Member of the Order of Canada
- Awarded on: May 26, 2011
- Invested on: September 16, 2011
Josef Kates is one of the pioneers in the design, development and application of computer technology in Canada. In the 1940s, he helped to construct the first computer at the University of Toronto, and later designed the first digital game-playing machine. He established Canada's first computer consulting business and created the first computerized traffic control system. Moreover, he made Canada's first health insurance system viable by computerization and solved a congestion problem that threatened the traffic through the Welland Canal.