HardtechFest 2025: The World Is Not Enough

On July 9th, on the quays of the Old Port of Montreal, we will have the pleasure of opening the second edition of HardtechFest. An afternoon to amplify a conviction that we hold at the heart of our mission:

_{It's not the world that lacks ideas—it's ideas that lack bridges to cross the valley of death.}

From space propulsion to carbon capture, medical devices for extreme environments, and quantum qubits, the people we brought together on July 9 have one thing in common: they're building the impossible. And sometimes, what drives them is the idea that the technologies developed here in Canada aren't just made for our planet. They're ready for what's next.

Beyond borders, an edition that aims for the moon!

From the outset, we created Hardtechfest around the theme “The World is Not Enough” to answer this question:

How can we sustainably support Canadian innovation in hardtech so that the challenges we face are met with our solutions?

In an era where the words "innovation", "sustainability" and "disruption" are often overused, we want to use this event to remind people that hardtech, with technologies that lead to real changes in our daily lives, requires time, patient capital and radical audacity.

This is why we invited companies that are radically changing industry sectors:

• Nord Quantique, which works to stabilize quantum computing for real-world applications.
• Gaia Refinery, which designs industrial-scale direct carbon capture systems.
• PARATUS Medical, which is developing the world's first comprehensive emergency medical assistant... inspired by space constraints.
• Reaction Dynamics, which has developed revolutionary launch technology that reduces the environmental impact of access to space.
• Magnestar, which helps increase communications resilience in hard-to-reach or congested environments.

Fund the impossible, or let die what can save us

Among the topics discussed, the crux of the matter remains financing. Since these technologies are aimed at significant development requiring asset outlays, the capital chain more common to startups doesn't adequately address this challenge. What we're looking for in the hardtech ecosystem is a type of financing that doesn't expect an MVP to be ready in 12 weeks, but rather supports long, complex, and demanding trajectories... that deliver real impact.

Between timid subsidies and cautious funding, too many Canadian hardtech projects die before reaching their industrial potential. Canada has the brains, the labs, the green energy, and the manufacturers. What we still lack is an integrated support model and a network of allies capable of bringing these projects to fruition.

Space as a mirror, not as an escape

Finally, a cross-cutting question will follow us into our final debate: Exploring space to save the Earth: paradox or necessity?

Is thinking about space technologies an escape or a mirror of our ambitions?

What is certain is that innovations designed for extreme environments—whether in orbit, the Arctic, or the ocean floor—find immediate applications on our planet. This is why we believe that hardtech is one of the rare vectors of innovation that connects the economy, ecology, and industrial sovereignty.

And we really need it for Canada in 2025.

So this is an invitation to HardtechFest 2025, an invitation to think bigger.
We want to recognize that our ideas are worth more than short-lived iterative cycles, but that we can build a future where the impossible doesn't die before it has a chance.

At Garage&co , we believe in this ambition.
And we invite you to join us on July 9th to wear it together.

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