Prime Minister Justin Trudeau Showcases Canadian Innovation in Technology at Vidyard

Apr 27, 2017

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Jonathan Summey

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Vidyard was honoured to welcome Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau who visited our headquarters to showcase Canadian innovation technology.

KITCHENER, Ontario Canada (April 25, 2017) – Vidyard, the leading video platform for business, welcomed Justin Trudeau to their offices for a tour of our space, a demo of our technology, and a fireside chat with our team.

Led by our CEO Michael Litt, the discussion started off light, asking whether Trudeau prefers Tim Horton’s or Starbucks (turns out he doesn’t even drink coffee!), but quickly got down to business covering topics like diversity in Canadian technology, and what’s needed to keep strong technical talent in Canada. The live stream brought in over 1,300 viewers from all over the globe, and you can watch the recording and check out our highlights below!

Prime Minister Trudeau discussed everything from hockey socks to softwood lumber, and here are a few of our favorite quotes from the day:

  • “Great companies like Vidyard are what I get to point to when I’m travelling abroad and say Canada is exciting and doing great things!” (Tweet This)
  • “Being able to interact and see a visual presence as well as hear a person’s voice in a video – I know it’s much more effective.” (Tweet This)
  • “Canada has always been innovative – to make it through our winters, and long nights, we have to be!” (Tweet This)
  • “We have a generation of entrepreneurs that realize innovation can be a driver to improve lives. That’s the story.” (Tweet This)
  • “Ontario produces more STEM graduates than California – but we need to do more to encourage talent to stay in Canada.” (Tweet This)
  • “I don’t want to force people to stay in Canada to build a business. I want people to choose to stay, and get the support they need to be successful.” (Tweet This)
  • “Standing up for Canada’s interests is my job. Whether it’s softwood or software!” (Tweet This)
  • “There is always going to be far more things that keep Canada and the United States working together than there are imposing barriers.” (Tweet This)
  • “Let’s work together and create pathways to help people learn, contribute and succeed throughout their working life. Not just from K-12, but as the working world changes as well.” (Tweet This)

Showcasing Canadian Innovation in Technology

In addition to giving the Prime Minister a tour of our space, Devon Galloway showed Trudeau our video creation tool Vidyard GoVideo (formerly ViewedIt). After a quick demo, Trudeau even took the time to record his own – watch it here:

Documenting the Big Day

As well as inspiring some next-level excitement from the Vidyard team, the event drew in a huge crowd of media and local dignitaries. Visitors included the Mayor of Kitchener, Berry Vrbanovic, the Mayor of Waterloo, Dave Jaworsky, and representatives from Communitech and the local press.

Here’s a peek at how everyone captured the day!

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