home

Ambitious Canada Part 8: The Mega Project Playbook

Do you believe that Canada is facing an existential crisis?

The answer to this question determines the kind of actions we, as a nation, take going forward.

History has examples of nations that faced existential threats and responded by aligning their government and private sectors to achieve the impossible. They didn’t just “encourage innovation”; they launched Mega Projects that transformed their economies and secured their futures.

So many people building

This is my second recommendation for what Canada needs to do in order to be more ambitious.

Three Blueprints We Can Learn From

1. Taiwan: The Silicon Shield

In the 1970s, Taiwan was in crisis. It had been kicked out of the UN and was losing its low-cost manufacturing edge. It needed a new industry to survive—literally a “silicon shield” to make itself indispensable to the world.

How they did it: The government didn’t wait for the market. They founded the industry.

  • The Technology Transfer: In 1976, the government’s research institute (ITRI) signed a deal with RCA in the US to transfer semiconductor technology. They sent young engineers to America to learn the trade.
  • The Spin-Off Model: Crucially, the government didn’t keep these factories state-run. They recruited Morris Chang, a top US executive, gave him a blank check, and then spun off the technology into private companies like TSMC and UMC.
  • The Result: The government took the initial risk that no private company would take, then handed the keys to the private sector to scale it. Today, Taiwan produces over 90% of the world’s most advanced chips.

2. The USA: The Apollo Program

There was a geopolitical emergency. The US needed to land a man on the moon within a decade.

How they did it:

  • The “Cost-Plus” Contract: To get private companies to take on the unknown risks of space travel, NASA used “cost-plus” contracts. They guaranteed companies would be reimbursed for all their costs plus a set profit. This removed the fear of bankruptcy from innovation.
  • A National Supply Chain: NASA defined the mission, but private industry built the machine. North American Aviation built the command module, IBM built the computers, and Playtex (yes, the bra company) wove the spacesuits. It was a total mobilization of the private sector towards a single public goal.

3. South Korea: The Heavy-Chemical Drive

In the early 70s, South Korea was one of the poorest nations on earth. Facing threats from the North and a potential US troop withdrawal, they needed an industrial base (steel, ships, cars) to defend themselves.

How they did it:

  • The “Chaebol” Deal: The government selected specific family-owned conglomerates (like Samsung and Hyundai) and offered them a ruthless deal: unlimited low-interest loans and protection from foreign competition.
  • Meritocracy with Teeth: In exchange, these companies had to hit aggressive export targets. If you couldn’t sell your product to the world, the government cut you off. It was state support, but it was conditional on global competitiveness.

The Common Thread: The Mega Project Playbook

Looking at these examples, a clear pattern emerges. A true Mega Project requires three things:

  1. Existential Urgency: It isn’t “nice to have.” It is “do or die.”
  2. Government De-Risking: The state provides the initial capital, the “cost-plus” contract, or the technology transfer that makes the risk bearable for business.
  3. Private Execution: The government sets the mission, but the private sector builds the solution.

We Are Already Starting (But We Must Go Further)

The good news is that we are already speaking the right language.

Prime Minister Carney announced “nation-building projects.” These are excellent projects. They will create thousands of high-paying jobs. They will secure critical supply chains for our allies. They will generate the wealth we need to fund our social programs. We should applaud them.

But when I talk about Mega Projects, I am talking about something slightly different.

Acceleration vs. Transformation

The current list of nation-building projects is primarily about acceleration. We are taking what Canada has always done—extracting natural resources—and we are doing it faster, cleaner, and more efficiently. This is vital work. It plays to our historic strengths.

But if we look back at the Taiwan semiconductor example or the US Apollo program, they didn’t just accelerate an existing industry. They transformed their nations by entering entirely new spaces where they had no prior right to win.

Ok, What Should We Focus On?

We cannot be good at everything. We should select 3-5 globally critical industries where three conditions are met:

  1. There is an opportunity for a new global leader to emerge.
  2. Canada has a “right to win” (talent, energy, or geography).
  3. Solving it matters to the daily life of the average person.

Here are some suggestions for the Ali Asaria Approved Megaproject Shortlist™️. These aren’t just business sectors; they are national missions.

1. Quantum Computing We are already an early academic leader here. We should double down to build the world’s first commercially viable, fault-tolerant quantum computer. This isn’t just about faster math; it’s about solving material science and drug discovery problems that are currently impossible.

2. Humanoid Robotics The labor shortage is permanent. The race is on to build general-purpose robots that can work alongside humans in manufacturing, healthcare, elder care, and logistics. There are so many physical and digital parts that need to be solved for this inevitability to become a reality, each component will result in companies. There is still time to be the country that knows how to build robots better than anyone else.

3. The “5X Cheaper” Housing Moonshot This is the one that matters most to Canadians. We shouldn’t just subsidize mortgages; we should launch a Manhattan Project for construction technology. The goal: reduce the hard cost (and time) of building a home by 5X through prefab automation, changed regulations, new materials, and 3D printing.

4. The “2X Cheaper” Food Revolution We have the land and the water. We should lead the world in farming and automated agriculture to sever the link between food prices and supply chain chaos.

5. Next-Generation Silicon (The “Northern Shield”) The world is terrified of its reliance on Taiwan. Canada is geologically stable, energy-rich, and water-abundant—the perfect environment for semiconductor fabs. We should build the “Northern Shield” of manufacturing outside the conflict zone.

6. Sovereign AI Vision We birthed modern AI. We should own the application layer for the physical world—self-driving cars, trucks, and drones that operate on a Canadian-built standard. We should designate lanes on the 401 now to be used only by AI-driven trucks. We should set a timeline for when all roads, regulations, and infrastructure in major cities like Toronto will be for self-driving cars only.

What Would a Mega Project Look Like?

Speed and execution are everything.

If we try to tackle these projects with bureaucracy—hiring a committee of expert consultants to write a paper—we will fail. A Mega Project requires a completely different operating system.

Here is the blueprint:

1. A CEO (Not a Minister)

Each project is led by a CEO recruited from the private sector, not a politician. They get a special hat. They are given a specific, measurable mission (e.g., “Build a fab producing 2nm chips by 2030”) and a 10-year term.

2. The “Super Powers”

To win, this CEO is granted “Super Powers” by the federal government to modify the four key pillars of industry within the project’s jurisdiction:

  • Immigration: Fast-track visas for any global talent needed for the project. No waiting.
  • Funding: They have a guaranteed budget that cannot be cut by a change in government.
  • Regulation: They operate in a “regulatory sandbox.” If a rule prevents the project (e.g., zoning for the housing factory), they have the power to override it within a few business days.
  • Advance Market Commitment (Procurement): The government guarantees it will be the first customer. (e.g., “We will buy the first 10,000 robots for our hospitals.”)

These projects will report directly to the Canadian population. Everyone needs to know how they are doing.

3. The Equity Model (We All Win)

Here is the most important part. The government does not just give grants. The government takes equity.

The projects MUST be designed so that everyone cares that they succeed—they can’t be seen as projects that benefit a small group of elites.

If we use taxpayer money to de-risk these massive industries, the taxpayer should share in the upside. When the “Northern Shield” semiconductor company goes public, or when the Canadian robotics champion spins out, the dividends flow back into a Sovereign Wealth Fund for all Canadians.

This is how we align the country. We aren’t just funding companies; we are investing in a portfolio of national champions. If they win, we all win.

Let’s Mega Build