GCXpo showcases the latest in ‘smart mobility’

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, "GCXpo demonstrates the growing leadership of innovators and companies from Canada’s capital and across the country in the multi-billion-dollar global smart mobility market. It enables entrepreneurs and firms to showcase the impact of their homegrown solutions and connect with prospective customers, investors and talent. This builds directly on our mission at Area X.O: to accelerate the commercialization of new technologies and help get companies to market, customers and revenue faster, safely.” 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.