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From October 13 to 16, 2026, MTL connect will bring together in Montreal committed voices in the major conversations shaping our digital future. Under the theme of Sovereignty, this new edition will open a space for reflection on our collective ability to understand, master, and steer the technologies transforming our data, infrastructure, culture, organizations, and societies.
The MTL connect 2026 program is beginning to take shape.
This year, Printemps numérique de Montréal will explore digital-era sovereignty from multiple angles: data, artificial intelligence, health, culture, governance, infrastructure, responsible innovation, and collective agency.
Through conferences, discussions, and meetings, MTL connect will provide a space to better understand ongoing transformations, share expertise, and foster collaboration among innovation, research, business, culture, institutions, and civil society.
Here is a first look at the Speakers who will take part in this edition.
Paul Allard (CA)
President and Co-founder – Données Souveraines Québec
Opening conference: Digital Sovereignty: Taking Back Control of Our Future
Who truly owns our data, digital infrastructure, and artificial intelligence?
To open MTL connect 2026, Paul Allard will address the major challenges of digital sovereignty and the conditions needed to strengthen our collective capacity for action in the face of technological transformations.
He will present the results of the first assessment of digital sovereignty in Quebec, as well as the roadmap of Données Souveraines Québec, developed with over 35 experts. This conference will set the tone for an edition focused on understanding, responsibility, and action.
Pierre-Antoine Gourraud (FR) and Guillaume Bourque (CA)
Conference: A Cross-Perspective Between France and Quebec on Health Data Sovereignty
How can we protect health data while accelerating medical research?
Through a cross-perspective between France and Quebec, Pierre-Antoine Gourraud and Guillaume Bourque will explore issues related to governance, secure data sharing, and digital health innovation.
This conference will help better understand the conditions needed to develop collaborative models that support research while respecting data protection, trust, and sovereignty requirements.
Fouad Bousetouane (USA)
Lecturer in Generative AI – University of Chicago
Conference: Agentic AI: The Next Revolution in Artificial Intelligence
Artificial intelligence is entering a new phase: that of systems capable of acting, collaborating, and taking initiative.
Fouad Bousetouane will demystify agentic AI, a major evolution in artificial intelligence that raises as many possibilities as questions. His presentation will address governance, responsible AI, and sovereignty issues related to these new forms of technological autonomy.
Alain Saulnier (CA)
Author, speaker, and expert in media and digital giants
Conference: Cultural Sovereignty in the Age of Algorithms
Faced with the growing influence of digital platforms on information and culture, how can we preserve our cultural diversity and strengthen our democracy?
Alain Saulnier will offer a reflection on the power of web giants and the levers to strengthen our cultural sovereignty in the age of algorithms. This conference will invite us to question the role of content, media, creators, and audiences in a digital environment largely shaped by platforms.
Lyse Langlois (CA)
Executive Director – Obvia
Conference: Responsible AI: What Impact on Our Societies?
Artificial intelligence is already transforming our organizations, institutions, and democracies. How can we ensure ethical, responsible development that serves the common good?
Lyse Langlois will share a reflection on the major challenges of responsible AI and the questions that will guide tomorrow’s decisions. Her presentation will address the social, ethical, and democratic impacts of artificial intelligence from a perspective oriented toward collective responsibility.
A Program to Understand, Question, and Act
This first announcement sets the tone for an edition that will place sovereignty at the heart of discussions: data sovereignty, technological sovereignty, cultural sovereignty, health sovereignty, AI governance, and collective capacity to steer digital tools.
MTL connect is more than a conference event. It is an international platform for meetings, reflection, networking, and collaboration around the major issues of digital transformation.
By bringing together entrepreneurs, researchers, decision-makers, professionals, artists, organizations, and institutions, the event promotes knowledge sharing, cross-sector dialogue, and the influence of expertise that contributes to shaping a more responsible, inclusive, and socially beneficial digital culture.
The full program will be unveiled gradually over the coming weeks.
Take Part in MTL connect 2026
From October 13 to 16, 2026, join those who think, create, question, and transform the digital world.
🎟️ Enjoy a 20% discount on tickets until July 31.