May 20 | Montreal Science Centre, Montreal, Canada
On May 20, 2026, the sharpest minds in Industrial AI – entrepreneurs, investors, and corporate leaders – converged in Old Montreal for a full-throttle exploration of the industry's explosive growth.
This is where connections were sparked, deals took shape, and the future of industrial innovation was debated over a well-earned cocktail at the end of the day. Back by popular demand: Speed Pitching (high stakes, no fluff) and our legendary Networking Reception, where rubbing elbows often leads to striking deals.
The date for the 2027 McRock Annual Symposium is being finalized. Check back soon for details!
Hosted By
WHITNEY ROCKLEY & SCOTT MACDONALD
Co-founders & Managing Partners McRock Capital
ALLISTAIR ELLIOT
Trumpet Master and Maestro of Good Vibes
See all that happened at the 2026 Symposium
Keynote Speakers
Keynote: The Data Foundation Beneath the Industrial AI
Jim Lambe
Vice President & General Manager Canada, Databricks
Jim Lambe leads Databricks’ Canadian business as Vice President, Canada. With more than two decades in cloud, data, and enterprise technology – including leadership roles at Google Cloud and Stripe – he helps organizations modernize data platforms and build the foundation that makes AI possible.
Fireside Chat:
Charting an AI Native Culture
Joel Hron
Chief Technology Officer, Thomson Reuters
Joel Hron is Chief Technology Officer at Thomson Reuters, where he leads Product Engineering and AI R&D across Legal, Tax, Audit, Trade, Compliance, and Risk. Since joining through the acquisition of ThoughtTrace (McRock Portfolio) in 2022, he has helped shape the company’s AI strategy as professional technology enters the AI-native era.
Fireside Chat:
Buying into the Industrial AI Era
David Hindley
VP, Corporate Development, Autodesk
David Hindley leads inorganic growth and integration at Autodesk, where he has overseen more than $4B in strategic acquisitions, including PlanGrid, Spacemaker, and Innovyze. His team works across manufacturing, AEC, and media & entertainment to identify the technologies shaping the future – and bring them into Autodesk’s (McRock Investor) ecosystem.
Panel Sessions
Connectivity to Cognition: Who’s Actually Building the New Industrial Stack
Martin Cossette
Senior Vice President, Corporate Strategy
Bell
Bruce Stamm
Strategic Advisor, AI and Data
FPT
Antoine Bisson
CEO & Co-founder
Poka/IFS
Amit Chaturvedy
Global Head & Managing Partner
SE Ventures
The First Autonomous Factory: Who Gets There First?
Jignesh Vakharia
Corporate Development Leader
Autodesk
Philipp Wehn
Co-founder & CEO
Nexxa.ai
Adam Keating
Co-founder & CEO
CoLab
Sam Nagar
Founder
Terragrit
Humans vs Autonomy: The Tradeoffs No One Wants to Say Out Loud
Zack Birky
Senior Investment Manager
Caterpillar Ventures
Carla Robinson
Senior Investment Analyst
CI Global Asset Management
James Neufeld
CEO & Founder
Samdesk
Ankur Saxena
Investment Director
TDK Ventures
Post Symposium Reception
When the pace slows, one last event awaits.
Swap insights, toast to new connections, and maybe even celebrate a freshly inked deal (no promises, but stranger things have happened).
Then, stick around as we unveil the winners of the McRock Industrial Software Awards – because the best deserve the spotlight.
And because we always love a bit of adrenaline to end the day, we have Drive to Thrive with Mayer, Declan, Tanya and Clive Deonarine.
Speed Pitching Session
Two Sessions. Twice the Opportunity.
Are you a startup ready to make your case to some of the top global investors in the room? This is your chance to deliver your best elevator pitch to the people who can make things happen. Bring your A-game, hype yourself up however you need (no judgment), and get ready for a rapid-fire session that could change everything. No pressure – just opportunity.
Date: May 20, 2026
Times: Session 1: 12:30 PM – 1:00 PM | Session 2: 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM
Venue: Montreal Science Centre
Format: Entrepreneurs and investors will have five minutes to meet before rotating to the next table.
Are you an entrepreneur or investor ready to be part of this? Let us know.
McRock Industrial AI Awards
Recognizing the Best in Industrial AI
At the 2026 Symposium, we awarded 3 incredible companies for their work in Industrial AI
Industrial AI Corporate Leader of the Year (IFS)
Industrial AI Company of the Year (Nurau)
Industrial AI Entrepreneur of the Year (CoLab)
The McRock Industrial AI Awards were established to recognize the incredible AI being developed for industrial applications and to spotlight Industrial AI innovators who are leading the way in these markets. The 2026 winners were selected by a panel of independent judges that included Robert Rosen, Managing Director – Innovation Banking, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), Mickaël Galvani, Investment Director – Fund Investment, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, and Brenda Hogan, Chief Investment Officer – Venture Ontario.
Sponsors
Thank you to our amazing sponsors!
