In Chapter One of Canadian Explorers, I sit down with Paul Ziadé to discuss developing a Canadian neo-prime, sovereign capability, startups, and what it means for Canada to start building again.
Paul Ziadé is the co-founder and CEO of North Vector Dynamics, a Canadian air defence startup building precision, low-cost missiles to protect Canadian and allied skies. He is also the co-chair of the Alliance of Canadian Defence Companies, a new organization representing almost 200 Canadian-controlled defence companies committed to building sovereign capability.
The mission is to industrialize deterrence.
“There’s no shortage of brains […] it’s the vertebral column that tends to be missing.” — David Ogilvy
It is time to start acting and stop waiting for permission.
Fortune Favours the Bold.
Topics discussed
00:41 - Intro: What is North Vector Dynamics?
02:47 - The CM-70 SPEAR: Canada’s low-cost precision air-defence missile
05:48 - What “Industrializing Deterrence” means for Canada
08:17 - Domestic drone threats, ports, shipping containers, and critical infrastructure
10:18 - Who needs air defence beyond the military
12:05 - Why Canadian defence procurement has to change
17:10 - The Alliance of Canadian Defence Companies and Canadian-controlled defence firms
20:50 - Defence as industrial strategy, IP ownership, and Canadian wealth creation
21:41 - Paul’s path from childhood rocketry to engineering, academia, and entrepreneurship
24:05 - Why the corporate and academic paths were not enough
26:13 - Why North Vector Dynamics had to exist
27:19 - Raising capital for defence in Canada and why North Vector stayed here
31:13 - The need for Canadian risk capital and government-industry relationships
35:31 - NORAD modernization, Golden Dome, and Canada’s air-defence opportunity
37:18 - The future of North Vector Dynamics: missiles, hypersonics, sensors, and a Canadian neo-prime
39:44 - Interoperability and fitting into NATO-standard systems
40:19 - Advice for first-time founders: risk, comfort, and doing things without permission
43:43 - How Canada can make sure it follows through
45:30 - How Canada can start dreaming bigger
48:47 - Legacy, fatherhood, and showing younger builders what is possible in Canada
51:02 - Why defence is not a dirty word, and history is not over
