Administered by Department of National Defence
DND's flagship innovation program — Competitive Projects, Test Drives, Contests, Sandboxes, Innovation Networks. $200K–$5M+ across Phase 1 and Phase 2.
IDEaS supports defence and dual-use innovation through five elements. Competitive Projects funds R&D against DND capability gaps; Test Drives put existing products in front of military end-users; Contests run open innovation challenges.
The total program pool, per-organization max, and what your contribution has to be.
This program does not publish an aggregate annual funding pool.
No matching contribution required.
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Find your matches →The only serious non-dilutive path into DoD-adjacent innovation in Canada. Dual-use tech (AI, robotics, comms, sensing, materials) qualifies as long as there's a plausible defence application. Security clearance requirements can be a gotcha late in the process.
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Enter the total cost of the project you want to fund with IDEaS. We'll estimate the grant amount, your matching contribution, and your net cost.
Estimates are illustrative — actual funding depends on eligibility, cost classification, and review outcomes. For a firm quote, book a call with our team.
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