CIRANO Pole on the Socio-economic Impacts of Digital Intelligence

About

CIRANO naturally positions itself as a leading research centre for the study of the socio-economic impacts of digital intelligence. It will thus be able to support the Government of Quebec and organizations in making decisions that are adapted to this new economic and technological context.

Researchers in charge

Project coordinator or director

Digital innovation is based on the use of new tools from data sciences (e.g. machine learning, artificial intelligence), and uses the latest information and communication technologies to better leverage the information contained in ever-growing massive data sets (e.g. the Internet of Things and People, collaborative applications).

Digital innovation will continue to have a transformative effect on the Québec economy and sometimes even a disruptive effect. It is essential that public policies take this new environment into account, on the one hand to support and stimulate productivity and innovation and, on the other hand, to effectively manage the economic and social consequences of this ongoing transformation.

In response to these challenges, CIRANO naturally positions itself as a leading research centre for the study of the socio-economic impact of digital innovation. It will thus be able to support the Government of Quebec and organizations in making decisions that are adapted to this new economic and technological context.

This pole ensures a transversal link between CIRANO's various research themes. It connects researchers and partners to foster the development of multidisciplinary work teams. It stimulates discussion and exchange through meetings and conferences. Finally, it provides a link with many organizations, partners or levels of government.

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Research programming

Economic development and territorial issues

Research on the evaluation of economic spinoffs for Montréal and Québec, regional development, competitiveness clusters, international connectivity, the role of universities and colleges in regional innovation ecosystems, etc.

Transformation of private and public organizations

Studies on programs to help SMEs transform, level of adoption of new technologies by Québec companies, business retention, competition analysis, innovation and technology commercialization in Canada and abroad, government adaptation in its relations with citizens, taxation, etc.

Socio-economic impacts

Research on the effects of the use of new technologies, the need for business support for the continuing training of workers, the attraction of women in the new technologies sector, wage polarization, accessibility, inequality, social acceptability, level of understanding of AI and massive data by the general public, experimental approach to analyzing behaviours associated with the sharing economy and digital technologies, etc.

Examples of research questions include

What will be the demographic, employment, inequality, industrial structure, competitiveness, education, and health impacts of digital innovations in the various regions of Quebec?

What are the repercussions on public or private organizations in terms of the adoption of digital innovations (the difficulties encountered, the measures used to facilitate adoption, the impacts on jobs, the tasks assigned, the training required, acceptability, etc.)?

What are the interactions between digital innovations and other forces affecting the Québec economy, such as the aging of the population and the internationalization of the economy?