Canadian leaders at Web Summit say tech is transforming how—and where—we mine the metals that power the clean economy.
At the Web Summit Vancouver panel titled “Striking Gold in the Global Minerals Race,” three industry leaders made the case that the future of mining lies not in brute force extraction, but in precision, transparency, and digital innovation.
Among the speakers were two Canadians at the forefront of this shift: Mohammad Doostmohammadi, CEO of pH7 Technologies, and Steve de Jong, CEO of VRIFY. Together, they offered a vision for mining that’s cleaner, more efficient, and more globally equitable—one rooted in data, chemistry, and AI.
“The last 100 years were about fossil fuels,” said Doostmohammadi. “The next 100 will be about metals.”
From Concentrate To Control
At pH7, Doostmohammadi’s team has developed a proprietary leaching technology that extracts critical metals on-site, without the need for high-emission smelters. The goal is not just greener chemistry—it’s to shift power in the global supply chain.
“Over 80% of the world’s mines are just concentrate producers,” he explained. “They ship raw material overseas to be refined, mostly in China or Japan. That means they don’t control the metals—they just dig and ship.”
By enabling regional metal production at the source, pH7 gives countries—especially those in the Global South—greater sovereignty over their mineral wealth. “We’re working with Mongolia, for example,” he said, “where our tech helps them avoid 20% state royalties tied to exporting raw concentrate.”
Beyond geopolitics, the environmental impact is significant. pH7’s process slashes water use and wastewater generation, offering a safer and more sustainable alternative to traditional mining operations.
Data Is the New Drill
While pH7 is rethinking how we extract metals, VRIFY is rethinking how we find them. De Jong, a former mining CEO turned tech founder, described his company as being in the “treasure hunt” phase of mining.
“The industry uses maybe 1% of the geological data that exists,” he said. “Our platform crunches millions of data points—government surveys, historical drill results, operator reports—to help explorers uncover what was previously invisible.”
In one striking example, de Jong recalled helping discover a gold mine in Quebec under a swamp, just 400 metres from two of the country’s most productive historic mines.
“Those mines had been operating for 70 years,” he said. “They just never thought to look there. But the data was there all along.”
VRIFY’s tools allow clients to test properties for everything from lithium to gallium, revealing critical mineral potential in places long considered picked over—like Canada itself.
A New Kind of Global Race
The panel also addressed the question of who benefits from this new wave of tech-driven mining. For Doostmohammadi, the answer lies in expanding opportunity: “AI and automation won’t eliminate jobs—they’ll replace the dangerous, labor-intensive ones and create higher-value ones in return.”
De Jong agreed, adding that AI tools help level the playing field globally. “A geologist in a country without our education system can now train up with these tools. AI lets them get to 10 years of expertise in weeks. That’s powerful.”
Looking Ahead
As the conversation shifted to what’s next, the panelists spoke of ambitious frontiers—from “micro-leaching” metals without digging ore, to dynamic digital twins of the Earth itself for simulating resource flows and environmental impacts.
But at its core, the panel’s message was clear: the mining industry can—and must—transform. Not just for the sake of efficiency or profits, but to meet the demands of a clean energy future.
“This isn’t just about finding metals,” said de Jong. “It’s about finding a better way.”