IBM will be joining the FinTech hub at Toronto’s MaRS Discovery District, according to a report from The Canadian Press.
IBM will be the first technology company in a space currently dominated by financial services companies, including LowestRates.ca and Mogo.
“I think bringing in some large technology powerhouses that dive not only into FinTech but into other things like artificial intelligence, machine learning, digital health … really dovetails well with the MaRS mandate,” said Adam Nanjee, head of the FinTech cluster at MaRS. “Doing innovation or getting access to startups — you cannot do that off the side of your desk.”
Allen Lalonde, senior executive at IBM Canada Research and Development Centre, told CP that joining MaRS’ FinTech hub will allow IBM a chance to work alongside startups on cognitive technologies, which uses artificial intelligence to perform data analytics.