch event on June 10 at the Fairmont Pacific Rim in Vancouver, featuring a live product demo, workflow-focused demo stations, and networking with product experts and peers. https://lnkd.in/g_c7tGnc

Clio CTO Jonathan Watson is heading to Toronto Tech Week. Watson will join Dr. Sasha Saunders, Director of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Legal Innovation Zone, for a fireside chat on what it takes to build, scale, and sustain legal technology in Canada. Hosted by the Legal Innovation Zone, Clio, and Toronto Tech Week, the event will explore legal innovation, AI, software, product development, user experience, and the future of law as Canadian legal tech continues to mature. For Canada’s legal technology community, it is a timely conversation with one of the leaders behind one of the country’s flagship legaltech companies. https://lnkd.in/dwXHJ9MG

North Vancouver robotics innovation is getting a bigger platform. Locus Robotics has announced it is acquiring Nexera Robotics, the company behind NeuraGrasp, a proprietary technology designed to help robots pick a wider range of items with greater speed, precision, and adaptability. The acquisition will see Nexera’s team and leadership join Locus Robotics, with NeuraGrasp expected to be integrated into the company’s Locus Array AI platform. For warehouse automation, the deal points to a major step forward in mobile manipulation, where robots need to handle millions of different SKU types across high-velocity fulfillment environments. https://lnkd.in/g468r-cy

TELUS is making another major bet on Canada’s digital future. The company says it will invest more than $66 billion over the next five years to strengthen network infrastructure and operations across the country, building on $294 billion already invested since 2000. CEO Darren Entwistle described TELUS’ 5G and PureFibre networks as modern “critical infrastructure,” supporting everything from remote work and online healthcare to education, agriculture, and Canada’s broader digital economy. The announcement also comes as TELUS expands its AI infrastructure in British Columbia, including a planned sovereign AI cluster with more than 60,000 high-performance GPUs and over 150 megawatts of capacity by 2032. https://lnkd.in/guyPSuKb

Big AI infrastructure news for Canada. BUZZ HPC, a subsidiary of HIVE Digital Technologies, has announced plans for a 320 MW sovereign AI infrastructure project in the Greater Toronto Area. Led by HIVE CEO Aydin Kilic and BUZZ HPC President and COO Craig Tavares, the planned AI gigafactory is expected to support more than 100,000 GPUs at full build-out and represents a major expansion of BUZZ’s Canadian footprint. With sites spanning British Columbia, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, and New Brunswick, BUZZ is positioning itself as a key player in Canada’s race to build domestic AI compute capacity. The project is expected to come online in the second half of 2027 and could represent a $3.5 billion investment in Canadian AI infrastructure. https://lnkd.in/gkKf9dQG