INNOVATE™ Vancouver Vol.2

World-Class Spirit & InnovationAs the World’s #1 university for Entrepreneurial Spirit and #1 in Canada for Innovation*, Simon Fraser University is recognized as one of Canada’s most supportive post-secondary ecosystems for innovative research and education across disciplines. The heart of its entrepreneurship education pillar beats in the Charles Chang Institute...

By bringing together innovative software and best-in-class hardware solutions, Operto enables property owners/managers to efficiently run, scale and monetize their business, while eliminating common friction points associated with the guest journey. Operto has built a huge global footprint in the accommodation industry, with customers ranging from single Airbnb operators, up...

How Matidor.com StartedVincent and Sean are Vancouver-based serial entrepreneurs who come from very different backgrounds but share one vision. Vincent’s previous experience at Google Earth and as a product manager at Dassault Systèmes revealed a gap in how people in the field managed projects. When Sean moved back to town...

How Matidor.com StartedVincent and Sean are Vancouver-based serial entrepreneurs who come from very different backgrounds but share one vision. Vincent’s previous experience at Google Earth and as a product manager at Dassault Systèmes revealed a gap in how people in the field managed projects. When Sean moved back to town...

Reliance Foundry has deep roots as a maker, designer, and supplier of architectural site furnishings, metal castings, and industrial wheels—but just because they are an old company doesn’t mean they’re laggards behind a changing world. Founded in 1925 in Vancouver, BC, Reliance grew to become the area’s largest working foundry,...

Beatdapp is a streaming fraud detection company. It helps music labels and artists track their songs to collect royalties. Think of it as a PWC for music play count. The company has a set of machine learning and predictive algorithms to detect streaming manipulation and has over 30 patents across...

BC entrepreneurs Bill Roche and Charles Chang have a vision to make Canada more competitive by nurturing an entrepreneurial spirit in young people. In 2017, they co-founded Young Entrepreneurs of Canada Association, a registered Canadian charity that operates under the name PowerPlay Young Entrepreneurs. “Our mandate is to help school-aged...

Drawing its name from Canada’s national motto, A Mari Usque Ad Mare (From Sea to Sea), adMare is a pan-Canadian organization created in 2019, answering the need to align and optimize the Canadian life sciences commercialization landscape. Since its creation, adMare has firmly established itself as a national leader that...

Throughout their careers as leaders in a variety of industries, Rhys and Jerry started to realize that the problems they were being asked to solve had less to do with operational work, and far more to do with people and culture. Witnessing as they became involved with these, the impact...

OMNICART-A SAAS PLATFORM AND DELIVERY OPERATING SYSTEM FOR ENTREPRENEURS WHO WANT TO BUILD AND SCALE A DELIVERY BUSINESS, AND WE ARE ON A MISSION TO EMPOWER EVERYONE TO UNLOCK THE POTENTIAL OF ON-DEMAND DELIVERY. In the same way that Shopify made it easier for anyone to start and scale an...

Filament Health was founded by experts in botanical extraction and commercialization. We honed our expertise at Mazza Innovation, a natural extraction startup, which our team scaled from pre-seed to an exit in 2018. At Mazza, we developed and commercialized patent-protected extraction technologies at a 35,000 ft2 commercial-scale, GMP facility. After...

IN TODAY’S COMPETITIVE AND UNCERTAIN ECONOMY, ENTREPRENEURS NEED A TRUSTED PARTNER WHO CAN HELP THEM SCALE THEIR BUSINESSES WITH MORE CASH AND LESS STRESS. This is where a Fractional CFO comes into play. A notable company in this field that has made a name for itself in this space is...

It is possible to have fresher breath and a healthier mouth with a tongue cleaner. gunkii brings affordable luxury oral care to the market. Founded in May 2020, gunkii is the brainchild of husband-and-wife duo Jayesh and Nicole Parmar, who had the vision to offer a tongue scraper to help...

The shared kitchen industry, also known as commissaries, is a rapidly growing sector that is changing how people think about food and culinary entrepreneurship. When starting or scaling a business, food and beverage based entrepreneurs face significant challenges and risks and require significant investment in space, equipment, and overhead costs....

A community project since day one.You might think of ECOMsquare as a place. To its founder, Steve Krueger, the distinctive blue building on West 8th Ave represents the latest evolution of a community he’s been building since June 12, 2014. Krueger hosted an Ecommerce Town Hall to connect with professionals...

The Greater Vancouver Board of Trade (GVBOT) has been recognized as Western Canada’s leading business association since its inception in 1887. Born out of the Great Fire that wiped out what would eventually become the city of Vancouver, the Board of Trade’s membership now employs more than a third of...

In the upcoming decades, global food systems will profoundly change as we adapt to more sustainable food production and distribution approaches. Farmers are currently being challenged to meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. Backed by years of research...

In today’s fast-paced economy, employers are facing a major challenge: how to handle their changing day-to-day labour needs without over-hiring full-time staff. Finding, screening, and training new employees can be a costly and time-consuming process for companies. GigHound solves these problems by providing a flexible, reliable, and cost-effective solution that...

Established in 2010, MonetizeMore has positioned itself as a catalyst for growth in the digital publishing industry, offering unparalleled opportunities for publishers worldwide. As a trailblazer in advertising technology, MonetizeMore has fostered a reputation for driving innovation, fostering collaboration, and guiding publishers through the dynamic and ever-changing digital landscape. A...

Tropoly, founded by Neel Singh, Brady Dahmer, and Julien Phipps, aims to transform industries and propel humanity forward. This strategic marketing and innovation firm distinguishes itself by addressing clients’ business challenges and implementing strategies to revolutionize their organizations. In a world bombarded by messages, Tropoly cuts through the noise, positioning...

In the face of climate change, the need for sustainable solutions has never been greater. Envisioning Labs, a Vancouver based deep tech firm, is at the forefront of this challenge, developing social and technological solutions that counter climate change and foster a carbon neutral future. Their focus on first principles-based,...

bioLytical’s story starts with an idea to create equitable access to a safe, affordable, and accurate HIV rapid test that helps connect more people to care. We noticed that access to tests and the waiting period to know your results took far too long and increased patient anxiety. We wanted...

Every two years, there is more new data being created than throughout all of previous human history. As a result of this growing information overload, it’s becoming harder and harder to understand the root causes leading to the future trends shaping our world. Visual Capitalist is an independent media company...

Attention entrepreneurs, CEO’s, and high-performance leaders who want to get ahead! The way we’re working is not working, it’s a crisis. Burnout is costing the global economy trillions of dollars in lost productivity and innovation. Not to mention, rising health care costs. Burnout feels like emotional exhaustion, cynicism, and reduced...