What’s happened.
Industry Minister Mélanie Joly announced that the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program, known as NRC IRAP, has committed more than $135 million to defence and dual-use technologies since launching a program called Defence Industry Assist in January 2026. “Dual-use” means a product with both civilian and military applications. The program was set up with a $241 million budget and has, in nine months, helped 860 small and mid-sized Canadian companies, backed more than 540 innovation projects and supported over 2,300 jobs. The announcement covers work in cybersecurity, communications, maritime and underwater systems, aerospace, drones and space.
The detail worth noting is the size of the companies getting the money. Seventy-nine percent of the businesses supported have fewer than 50 employees, and about half were incorporated in the last ten years. Nearly a quarter are owned or led by women. The program does not only write cheques: it also helps companies understand how defence buying works, which is often the real barrier for a shop that has never sold to the military. NRC IRAP runs a network of more than 250 industrial technology advisors and supported over 10,800 Canadian companies in 2025-26. Under Canada’s Defence Industrial Strategy, the National Research Council is investing over $900 million in aerospace defence capabilities, dual-use technologies and quantum work, with stated goals of 125,000 jobs and a 50% increase in Canadian defence exports.
What it means for your business.
If you make components, controls, materials or equipment that could plausibly serve a security or military customer, this program is aimed at companies your size, and 79% of the firms it has funded have fewer than 50 people. The advisory side matters as much as the funding, because defence procurement rules are the usual reason manufacturers never bid. Contact an NRC IRAP industrial technology advisor and get a read on whether one of your existing products qualifies as dual-use before you spend money developing something new.
Next step: Book a conversation with an NRC IRAP industrial technology advisor this quarter to test whether an existing product line qualifies as dual-use.
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Reported developments are separated from MKTGSpace’s suggested commercial next steps. Reconfirm current conditions before acting.
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