MTLQC – Montreal QC
Montréal QC ☕ The Daily Chat
Good morning, Montreal.
It’s shaping up to be a busy day: the leaders’ debate is back in full swing, the biggest artificial intelligence summit in the country has opened at the Palais des congrès, and the city is getting ready to host eight days of cycling competition that will shake up plenty of commutes.
There’s also a police report worth pausing on, and news that affects your phone directly.
Main Story
The leaders’ debate continues, and Christine Fréchette goes on the attack
Coalition Avenir Québec Leader Christine Fréchette chose to go on the offensive Wednesday night at the Grand Débat des chefs, a day after a first showdown in which she spent much of her time on the defensive. From her opening statement, she took aim at the Parti Québécois and Paul St-Pierre Plamondon’s referendum intentions.
“Are we really ready for the uncertainty of Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon’s referendum? That isn’t change, it’s a return to a Quebec stuck in the referendum debate. We need to move forward,” she said.
She made the same argument in a direct exchange with Liberal Leader Charles Milliard, who was criticizing the CAQ’s economic decisions of recent years. “A referendum would destabilize Quebec,” she said, before adding that she would like to hear from Mr. St-Pierre Plamondon. “You’re debating me right now,” Mr. Milliard replied.
The debate, moderated by Michel Bherer and broadcast on Crave and Noovo, brought together the five main leaders around five themes: the cost of living and U.S. tariffs, finances and infrastructure, children’s future, health and homelessness, and the protection of French. Ruba Ghazal of Québec solidaire and Éric Duhaime of the Conservative Party also took part.
Tuesday’s first confrontation had mainly served as a platform for attacks on the CAQ’s record. A snap TVA-Le Journal poll conducted after that first debate put Paul St-Pierre Plamondon on top for approval, with 1,171 respondents, 746 of whom had watched all or part of the broadcast.
A third debate is scheduled for September 23. Voters head to the polls on October 5.
At Home
Canada’s largest artificial intelligence summit opens in Montreal
Montreal is at the centre of the Canadian conversation on artificial intelligence this week, as thousands gather at the Palais des congrès for ALL IN 2026. The two-day event brings together companies building AI, organizations adopting it and researchers trying to shape its future, with four stages, hundreds of exhibitors, hands-on workshops and demonstrations.
One of the day’s standout announcements came from Canada and Germany, which have committed up to $300 million in joint funding for LawZero, the Montreal non-profit founded by AI pioneer Yoshua Bengio. Canada is investing $150 million, while Germany plans to provide 100 million euros. The funding will support LawZero’s work on Scientist AI, an approach designed to make advanced AI more transparent and safer by design, as well as research, engineering talent and computing capacity, including a new German office and sovereign computing infrastructure in Canada.
Canada’s Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Innovation, Evan Solomon, summed up the thinking behind the investment: “It’s not about not building or building, it’s about building right or building wrong. Today is about building right.” Germany is the guest country of honour at this edition.
Two buildings tied to AI vandalized ahead of the summit
Two buildings housing an artificial intelligence research institute and a software company were vandalized Tuesday night in Montreal, on the eve of the summit’s opening. According to police, several windows in the building had been smashed and numerous graffiti tags were painted on the walls when officers arrived.
About ten people are suspected of taking part in the vandalism.
Armed crime down sharply in Montreal, sexual assaults
Armed violence has fallen 52 per cent in Montreal since 2021, while sexual assaults continue to rise, according to the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal’s 2025 annual report.
Baby referred to youth protection after intervention near Notre-Dame encampment
The SPVM says a baby was referred to the Direction de la protection de la jeunesse after officers responded to a concerning situation involving a woman and a one-year-old child near a homeless encampment. The call came in around 7 p.m. on september 11, near the Notre-Dame encampment site. Officers contacted youth protection after observing what they describe as concerning elements.
The SPVM is confirming neither the exact location where the baby was found nor the relationship between the child and the woman. No arrests have been made and the investigation continues.
Montreal Mayor Soraya Martinez Ferrada responded Wednesday afternoon. “This story is heartbreaking and unacceptable. It makes no sense,” she said. “If Quebec can’t fix this problem, we’ll take care of the vacant lot. We can’t keep waiting for the government to act while children end up living in a camp.” She thanked Montrealers who came to the child’s aid, as well as first responders and police officers.
Worth Noting
Trump orders Canadian products removed from U.S. government procurement
U.S. President Donald Trump has signed an executive order directing federal agencies responsible for government procurement in the United States to remove all products of Canadian origin. It is the latest escalation in the Trump administration’s trade war, after trade negotiations fell apart last month.
Élections Québec ordered to send bilingual reminder cards
A Quebec judge has ordered Élections Québec to prepare voter reminder cards in both French and English. Under the ruling handed down Wednesday morning in civil court by Justice Sylvain Lussier, the agency is exempted for ten days from part of the Charter of the French Language. The judge expressed serious concern that a large number of anglophone seniors could be unable to exercise their right to vote for lack of understandable information.
Earlier mailings, which contained registration details and a voter guide, will not be reposted with an English translation. Voters will, however, receive bilingual reminder cards listing candidates and polling station locations. This was the first year the electoral agency sent documents in French only.
Diver injured by a great white shark in Percé
A diver was injured by a great white shark during a dive in Percé, in the Gaspésie region, Wednesday morning. He received first aid on site before being taken to hospital for further assessment. As a precaution, all diving activities in Percé have been suspended for the rest of the season.
Such an event is extremely rare in Canada. According to the most recent data from the Canadian Shark Attack Registry, only 15 incidents have been confirmed in the country out of 30 reported attacks over the past 330 years.
Canada invited to become the European Union’s first “associate member”
The European Union has formally invited Canada to become its first-ever “associate member.” EU President Ursula von der Leyen extended the invitation to Prime Minister Mark Carney in a speech Wednesday morning. “We want to take the relationship with Canada to the highest possible level. We urgently need to reimagine our partnerships,” she said.
According to a new Abacus Data study, 81 per cent of Canadians say they support closer integration between Canada and the European Union, including measures to ease trade, travel, work, study and security cooperation. Only 10 per cent are opposed.
Practical Corner
Up to 30 STM bus routes to be detoured during the world cycling championships
Montreal is preparing to host the UCI Road World Championships, an eight-day competition that will bring major street closures. Up to 30 bus routes could be detoured.
The STM says it has been preparing for the event for more than three months, working with the City of Montreal, police and organizers. “We’re used to weekend events, but this time it’s eight days,” explains Alexandre Fernandez, head of bus dispatching at the STM. “We’ll have to adjust day by day.”
The operations centre will monitor the network throughout the competition and respond to the unexpected. For riders, the STM recommends checking its dedicated event webpage and scanning the QR codes posted in affected areas. It also advises allowing extra travel time and combining bus and métro where possible.
The virtual OPUS card is finally here, but only on Android
Montreal transit users with an Android device can now use a virtual OPUS card in the Chrono app. Testing continues for iPhone users.
The Autorité régionale de transport métropolitain began testing the digital card with 20,000 Android users at the end of 2025. Physical OPUS cards remain available for those who don’t use a smartphone.
The virtual card is part of Concerto, a $146-million plan to modernize Montreal’s transit payment options. The ARTM wants to allow payment by bank card rather than OPUS card next year.
Coup de Coeur
Some grief becomes a fight, and Samah Jebbari’s is one of them. Her daughter Mayan Guesmi, 23, died on July 20 when her training plane crashed into a field in Victoriaville and caught fire on impact. Rather than close in on herself, this mother chose to talk about who her daughter was, about her energy, about the dream that came true at Air Canada before leading her toward the cockpit.
She found comfort with another mother who lost her daughter in a training plane crash, and she now wants safety recommendations followed so no other family has to go through what she is going through.
In Closing
We wish you a day where your trips go as planned, which is no small thing these days. Between a debate that promises more, a summit churning through ideas and a city preparing to watch the best cyclists on the planet ride through, there’s plenty to fill the week. Take care of yourselves, and leave a little margin in your schedule.