The EU – Canada Matchmaking Event itself will take place on-site in Montreal, Canada, from 15 to 17 September 2026.

The event will be jointly organised by the European Commission through the European Cluster Collaboration Platform (ECCP), in collaboration with the Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, Government of Canada, Scale AI, and Enterprise Europe Network (EEN).

The EU–Canada Matchmaking Event will bring together cluster organisations and SMEs from the European Union (EU), non-EU countries participating in the Single Market Programme/COSME Strand[1], and Canada. It will provide participants an excellent chance to promote Cluster to Cluster (C2C), Cluster to Business (C2B), and Business to Business (B2B) collaborations. 

ALL IN is Canada’s leading event dedicated to artificial intelligence and emerging technologies, gathering innovation ecosystem stakeholders from across Canada and internationally, including clusters, SMEs, large companies, research and technology organisations, investors, and public authorities. In 2025, the event welcomed more than 6 500 participants, 200 exhibitors and 200 speakers from over 40 countries. The event offers participants the opportunity to discover the latest technological and market developments, engage with key Canadian innovation actors, and explore collaboration opportunities in strategic sectors such as Artificial Intelligence, Advanced Manufacturing, Digital Technologies, Quantum Technologies and Defence and Security. Participation in ALL IN will also provide European cluster organisations and SMEs with increased visibility within the Canadian innovation ecosystem and facilitate the development of international partnerships and business connections.

Objectives

• Strengthening EU-Canada cluster cooperation for the benefit of their members, including a seminar, a cluster matchmaking event, and site visits.

• Identifying potential areas of common interest for cooperation and synergies, in terms of the sectoral, value chain, and market focus of their SMEs and other companies.

• Improving, through clusters, the EU-Canada industry and academia-industry collaboration in research, development, and innovation. For its members, the clusters will identify possible areas of RDI collaboration (academia, research organisations, industries…).

Agenda and Activities

The EU – Canada Matchmaking Event will include the following activities:

• Preparatory Webinar – an opportunity to receive information on undertaking business with Canada and guidance on how to participate successfully in the planned event. (9 July 2026)
• Technical Webinar – a session helping future participants of the matchmaking event to make the most of their profiling in the B2Match tool and explain the procedures to optimise the booking of meetings. (date tbc)
• Site visits (15 September 2026)
• Seminar on on key trends, investment opportunities, and EU-Canada cooperation opportunities in Artificial Intelligence, Advanced Manufacturing, Digital Technologies, Quantum Technologies and Defence and Security (15 September 2026)
• Pitching and Matchmaking meetings between cluster organisations and SMEs from EU (and non-EU countries participating in SMP/COSME Strand) countries and Canada  (15 September 2026)
• Debriefing session to collect feedback and testimonials from cluster participants. (16 September 2026)
• Participation at the ALL IN Event – 16 – 17 September 2026

Focus areas

• Artificial Intelligence
• Advanced manufacturing
• Digital Technology
• Quantum Technology
• Defence and Security

Preparatory workshop - EU-Canada Matchmaking Event, 9 July 2026

A preparatory workshop will be held on 9 July 2026. The agenda from the webinar is available here.