# Canadian companies eye more U.S. chip business even as trade uncertainties persist > Source: > Published: 2026-07-14 10:00:37+00:00 [Canadian small and mid-sized businesses](https://financialpost.com/tag/canadian-business/) focused on the [semiconductor industry](https://financialpost.com/tag/semiconductors/) say the United States' artificial intelligence boom is creating opportunities too good to pass up despite ongoing trade uncertainties and geopolitical friction between the two countries. Big Tech investment in AI infrastructure will exceed US$700 billion this year, according to the financial statements of Meta Platforms Inc., Amazon.com Inc, Alphabet Inc. and Microsoft Corp., while Goldman Sachs Group Inc. estimates that tech's AI spending will surpass US$5 trillion by 2030. But Jerry Zhai, founder and chief executive of Toronto-based [MaxEpic Inc.](https://financialpost.com/tag/MaxEpic-Inc/), said no one company is able to offer an all-encompassing solution, which creates opportunities for Canadian companies. He said MaxEpic's potential business pipeline and revenue for its energy-efficient devices — chiplets that reduce power consumption for [AI systems](https://financialpost.com/tag/canadian-tech-sector/) — have "expanded significantly" over the past few years. Zhai said any hike in [U.S. tariffs on Canadian goods](https://financialpost.com/tag/canada-u-s-trade-relations/) wouldn't directly affect his company because it licenses its tech to [chipmakers](https://financialpost.com/tag/chipmakers/) and [major tech platforms](https://financialpost.com/tag/tech-sector/), but he has adjusted his strategy over the past 18 months to [onshore manufacturing work](https://financialpost.com/tag/canadian-manufacturing/) from Asia to the U.S. to mitigate potential tariff-related turbulence. Mani Sethi, chief executive of Brampton-based [Advanced Micro Consulting Inc.](https://financialpost.com/tag/Advanced-Micro-Consulting-Inc/), which offers chip design and consulting services for [semiconductor and technology companies](https://financialpost.com/tag/semiconductor-manufacturing/), said business slowed down in early 2025 as companies scrambled to determine how U.S. president Donald Trump's trade war would impact them, but it bounced back and is now booming. "It doesn't matter now what Trump is doing," he said. "Demand is through the roof because of AI." As the AI buildout continues, U.S. chipmakers are looking for new ways to build more advanced chips while many Big Tech companies are now trying to make their own chips in-house to cut costs and curb their reliance on Nvidia Corp. "They are all trying to create something very fast, very efficient and very cost-effective," Sethi said. That has helped Canadian businesses such as his, which he said has scored contracts with the likes of Meta Platforms Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Marvell Technology Inc. in recent years and has pivoted from developing small software solutions for Canadian startups to providing wholesale AI chip design services. "We're gearing more toward the U.S. customers because they have the bigger companies and longer projects," he said. "It's not that I would refuse a Canadian client; it's just that there's so much happening with AI now and Canadian companies and their contracts are on the smaller side."