Ontario Brain Institute Celebrates a Landmark Federal Investment in National Health Data
June 4, 2026
A historic investment in Vital marks a major step toward Canada's ambition to be a global leader in health data innovation
Canada has a generational opportunity to lead at the intersection of data sovereignty, AI, and health. The country's strengths are world-class: leading AI research talent, publicly funded health systems rich in longitudinal data, and internationally recognized health research expertise. Yet much of this advantage remains unrealized. Globally, more than 70% of health data is never analyzed, a significant economic and clinical asset that today goes untapped. The jurisdictions that can securely harness their health data, while protecting privacy, trust, and sovereignty, will define the next generation of health innovation. This investment is exactly the kind of coordinated step needed to turn that potential into discovery, productivity, competitiveness and ultimately better care.
For OBI, that makes this far more than welcome news. Brain health is one of the most complex frontiers in medicine, and the information that drives progress sits scattered across hospitals, clinics, and research centres. This is where federated approaches like Vital change the picture: by running analysis where that information lives, they strengthen the frontline healthcare data without it ever leaving home. Connecting that with the clinical research data OBI already brings together is where the next breakthroughs will come from.
"This is a milestone for Canada, and it points in exactly the direction we need to go: secure, sovereign infrastructure that connects health data across jurisdictions without ever compromising privacy," said Dr. Tom Mikkelsen, CEO and Scientific Director of the Ontario Brain Institute. "We have proven this approach works in brain health through Brain-CODE and our NeuroFL federated learning platform, powered by our Centre for Analytics. Scaling this nationally is how Canada turns its health data into earlier diagnoses, more personalized care, and lasting prosperity."
By bridging our fragmented jurisdictions through federated learning, we can turn isolated assets into a powerhouse for health innovation and a primary engine for Canadian economic security. Federated learning is how we accelerate brain health discoveries while maintaining the trust of the people who make these advances possible. This unlocks the ability to bridge clinical research and healthcare data and transform isolated data points into a continuous loop of learning while accelerating the development of new treatments and interventions.
We made this case in our April 2026 federal pre-budget submission, which calls for scaling a national federated infrastructure for brain health and AI. The groundwork is already in place: through partnerships with more than 40 universities and research centres, from the Vector Institute and the University of Toronto to McGill, Dalhousie, and the Hotchkiss Brain Institute, we have built the foundation of a network ready to scale: Read OBI's pre-budget submission
Canada has the talent, the data, and the expertise to lead, and federal investment like this is what brings that ambition within reach. We celebrate the Government of Canada for backing this work, and we congratulate Drs. Amol Verma and Fahad Razak and everyone behind Vital. We are proud to keep building toward a trusted, sovereign, made-in-Canada health AI ecosystem that puts data to work for better brain health.
Read the story by Sean Silcoff and Joe Castaldo in the Globe and Mail: Canada's AI strategy to fund national health data project