The Canada Brief

Canada · 1 d ago

Centre Block, Parliament Hill, Ottawa

Saffron Blaze · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Conservatives press Ottawa on the terms of its $1.6-billion Cohere stake

Ottawa announced last week that it would invest in the Toronto AI company. Conservative MPs now want the deal's terms made public, including the size of the stake and what influence it gives the government.

Ottawa's planned Cohere investment

1.6 $ billion

Ottawa plans to invest up to $1.6 billion in a Cohere financing round that targets $7 billion at a $35.7-billion valuation.

I don't know why the government has to be on the cap table of Cohere for them to be a successful company.

— Adam Chambers, Conservative MP

What we know

  • Payments will come in stages
  • Cohere keeps its Canadian headquarters
  • At least 1,000 Canadian technical jobs promised

Not yet

  • How much of Cohere Ottawa will own
  • Governance and investor rights
  • What happens if Cohere is sold or fails

The Canada Development Investment Corporation says it negotiated strong terms but declined to disclose them, as talks on final arrangements continue.