PwC Canada marked the launch with a Toronto event featuring a live robotics demonstration, and two panels with leaders from some of the most established names in manufacturing, telecommunications, defence, science and AI research, including Magna International, Bell Business Markets, Defence Research and Development Canada, and the Vector Institute
- What it is: Physical AI is technology that lets robots and autonomous systems sense, reason, and act in the real world.
- Why now: As Physical AI moves from the lab into real-world operations such as mining, manufacturing and logistics, it presents new opportunities to help tackle Canada’s productivity challenges. Some applications include inspecting hazardous areas in mines or monitoring critical equipment in nuclear power plants for improved safety.
- The hard part: A successful demonstration is not the same as a sustainable enterprise-wide deployment. PwC Canada helps organizations close that gap.
- The solution: PwC Canada's new offering covers every stage of adoption, from assessing where Physical AI fits to deploying and scaling it across operations.
Toronto, September 3, 2026 – PwC Canada today launched a Physical AI offering to help organizations move robots and autonomous systems beyond the lab into everyday operations. The offering covers every stage of adoption, from assessing where Physical AI fits to deploying and scaling it across their operations. It builds on PwC’s recognition in the Gartner® 2026 report as a Specialist in the Emerging Market Quadrant for Physical AI Services.
“Physical AI is a generational opportunity to drive a step change in Canada’s productivity equation as global supply chains reshape.”
Unlike earlier automation waves, which followed fixed, rule-based logic, Physical AI can respond and adapt to changing conditions. That adaptability creates new possibilities, but it also makes these systems harder to deploy. The robot is only part of the answer; what determines success is the software, data and integration that turn it into a dependable solution that operators can trust.
“For most organizations, the majority of their cost and risk sits in physical operations and that is exactly where AI has been the hardest to apply. A demo proves the concept works; it does not prove that value can be captured. That comes only when the system works reliably and safely, at scale, day after day, in a real operating environment. That is the difference between an experiment and an advantage.”
A demonstration of what is real today:
PwC Canada marked the launch with a Toronto event, “Physical AI in the Real World: From Robots to Resilient Operations,” featuring live demonstrations and two panel discussions. The panels brought together senior leaders from Magna International, Bell Business Markets, Defence Research and Development Canada, the Vector Institute, Foundation Robotics, Mirsee Robotics, REVOBOTS and PwC US.
Drawing on perspectives from manufacturing, telecommunications, defence science, AI research and robotics, the discussion examined one of the defining questions shaping the future of Physical AI: how to deploy these systems reliably, safely and at scale.
Physical AI in action: a humanoid robot on display at PwC Canada's Toronto launch event, September 1, 2026
“Organizations have always looked for ways to make physical work safer, more productive and more resilient. Mechanization, automation and robotics have each moved us forward. Physical AI is the next step in that progression, extending AI into the environments where organizations operate. Since it acts in the real world, alongside people and equipment, trust has to be demonstrated, not assumed. That's why we connect it to strategy, operations, people and risk, using frameworks like ISO 42001, so it can be adopted responsibly.”
Subo Chatterjee, Partner and Physical AI and Emerging Technology Leader, and Annie Veillet, Partner and Chief Technology Officer, PwC Canada, present to a full house at "Physical AI in the Real World."
How PwC Canada can help:
PwC Canada meets clients wherever they are on their Physical AI journey: exploring where it fits, deploying a first solution, or scaling across sites. We combine deep operational experience with a vendor-neutral, partner-first approach that includes:
- Choosing the right technology with vendor and platform assessment, form-factor guidance and ROI modelling.
- Tailored use-cases for asset intensive sectors including nuclear, mining, energy and manufacturing.
- Training and testing systems using simulation and digital twins to train and validate safely before they go live.
- Keeping operations running and improving through integration, governance, cybersecurity and ongoing support.
For more information, visit PwC Canada’s Physical AI page.
About PwC Canada
At PwC Canada, we help clients build trust and reinvent so they can turn complexity into competitive advantage. We’re a tech-forward, people-empowered network with more than 6,500 partners and staff in offices across the country. Across audit and assurance, tax and legal, deals and consulting, we help build, accelerate and sustain momentum.
PwC refers to the Canadian member firm, and may sometimes refer to the PwC network. Each member firm is a separate legal entity. Please see www.pwc.com/structure for further details. Find out more by visiting us at: http://www.pwc.com/ca
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