It has become the second-largest tech industry show in Ottawa and is unique in Canada.
GCXpo was held Thursday and drew a crowd of 1,700 and almost 80 exhibitors working in the “smart mobility” space. The show featured robots, drones and unmanned vehicles and the tech to support them.
This was the third year for GCXpo, which was held at Area X.O in Ottawa’s west end. Area X.O was established to test smart mobility devices.
The one-day event is held mostly outdoors and focuses on live demonstrations.
Invest Ottawa organized the event with the federal government as primary sponsor. Invest Ottawa’s CEO and president Sonya Shorey said, “This was a great day and this whole sector is really growing. We plan to be back even bigger next year.”
The number of exhibitors was up more than 20 per cent from last year. They brought remote-operated vehicles of all kinds, including tractors, plus drones of all shapes and sizes and robots that looked like dogs or moved like a human arm. Several federal departments and several post-secondary schools were also on hand, while 20 speakers tackled subjects from AI to how to encourage innovation.
Robots on display came in a variety of shapes and sizes, customized for a variety of different uses.Ottawa Police were in attendance to learn more about drones, which the force now has in its service.Large crowds gathered at live demonstrations of mobile machines.Drones have a variety of different uses. This one assists with building cleaning.Unmanned vehicles came in all sizes, from cars to pickups, to large military vehicles, all controlled by remote devices.GCXpo visitors peruse the near 80 exhibitors who inside the tent. Many others were set up outside.The event featured over 20 speakers throughout the day, discussion a range of topics from AI to encouraging innovation.The tracker loaded with sensors and antennae can run without a driver. Mobile devices for farming are an expanding sector.Robots are increasingly unique in shape, like this arm, as developers custom build robots for unique uses.
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