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Sidewalk Labs is the future of urban tech

Sidewalk Labs is the future of urban tech

A dozen or so years ago, I was recruited to Toronto to establish the Martin Prosperity Institute, a think tank focused on...

A smart city should serve its users, not mine their data

A smart city should serve its users, not mine their data

The concept of the “Internet of things” refers to the spread of Internet connectivity to everyday devices:...

Sidewalk Labs will attract and retain tech talent

Sidewalk Labs will attract and retain tech talent

At the Toronto Region Board of Trade, one of the stranger questions we’ve been asked is why we would support a U.S. firm like...

Sidewalk needs to integrate with the waterfront

Sidewalk needs to integrate with the waterfront

When I chaired Waterfront Toronto’s design review panel from 2005 to 2017, our goal was to create continuity. Today, a promenade...

A big city needs to take big risks

A big city needs to take big risks

Imagine if the Raptors had kept DeMar DeRozan in 2018. Imagine if fans, sponsors and pundits all saw trading for an injured Kawhi...

Inside the Latest Issue

The July issue of Toronto Life features the monster cottages of Muskoka versus the resistance. Plus, our obsessive coverage of everything that matters now in the city.

The Sidewalk Labs deal is unconstitutional

The Sidewalk Labs deal is unconstitutional

Once upon a time, some unelected folks at Waterfront Toronto blurted out, “Hey Google, what’s the best way to develop...

Toronto needs to maintain control of its transit planning

Toronto needs to maintain control of its transit planning

In the summer of 1972, Toronto east-enders had had enough. The Toronto Transit Commission wouldn’t hear their petition for a new...

Sidewalk is our last chance to save the waterfront

Sidewalk is our last chance to save the waterfront

Toronto’s Port Lands are the last big opportunity for the city’s lakefront. It’s a huge area, almost as big as downtown, but...

Sidewalk’s affordable housing isn’t really affordable

Sidewalk’s affordable housing isn’t really affordable

Sidewalk’s proposal for Toronto’s eastern waterfront has a few foundational promises: first, that this Google company can...

Toronto can create a new model of urban development

Toronto can create a new model of urban development

Cities are the sum of choices we’ve made over decades and centuries. New chapters in a city’s history often begin with a...

Corporations should not be controlling our city-building

Corporations should not be controlling our city-building

Remember when Uber started? The story was innovation: the jobs, the convenience, the new tech sector. Now, 10 years later, the...

De-identifying data at the source is the only way Sidewalk can work

De-identifying data at the source is the only way Sidewalk can work

When Sidewalk Labs first approached me to be a consultant three years ago, I told them that if they hired me, I’d be happy to...

We can harness the private sector for the public good

We can harness the private sector for the public good

Toronto is on a roll, emerging as one of the world’s best cities. We’ve never been better or more vibrant. Economic and...

Sidewalk Labs is Toronto’s best hope for sustainability

Sidewalk Labs is Toronto’s best hope for sustainability

The Maori say we walk backwards into the future: we are so focused on our past that we do not properly experience the present, so...

Toronto needs exciting new architecture

Toronto needs exciting new architecture

In 2017, Sidewalk Labs approached PARTISANS to design facade and public-realm architecture for Quayside. Like most Torontonians, I...

Sidewalk needs to work with Toronto’s tech ecosystem

Sidewalk needs to work with Toronto’s tech ecosystem

Toronto is not only the fastest-growing city in Canada and the U.S., but also the fastest-growing technology hub. All three levels...

The Quayside project is a gift to Toronto's public realm

The Quayside project is a gift to Toronto’s public realm

In recent decades, Toronto has become a remarkably heterogenous city, with more than half of its residents born in another...

Why SickKids GetLoud will rock your world

Why SickKids GetLoud will rock your world

Last year’s inaugural GetLoud rally, march and festival for SickKids knocked people’s socks off. More than 4,000 people...

Created forSick Kids

Q&A: The nine-year-old triplet entrepreneurs who took their lemonade stand to the next level

Q&A: The nine-year-old triplet entrepreneurs who took their lemonade stand to the next level

We spoke with them about the best parts of the beverage biz and their advice for budding entrepreneurs

Torontonians who are shaking up the tech sector

Torontonians who are shaking up the tech sector

Justin Crabbe founded Jettly, an on-demand private jet charter company

The most over-the-top costumes from this year's Fan Expo

The most over-the-top costumes from this year’s Fan Expo

Featuring Disney tributes, nostalgic '90s throwbacks and monarchical gowns

It’s time to include disability in the picture

It’s time to include disability in the picture

When George Alevizos starred as Oliver Warbucks in his elementary school’s production of Annie , he knew that was the moment he...

Created forHolland Bloorview Kids Rehabilitation Hospital

Six people are hit by a car each day in Toronto. We know how to fix it, so why don't we?

Six people are hit by a car each day in Toronto. We know how to fix it, so why don’t we?

In New York and London, pedestrian fatalities have plummeted. In Toronto, they're on the rise

This office furniture company's new downtown office doubles as a showroom

This office furniture company’s new downtown office doubles as a showroom

Inscape's new space pulls double duty

Cost of Living

These North York points enthusiasts earn $370,000 a year. How do they spend it?

These North York points enthusiasts earn $370,000 a year. How do they spend it?

“We try to maximize our rewards by using various credit cards plus PC Optimum”

This 22-year-old venture capitalist is on track to make $180,000 this year. How does he spend it?

This 22-year-old venture capitalist is on track to make $180,000 this year. How does he spend it?

“I love a good bargain, so I shop at No Frills”

This globetrotting couple earns a combined $287,000 a year. How do they spend it?

This globetrotting couple earns a combined $287,000 a year. How do they spend it?

“Groceries are our biggest monthly expense after rent”

This Doctors Without Borders marketer earns $100,000 a year. How does she spend it?

This Doctors Without Borders marketer earns $100,000 a year. How does she spend it?

Manpreet Badyal moved from Delhi to Vancouver to Toronto in search of success

How a Gen Z finance enthusiast in Forest Hill spends her money

How a Gen Z finance enthusiast in Forest Hill spends her money

Business analyst and budding TikTok investment guru Chaeeun Lee hopes to visit 50 countries before she turns 30

This policy analyst and stand-up comedian makes $83,000 a year. How does she spend it?

This policy analyst and stand-up comedian makes $83,000 a year. How does she spend it?

“Investing in mental health is important. I have an unlimited membership at Othership in Yorkville”

This entrepreneur is on track to make $23,000 this year. How does she spend it?

This entrepreneur is on track to make $23,000 this year. How does she spend it?

“It was hard to accept financial aid from my parents, but it actually brought us closer together”

Urban Diplomat

Dear Urban Diplomat: My family takes Mother’s Day more seriously than Father’s Day

Dear Urban Diplomat: My family takes Mother’s Day more seriously than Father’s Day

She gets flowers, gifts and breakfast in bed; I get a lousy grill brush. Am I wrong to feel slighted?

Dear Urban Diplomat: What’s the etiquette for EV charging?

Dear Urban Diplomat: What’s the etiquette for EV charging?

Dear Urban Diplomat , What’s the etiquette for EV charging? A few weeks ago, I finally found a spot in my neighbourhood to juice...

Dear Urban Diplomat: My husband thinks I'm a hoarder, but I'm a collector

Dear Urban Diplomat: My husband thinks I’m a hoarder, but I’m a collector

He’s started quoting Marie Kondo and insisting that I get rid of my “emotional support tchotchkes.” How can I get him to back off?

Dear Urban Diplomat: My condo building has zero tolerance for the slightest noise

Dear Urban Diplomat: My condo building has zero tolerance for the slightest noise

They’ve asked us not to shower after 11 p.m. because of “pipe whistling.” Is this normal?

Dear Urban Diplomat: My husband bought us a pass to skip the line at the ski hill. Why do I feel guilty for using it?

Dear Urban Diplomat: My husband bought us a pass to skip the line at the ski hill. Why do I feel guilty for using it?

I can’t help being embarrassed every time I sheepishly walk past the eye rollers in the regular queue

Dear Urban Diplomat: My brother is lying online about Dry January

Dear Urban Diplomat: My brother is lying online about Dry January

He’s preaching the virtues of sobriety on TikTok but still crushing six-packs every weekend, and the hypocrisy is getting on my nerves. Should I call him out?

Dear Urban Diplomat: My co-workers have forgotten how to behave in an office

Dear Urban Diplomat: My co-workers have forgotten how to behave in an office

I actually don’t mind the return-to-office mandate, but it seems like so much working from home has caused my fellow employees’ self-awareness to atrophy