Iman Yahyaie is Senior Director of Industry and Ecosystem Engagement at ICTC, where he leads national initiatives that strengthen collaboration between industry, academic institutions, and governments across Canada’s digital economy. In this role, he oversees ICTC’s industry engagement and partnership development efforts, working with employers, research organizations, and innovation partners to align workforce development and talent initiatives with emerging technology priorities such as artificial intelligence, advanced manufacturing, semiconductors, and digital infrastructure. His work focuses on expanding work-integrated learning opportunities, supporting technology adoption, and strengthening talent pipelines across Canada’s innovation ecosystem.

Before joining ICTC, Iman spent more than a decade at Mitacs in progressively senior leadership roles in business development and strategic partnerships. Most recently, he served as National Director and Team Lead for Major Accounts, where he managed a national portfolio of industry collaborations delivering more than $60 million annually in research and innovation projects. In this capacity, he cultivated strategic partnerships between industry, academia, and government, working with global companies including Intel, AMD, Mastercard, and Unilever, while also supporting high-growth startups and SMEs across Canada’s technology ecosystem.

Iman’s professional background spans both industry and advanced research in electrical engineering. Early in his career, he worked in applied engineering roles focused on the design and implementation of electronic control systems, power electronics, and customized digital hardware for industrial environments. This hands-on experience in industrial electronics and control systems later informed his work at the intersection of technology innovation and commercialization.

Iman received his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in electrical engineering in Tehran, Iran, and later moved to Canada to pursue doctoral studies at the University of Manitoba. He later joined the Centre for Chemical Innovation in Solar Fuels at the California Institute of Technology as part of a multidisciplinary collaboration focused on solar fuel generation and photoelectrochemical energy systems. His research examined semiconductor microstructures and conducting polymer systems for solar energy conversion, and later expanded to include CMOS-compatible memory structures based on conducting polymer materials.

Across his engineering, research, and leadership career, Iman has focused on bridging the worlds of technology, talent, and commercialization. His work centres on building partnerships that translate advanced research into economic impact, strengthen Canada’s innovation capacity, and ensure emerging technology sectors have access to the skilled workforce needed to grow and compete globally.