Inside the glass-walled offices of KPI Digital in the Technoparc of Ville Saint-Laurent, staff set aside their morning work on October 14 and gathered among the bookshelves, keepsakes and family photographs of their workplace as Emmanuella Lambropoulos, Member of Parliament for Saint-Laurent, read a federal announcement to the assembled team. The quiet attention in the room reflected the scale of what was at stake, from Canada’s national ambitions in artificial intelligence to the rise of a Montreal firm whose software now guides some of the largest mining operations in the world, and to the enduring question of what the technology will mean for workers and businesses.
Lambropoulos used the visit to highlight repayable contributions totalling $300,000 awarded to KPI Digital and AI4Eyes under the Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative, delivered by Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions. KPI Digital, a consulting firm with 25 years of expertise in data, analytics and artificial intelligence, receives $200,000 to carry out an international marketing strategy for its KPI Mining division, which has developed software that helps mining companies improve their operational performance. AI4Eyes, which has designed a platform for ocular diagnosis and treatment recommendations, receives $100,000 to expand its sales on export markets.
“Whether it be to improve the performance of mining operations or to place AI at the service of visual health, the projects funded today are a testament to the talent, expertise and entrepreneurial spirit that power our city,” Lambropoulos said.
The announcement came one day after the Honourable Evan Solomon, Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation, confirmed a $500-million increase over five years for the initiative, bringing its total funding to $700 million nationwide. “The Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative is AI for All in action, accelerating responsible AI adoption, helping Canadian innovators bring their technologies to market and scale globally, and strengthening the regional ecosystems that turn innovation into economic growth,” Solomon said.
For the Greek-Canadian community, the morning carried a double measure of pride. The announcement was delivered by Lambropoulos, herself a daughter of the community, and inside the firm a Greek-Canadian executive is helping guide the company’s expansion into one of the world’s most demanding industries. Dimitra Kostarides, vice-president of people and culture at KPI Digital, spoke to The Montreal Greek Times in Greek about how the firm applies the technology and what the new support will make possible. “Here at KPI Mining and KPI Digital we certainly use artificial intelligence to help our clients, and also in our own project at KPI Mining, so that we can do things more properly,” she said. “I know many people worry that it will change our way of life and change businesses as well. Here we protect our staff and we protect our clients.”
She described a philosophy that places people at the centre of the technology. “Working smarter, not harder, is a good phrase,” she said. “It helps us operate at a pace we could never have imagined. But we need people to run it in an intelligent and beautiful way.”
Kostarides said KPI Mining, launched five years ago, has grown from two employees to 25, building through a collaboration with McGill University a software product now sold to some of the largest mining companies in the world, with partners in 10 countries. “We have created jobs precisely where people worried that jobs would be lost,” she said. “The government has been a very good partner for us. It supported us financially, and today we also spoke with Ms. Lambropoulos about further opportunities. Now that the government has announced all these significant investments, we will be able once again to move forward and to help both our firm and our clients.”
The funding for the two Saint-Laurent projects was first announced on July 15, 2026, in Trois-Rivières. The Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative is being implemented by Canada Economic Development for Quebec Regions in Quebec until March 31, 2031.
