Innehållsförteckning för August 2025 från Toronto Life

ChatGPT tells me your new role as the minister of artificial intelligence and digital innovation is focused on government digitization and encouraging the private sector to adopt AI. Can I get a fact check? That’s partly right. Prime Minister Carney decided to create the Ministry of AI based on the idea that this tech is as transformative as the printing press. Having a dedicated ministry means we can support the tech’s growth. My job is to develop a sovereign AI strategy while asking, “How can we make sure it causes more good than harm?” Has this sovereign policy been in the works for a while? For too long, Canada has been a farm team for the US: our best minds can’t get funding, so they leave. Our new strategy…

From the moment he was born, Ryan Wedding was the family darling. He belonged to a sporty, tightly knit clan with a shared love of the outdoors. In the 1960s, his grandparents, Laurence and Marlyn Spiess, had purchased the Mount Baldy Ski Area, a ski club near Thunder Bay. Their ambitions were modest. Marlyn sat behind the ticketing desk, and Laurence, who carried a key ring befitting a prison warden, did triple duty as manager, landscaper and handyman. Mount Baldy wasn’t a ritzy destination resort but a scrappy hub for local families. It had an old rope lift, a T-bar pulley, and a chalet that sold hot dogs and Molson Canadian. Skiing was the family religion. The Spiess’s son, Craig, coached the women’s national alpine ski team in the early…

KARDINAL OFFISHALL is Canada’s hip hop ambassador and one of Toronto’s pioneering rappers. When he was growing up, his family moved frequently, bouncing around Scarborough, Flemingdon Park and Oakwood Village. Today, as a vice-president at Universal Music, he splits his time between his home in Vaughan and his Queen West pied-à-terre, hosting celebrities at his three-bedroom loft. “There’s a pulse here,” he says. “Queen West has its own energy.” This month, he drops his new EP, Everyday, Sometimes, and it hits close to home—he filmed the video for its single, “Let Em Out,” in the Queen alleys at the foot of his loft. Here, he takes us on a tour of his favourite haunts. For a portal to Japan SANKO TRADING CO. “My wife was raised in Japan, so we…

At the time, cottage country was experiencing an unprecedented surge in popularity, fuelled by cabin-feverish city dwellers willing to pay anything for some wide open space. Tiny, given its natural beauty and proximity to Toronto, was especially popular. One beachfront property, which had sold in 2002 for $160,000, went for $1.85 million to a medical professional from Toronto in 2021. Many of these new buyers needed rental income to help cover their mortgages, and Tiny, at the time, had no rules against short-term rentals. With demand so high, buyers saw a viable financial path and signed on the dotted line. Before long, the tranquil vibe of Tiny had changed. Revved-up weekend warriors lugging cases of beer and Red Bull and complicated speaker systems showed up in droves, ready to blow…

IT WAS THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT, a Wednesday in early April, when the first bag of A&W french fries was deposited on my neighbour’s porch. Nobody saw who put it there, but when my neighbour opened her door to get her mail the following morning, there it was—a fast food bag crumpled up at the foot of her white wooden bench. She hadn’t ordered any A&W french fries in the middle of the night, and she wasn’t the one who had eaten them either. The first bag was a mild curiosity. But the next morning my neighbour found another one on her porch, this time with a few fries still inside. She texted me and my wife in a group chat. “So some guy named Rodolphe keeps eating his…

YOUR $79 ANNUAL membership gives you VIP perks like front-of-the-line entry to cultural events, private dining experiences, and invitations to some of the most compelling thought leadership panels and fireside chats with the city’s most interesting people. Don’t just read about the best of the city—experience it! Become a TL Insider today: members.torontolife.com Elle Cuisine dinner series with chef Taeyoung Jang: TL Insiders enjoyed an intimate and immersive evening at Archive Studios, where chef Taeyoung Jang served a seven-course tasting menu inspired by his Korean roots, French training and love of seasonal Canadian ingredients. Each dish reflected a chapter of his story, blending bold flavours with elegant presentation. The night was a true celebration of culinary creativity and cultural fusion. Rooftop spring fashion soirée at the Taylor with Tricon Residential:…

“I was such a nerd. I learned guitar just so I wouldn’t get beat up”—EVAN SOLOMON, P. 20 PERHAPS YOU’VE SEEN THEM: two new self-driving delivery bots from Magna International are rolling around the city’s west end as part of a pilot program. They’re not the first to brave Toronto streets. Geoffrey, the tiny pink courier, tried as much in 2021—until the city banned him from sidewalks. And Markham has been host to four cooler-size food delivery bots since May. But Magna’s automata are of a higher, faster, bulkier order. They’ll be tailed by human chaperones armed with kill switches for the trial run, but if all goes well, they’ll be on their own—and the goal is mass market proliferation. Can these robot drivers, however cute, navigate the city’s insane…

The Buyer: Akshay Kapoor, 29, a data scientist at a financial company. The Story: In May of 2023, Akshay was living in a three-bedroom Corktown townhouse with two roommates. Hoping for a place to call his own, he started looking for a one-bedroom, one-bathroom condo, but prices were too high. A year later, the market had cooled, and Akshay resumed his search, now also hoping for a balcony, a big kitchen for cooking Indian food, and a proper bedroom with full-length walls and a door. He set a budget of $530,000 and hit the listings. 1 Front Street East near Jarvis Listed at $499,900 Sold for $505,000 IN MAY OF 2024, Akshay saw this home across from the St. Lawrence Market. It was a one-bedroom-plus-den with a decent-size kitchen. But it…

The Drake Hotel is redefining what it means to eat, sip and share a meal in the city with a refreshed menu that celebrates snacks, bold flavours, sushi and elevated brunch-from morning to late night. For more than 20 years, the Drake Hotel has set the standard for innovative hospitality in Toronto. It’s an iconic multi-venue destination for locals and tourists alike, is consistently ranked among the top hotels in the city and is known for its inviting accommodations, buzz-worthy events, a sun-soaked rooftop patio and an eclectic array of award-winning eats. Now, with their new executive chef Daniel Hyam and his reimagined menu, it’s once again raising the bar. "I leaned into shareable plates and elevated the sushi program, making sure the daytime snacks were just as bold as…

Maple House Where: Canary Landing Developer: Dream Unlimited, Tricon Residential and Kilmer Group Landscape architect: CCxA Year opened: 2023 Amenities: Pool, community garden, kids’ play area, green roof, barbecue and lounge, covering 17,768 square feet CCxA, the architects behind Sugar Beach, Berczy Park and Love Park, among other downtown public spaces, brought a similar ethos to the design of the outdoor areas of Maple House at Canary Landing. “We approach amenities like parks,” says landscape architect Marc Hallé. “We wanted to build in flexibility so that there are opportunities for activities across all hours of the day and into the evening.” Maple House has five outdoor spaces spanning more than 17,000 square feet across three residential buildings: Maple East, Maple Central and Maple South. While each building has its own…