The Current Jim Balsillie's prescription for Canadian business
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Nov 26, 2025 
Jim Balsillie, former co-CEO of Research In Motion and a vocal advocate for Canadian economic sovereignty, dives deep into the challenges facing Canadian businesses. He argues that a lack of focus on intellectual property is stunting growth, suggesting that embracing strategic ownership of data could unlock over $1 trillion annually. Balsillie critiques outdated production mindsets and champions national approaches to IP, drawing parallels with small, innovative countries. He also reflects on RIM's global success and stresses the need for entrepreneurs to make bold, strategic decisions.
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IP Is Where Modern Wealth Lives
- Intellectual property is a government-granted monopoly that drives modern wealth and power.
- Jim Balsillie argues Canada failed to reorient policy to own ideas and data, losing access to big money.
The Cost Of Not Owning Data
- Data and IP created roughly $18 trillion in market cap for U.S. firms in recent years.
- Balsillie estimates Canada lost about $1 trillion a year in GDP by not keeping pace in the data/AI era.
Invention ≠ Ownership
- Canada confuses invention with owning the resulting innovation and lacks technical strategies to capture value.
- The policy mindset remains stuck in a production-era view, ignoring geostrategic IP capture.