In partnership with DIGITAL, Technology Alliance, and the Technology Association of Oregon, Cascadia Innovation Corridor convened leaders from across British Columbia, Washington, and Oregon for Real Talk: AI Across the Cascadia Megaregion, a half-day summit on March 19 focused on the region’s opportunity to lead in responsible AI and the launch of the Cascadia GovTech Hub. The event brought together a full room of public, private, and academic stakeholders for a candid conversation on how AI is reshaping workforce, enterprise, and startup ecosystems—and what it will take for Cascadia to move from potential to implementation. We were also pleased to welcome a delegation from Wales, underscoring growing international interest in Cascadia’s collaborative, cross-border model.

• Moderator: Paula Vich Serra — Principal, Boston Consulting Group
• Teresa Coats — CEO & Co-Founder, LearnAIR
• Ashish Anand — CEO, Workforce Wellness
• Jim Warner — Field CTO, Snowflake

Panelists emphasized that AI is fundamentally a growth strategy, enabling governments and organizations to do more with limited resources while improving service delivery. However, adoption remains early, with most efforts failing without strong change management, experimentation, and a willingness to “unlearn” traditional ways of working. A key theme was that responsible AI requires education and shared principles, with a shift toward keeping humans in the lead rather than simply in the loop.

• Moderator: Boaz Ashkenazy — Founder, AI Podcast Host & Advisor
• Vishnu Vettrivel — Director of Engineering, Qualtrics
• Colin Quon — CEO, Excelar Technologies
• David Cantu — Co-Founder and CMO, Redapt

The enterprise discussion focused on the importance of trust, governance, and scale, with growing expectations for transparency in how AI systems are developed and used. Panelists highlighted the need to avoid fragmented, one-off solutions by building on shared enterprise platforms and securing strong executive-level support. There was also interest in the opportunity for Cascadia to help shape a regional approach to AI governance in the form of a responsible AI constitution.

• Moderator: Lisa Yu — Regional VP, Snowflake
• Rob Goehring — Executive Director, AIinBC and CEO & Founder, WisrAI
• Jacob Colker — Co-Founder & Managing Director, AI2 Incubator
• Erin Marshall — COO, Koonkie
• Manan Goel — Co-Founder, Trunknode

The startup panel highlighted Cascadia’s strong foundation but underscored the need for better storytelling about the strengths of our region and deeper cross-border connectivity to fully realize its potential. Differences in capital markets and risk tolerance across the U.S. and Canada create both challenges and opportunities for founders. Panelists emphasized the importance of supporting early-stage scaling and fostering a culture that more actively encourages and celebrates entrepreneurship.

• Moderator: Governor Chris Gregoire
• Laura Jones — President & CEO, Business Council of British Columbia
• Gretchen Peri — CTO, State of Washington

The fireside conversation reinforced the region’s shared identity and opportunity for cross-border collaboration, particularly through public-private partnerships. While government adoption of technology often lags, there are clear opportunities to advance areas like permitting for housing and service delivery through a focus on GovTech. Ongoing friction points—such as border challenges—remain, but panelists emphasized the importance of continued coordination to unlock Cascadia’s full potential.