May 25, 2026 – Ottawa, ON – Invest Ottawa is celebrating national recognition for President and CEO Sonya Shorey following today’s release of BetaKit Most Ambitious 2026, an annual publication spotlighting Canadian innovators strengthening the country’s autonomy, security, and prosperity.

Shorey was recognized in the publication’s “Community Builders” category for her longstanding leadership supporting Canadian entrepreneurs, strengthening the innovation ecosystem, and championing women founders through Sheboot, the nationally recognized program she co-founded to help women entrepreneurs build scalable technology companies.

The feature also highlighted Shorey’s leadership in advancing a collaborative vision for the Ottawa-Gatineau region as Canada’s defence innovation hub.

Through collaboration with more than 300 contributors across industry, academia, government, and the broader innovation ecosystem, Shorey helped spearhead the development of a regional defence innovation strategy focused on strengthening Canadian sovereign capability and dual-use innovation.

The work reflects the growing importance of ecosystem leadership and collaboration in advancing Canadian innovation capacity, sovereign capability, and next-generation technology development.

BetaKit Most Ambitious spotlights innovators shaping Canada’s future

Released during Toronto Tech Week, one of Canada’s largest grassroots technology gatherings, BetaKit Most Ambitious 2026 explores the growing connection between sovereignty, economic resilience, and technology leadership across sectors, including defence and dual-use technologies, advanced research, AgTech, and digital infrastructure.

Framed around the idea that “there is no sovereignty without technology,” the publication spotlighted nearly 100 innovators, researchers, companies, and community builders from more than 30 cities across Canada. The issue highlights Canadians helping strengthen the country’s autonomy, security, and prosperity through next-generation technologies and ecosystem leadership.

The publication arrives amid growing national conversations around economic resilience, sovereign capability, and the strategic importance of Canadian-built technologies, where innovation is increasingly viewed as strategic infrastructure.

Ottawa innovators advancing Canada’s sovereign capability

The issue also spotlighted several Canadian defence and dual-use technology companies in its “Defend the Dominion” section, recognizing innovators developing technologies with both military and civilian applications that help strengthen Canada’s national security and sovereign capability.

Featured companies included Dominion Dynamics, Tactiql, Telesat, Anvil, H2 Analytics, and Zighra, reflecting the strength of Ottawa-Gatineau and Canada’s broader defence innovation ecosystem, and the increasing importance of dual-use technologies to economic resilience and security.

Beyond defence and dual-use technologies, the publication also recognized Ottawa-based Growcer in its “Canada’s Food Chain” category for its work supporting resilient local food production systems and agricultural innovation.

Building Canada’s defence innovation ecosystem

Under Shorey’s leadership, Invest Ottawa has continued working with founders, researchers, industry leaders, government partners, and post-secondary institutions to help accelerate innovation in areas including AI, cybersecurity, aerospace, autonomous systems, advanced communications, and defence technologies.

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• Learn more about DIHub and Canada’s growing defence innovation ecosystem at Dihub.ca
• Read the full BetaKit Most Ambitious 2026 edition at betakit.com.