Canada Now
By: Ashley Smith
Language: en-ca
Categories: Business, Technology, Society, Culture, Places, Travel
Sparking bold ideas to help shape what’s next — through an unapologetically Canadian lens.
Episodes
Building What Lasts: Climate Tech, Cash Flow, and a Canadian Model of Innovation | Arman Mottaghi
Jan 10, 2026Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
In this episode of Canada Now, host Ashley Smith sits down with Arman Mottaghi, founder and CEO of Properate, to explore what it really takes to build companies that last — in climate tech and beyond.
Arman shares how Properate grew into one of Canada’s leading home energy assessment platforms by focusing on long-term value, real revenue, and system-level thinking — rather than chasing Silicon Valley hype cycles.
The conversation spans:
* Why homes are one of the most underestimated climate levers
* Why...
AI Is Not a Bubble — It’s a Leadership Test | Karen Olsson
Jan 02, 2026Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
AI is everywhere — but leadership hasn’t always caught up.
In this episode of Canada Now, host Ashley Smith is joined by Karen Olsson, tech entrepreneur, fractional CEO, and principal at Atomic47, for a grounded conversation about what the AI moment actually demands of leaders — beyond hype, tools, and experimentation.
Karen brings a rare, on-the-ground perspective from working with organizations across highly regulated and operationally complex sectors, including healthcare, energy, and government. Together, they unpack why AI isn’t a speculative bubble, but an operatio...
Duration: 00:48:59Why Trust — Not Perfection — Is the Future of Brand Building | Brady Dahmer
Dec 19, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
In a world flooded with AI-generated content, endless platforms, and “perfect” branding, what actually builds trust?
In this episode of Canada Now, Ashley is joined by Brady Dahmer — brand strategist, author of Blind Spots, and founder of Tropoly — for a wide-ranging conversation about brand, trust, community, and why human connection matters more than ever.
Brady has spent over 25 years working at the intersection of design, storytelling, and strategy, supporting everyone from early-stage startups to global brands. He’s also played a major role in shaping Va...
Duration: 00:49:50How Tom Rossiter Took a Canadian Tech Company Public Pre-Product — and Scaled RESAAS to 160 Countries
Dec 05, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
How does a Canadian tech company go public before it has a finished product — and then scale to more than 160 countries?
In this episode, Tom Rossiter, Co-Founder and CEO of RESAAS, shares the remarkable story behind building a global technology platform from Vancouver and navigating the uniquely Canadian path to going public pre-product.
Ashley and Tom dive into:
- The unconventional route RESAAS took to become a public company before revenue
- Why this was possible only in Canada — and what that re...
Canada’s Cyber Wake-Up Call: What Every Leader Needs to Know in 2026 — with Dominic Vogel
Nov 29, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
Cyber attacks aren’t just rising — they’re transforming. And most Canadian companies aren’t even close to ready.
In this eye-opening conversation, cybersecurity expert Dominic Vogel breaks down the new reality facing Canadian organizations as we head into 2026. From AI-powered attacks to skyrocketing ransomware incidents to the shocking fragility of our digital systems, Dominic explains why cyber risk is no longer a technical issue — it’s a leadership issue.
We cover:
Why attackers don’t need your data to be valuable — only valuable to youHow AI is sup... Duration: 00:52:28The Future of Work, Leadership & Humanity: A Conversation with Jay Rosenzweig
Nov 21, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
The future of work is changing fast — and few people have a better vantage point on global leadership, talent, and purpose than Jay Rosenzweig.
Jay Rosenzweig is a successful investor and internationally renowned social impact entrepreneur, humanitarian, and CEO of Rosenzweig & Company. Across North America and beyond, he advises global corporations, high-growth founders, and purpose-driven organizations on building world-class leadership teams. He also chairs the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights and is the creator of the annual Rosenzweig Report on women in leadership.
In this...
Duration: 00:45:10Factory-Built Homes vs. the Cost of Chaos: Can Modular Be More Affordable, Convenient — and Beautiful? | Rohe Homes
Nov 15, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
Factory-built homes are back in the spotlight in Canada — but are today’s modular homes actually good enough to help fix the housing crisis and be places people truly want to live?
In this episode of Canada Now, Ashley sits down with Rohan Kulkarni (Co-Founder & CEO, Rohe Homes) and Salik Z. Khan (Co-Founder & Chief Experience Officer) to unpack how factory-built, modular homes can speed up construction, cut costs, and still deliver beautiful, high-quality spaces.
They get into:
Why modular... Duration: 00:56:37Unlocking Underused Land: A Tech Founder’s Dynamic Journey to Democratize Real Estate — w/ Laura Fortey
Nov 05, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
What if a major housing unlock is hiding in plain sight?
This week, Ashley sits down with Laura Fortey — co-founder & COO of Reitium — to unpack how churches, hospitals, and other nonprofits can raise capital (donations, debt, or equity) to build affordable housing while keeping ownership of their land. No bulldozers-for-condos script. Instead: preserve the community anchor, add the homes, and make the math work with modern crowdfunding infrastructure.
They also dive into founder realities — burnout and reset...
Duration: 00:48:10Disrupt Yourself: How Canadians Win the Next Wave of Change — with Jeff King
Oct 30, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
When disruption hits your industry, will you adapt — or get left behind?
Jeff King, CEO of Greater Vancouver REALTORS® and former COO of SOCAN (the Society of Composers, Authors and Music Publishers of Canada), joins Canada Now to unpack how disruption unfolds — and what every Canadian leader can learn from the industries facing it head-on.
From the collapse of CD retailers to the digital transformation of real estate, Jeff shares how embracing change, recognizing that the consumer always wins, and thinking across sectors can help Canadians — and Canadian b...
Duration: 00:51:40Social Media Reimagined — The Canadian Way, Eh!? | Ft. Jess Glowacki
Oct 24, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
Can social media feel human again? 🇨🇦
After two decades of algorithms, outrage, and endless scroll, Jess Glowacki is rebuilding social — the Canadian way.
As the founder of EH!, a proudly Canadian social network that puts community, privacy, and connection first, Jess is flipping the script on how we connect online. No algorithms. No bots. Just real people, local discovery, and a mission-driven model built around respect and belonging.
In this conversation, we unpack:
How social media lost... Duration: 00:40:37From Deals to Stewardship: Reinventing Real Estate in Canada — with Ross McCredie
Oct 18, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
Real estate is having its travel-agent moment — but the higher calling is stewardship. Serial Entrepreneur, investor, and Sutton Group CEO, Ross McCredie explains how verified identity and accurate data can protect families from financial abuse and turn brokerages into true homeowner wealth platforms.
In this episode:
The “travel agent → advisor” shift and what it means for REALTORS®From one-off deals to long-term asset/portfolio managementVerified IDs, digitized property portfolios, and cleaner data for AIHow transparency helps prevent elder & fi... Duration: 00:49:56Beyond Listings: Data, Digitization & Canada’s Housing Future — with Trevor Koot
Oct 08, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
What does a smarter, more resilient housing system look like in Canada? BCREA CEO Trevor Koot joins Ashley to zoom out: climate shocks, immigration, Indigenous title and UNDRIP, red tape vs. development, and why data — not vibes — should steer policy. We dig into the evolving role of REALTORS as small-business owners in an AI era, how 30 years of MLS history could inform better decisions, and why the (still) paper-heavy real estate transaction stack is overdue for digitization. Also: the case for real consult...
Duration: 00:51:17Canada Now - Trailer
Sep 28, 2025Send a text to Canada Now! đź’¬
Welcome to Canada Now where we highlight the voices, ideas, and bold moves shaping Canada's next chapter through an unapologetically Canadian lens. 🇨🇦Â
Canada’s story is still being written — and it’s not happening in boardrooms or press releases. It’s unfolding in conversations between builders, thinkers, and change makers across the country.
This is a series of sharp, honest, future-facing conversations with the people driving progress across business, innovation, housing, leadership, tech, and more.
From quiet revolutions in small towns to bold ideas shak...
Duration: 00:00:41