TCS announces new research and innovation centre in Toronto
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), an India-headquartered IT consulting company, has announced the opening of Pace Port Toronto – its fifth and largest global research and co-innovation centre.
Located in a 16,000-square-foot suite on the top floor of 400 University Avenue in downtown Toronto, the new facility will help Canadian companies “bring digital innovations to life faster," according to a release from TCS.
The office includes an agile workspace, training space, academic research lab, and an innovation showcase to drive prototyping, research, and commercialization of technology.
The Toronto location joins a network of Pace Ports in New York, Pittsburgh, Amsterdam, and Tokyo. The global hubs include over 4,000 researchers and innovators, more than 2,300 start-up partners, 30+ innovation labs, and 67 academic partners.
The consulting firm also announced a $1 million gift to academic partner University of Toronto, which will be earmarked to support smart cities research at the Data Centre at the School of Cities.
Ananth Krishnan, chief technology officer of TCS, said, “Establishing a Pace Port in Toronto – North America’s fastest growing tech market – is part of a long-term TCS strategic plan for Canada that includes innovation labs, growing and reskilling our workforce, and our ongoing work with schools to support STEM education.”
The firm said Pace Port Toronto will anchor two of its STEM educational programs: TCS goIT Student Awareness Program and Ignite My Future in School. The former program partners with the Toronto District School Board and other organizations to provide workshops and mentorship experiences that encourage students to pursue STEM careers, while the latter aims to transform how students learn and apply computational thinking.
TCS has had a presence in Canada for over 30 years. The firm has over 7,000 people in Canada across Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, Regina, and Vancouver, and a global workforce of 592,000 people.
TCS plans to hire 5,000 tech workers in Canada by 2027. The consultancy in 2021 announced plans to expand its Montreal footprint with a new IT delivery center and 500 new hires.
