SPEAKER: The International Economic Forum of the Americas

Thanks to International Economic Forum of Americas- Toronto Global Forum for the opportunity to discuss the impact of reshoring textile & apparel manufacturing with AI and Robotics in Canada, USA and Europe. We also discussed the pros and cons of public money in private enterprise. As a company that received grant money from DARPA and through my work with the Advanced Technology Development Center at Georgia Tech, I have seen public money enter private companies with varying results.

Overall, the messaging communicated by Toronto & Ontario policy makers as “open for business” was encouraging especially with the focus on removing duplicate government regulation between the federal government and the provinces. It was also uplifting to hear the prime minister of Haiti discuss the country’s efforts to create growth in agriculture and light manufacturing. While energy is still a problem they have a new renewable energy initiative with a strategy to create micro-grids which will dramatically reduce the cost of electricity. Today, Haiti has energy costs 30–40% higher than Central America which is a detriment to it’s light manufacturing initiatives.

In regards to Toronto and manufacturing, they still retain a size-able local textile & apparel manufacturing community, but lack scale from labor unavailability. While not a surprise, it’s promising to see the interest and drive to regain that lost capacity. Allowing automation like Sewbots to handle basic sewn goods frees up workers to focus on higher-margin premium goods and increase exports to Asia who are looking for high quality with lower risks of fakes. This is an exciting prospect for Canadian textile manufacturing and the economics of the region.

It was great to meet the fellow panelists like the President of EOS-North America, Glynn Fletcher, COO of the Advanced Robotics for Manufacturing, Jay Douglass and our host Stefani Pashman, CEO of Allegheny Conference on Community Development.

A few additional takeaways regarding public money in private enterprise.

Pros: Public money can jump start forgotten and underfunded industries. Public money can offset high risk technologies and risk-averse industries. Public money can reduce dillution. Can speed small companies in hiring.

Cons: Public money puts the wrong customer at the table and can be a significant distraction on delivering long-term shareholder value. Are we asking public money to pick winners?