Ottawa's EY Centre — the go-to venue for everything from military trade shows to comic book conventions — is about to get a new identity, courtesy of one of Canada's hottest artificial intelligence companies.
Toronto-based Cohere, a fast-growing AI firm that builds large language models for enterprise clients, has purchased the naming rights to the busy Uplands Drive convention centre. While financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed, the move signals Cohere's growing ambitions and brand visibility across the country.
What Is the EY Centre?
For Ottawans who haven't spent a weekend there dodging stormtroopers or browsing defence contractor booths, the EY Centre is one of the city's most versatile large-format event venues. Situated near Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport, the sprawling facility regularly hosts CANSEC — North America's largest defence and security trade show — as well as Ottawa Comiccon, consumer expos, conferences, and corporate events.
The centre has become a reliable anchor for Ottawa's convention economy, drawing tens of thousands of visitors each year and generating significant business for local hotels, restaurants, and transit.
Who Is Cohere?
Founded in 2019 by former Google Brain researchers, Cohere has carved out a strong niche in the enterprise AI space, building natural language processing tools used by major corporations worldwide. The company has raised hundreds of millions in venture funding and is widely considered one of Canada's most valuable AI startups.
Unlike consumer-facing AI tools, Cohere focuses on helping businesses deploy AI securely within their own infrastructure — a pitch that has resonated strongly in government, finance, and healthcare sectors. Given Ottawa's role as the federal government hub, the naming rights deal feels like more than just a marketing move.
What It Means for Ottawa
Naming rights deals at convention centres aren't new, but this one carries some symbolic weight. Ottawa has long positioned itself as a tech and innovation hub, anchored by Kanata North — one of the largest technology parks in North America. Having a major Canadian AI brand attached to one of the city's flagship event venues adds another layer to that identity.
It also puts Cohere's name in front of exactly the audience it wants to reach: government decision-makers, defence contractors, enterprise buyers, and the thousands of professionals who flow through the building every year.
For regular Ottawans, the practical impact is minimal — Comiccon will still be Comiccon, CANSEC will still draw its crowd of camo-clad defence buffs, and the parking situation on Uplands Drive will presumably remain exactly as chaotic as ever. But the next time you head to a trade show or a consumer expo at the venue, you'll be doing it under the banner of one of Canada's leading AI companies.
The new name for the venue has not yet been officially announced, but expect signage and branding to follow in the coming months.
Source: Ottawa Citizen
