Stories of Innovation

Le CIRANO est la référence au Québec pour l’avancement des connaissances en évaluation économique des décisions autour des grands enjeux de société et pour l’élaboration et l’évaluation de politiques publiques. Nathalie de Marcellis-Warin, Polytechnique Montreal professor, President and CEO, CIRANO Catherine Beaudry Polytechnique Montréal «Le CIRANO joue un rôle crucial...

Also located in the Research Park at Florida Atlantic, Global Ventures is a second-stage incubator designed to support the growth of innovative second-stage companies that have established market traction. The primary goal is to skyrocket the growth of these high-potential companies by providing an array of resources, connecting them with...

As is common with many of the great things that universities do, it all started with the students. The UK Esports Club was organized around 2017 by students who were interested in growing the community and helping different clubs focused on individual games to pool their resources and better leverage...

When Michelin star chef Jan Hendrik van der Westhuizen first laid eyes on Boscia House, a one-hundred-year-old farmhouse situated at the beautiful Tswalu Kalahari in the Northern Cape, he saw the vastness of the region as a canvas on which to create something special. Worlds away from the beautiful waters...

A SMART CITY IS ONLY MADE WITH GREAT CARE, PLANNING, MANAGEMENT CAPACITY, AND TECHNOLOGY. For over 25 years, the Institute of Smart Cities (ICI), a social organization located in Curitiba, has been involved in developing Information Technology and Communication solutions for public management. With recognized experience throughout Brazil in the...

“Circle is focused on raising global economic prosperity through the frictionless exchange of value by empowering businesses with digital currencies and blockchain technology.” Founded with the ambitious goal of raising global economic prosperity through the frictionless exchange of value, Circle leverages the power of digital currencies and blockchain technology to...

QUEBEC ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE INSTITUTE IS THE EPICENTRE OF CANADA’S EXPERTISE IN DEEP LEARNING Led by Professor Yoshua Bengio, co-recipient of the 2018 A.M. Turing Award for his groundbreaking work on deep learning, Mila is a community of over 1,000 of some of the world’s best AI researchers. This concentration of...

JumpStart NJ Angel Network invests in early-stage growth companies with high potential and innovative technology that disrupts traditional businesses. The group of angel investors screens more than 100 companies each year and invests an average $1.5 million annually in leading-edge startups. Based in the Garden State, JumpStart NJ invests in...

In the southern outskirts of Stockholm, in a repurposed industrial facility once devoted to generating heat, something entirely different is now being produced—culture, community, and creative opportunity. Värmeverket, founded as a response to the increasingly precarious conditions for artists and cultural workers, has quickly established itself as one of Sweden’s...

When Roy and Jimmy needed an enclosure machined for their small airborne electronics company, it took twelve inquiries over the course of weeks just to get a quote. When they finally did get a quote, it was cheaper to buy a CNC mill and make the machined parts themselves. So...

The game Splinterlands may evoke a world of magic and mayhem, but the wizards who built it live firmly in the realm of modern gaming technology. Splinterlands was founded in 2018 to combine two concepts that founders Matt Rosen and Dr. Jesse “Aggroed” Reich were already both passionate about: blockchain...

Drug development is traditionally expensive and lengthy, often spanning over a decade and costing billions of dollars to bring a single drug to market. However, pharmaceutical companies today are adopting innovative strategies to significantly reduce these timelines and costs without compromising safety or efficacy. Leveraging technology for early discovery Technological...

ALIS is the primary offering of Medtelligent, a health-tech company serving the senior housing industry. Built from the ground up to match the needs of assisted living operators and providers, ALIS is the preferred software choice for fast-growing portfolios in the sector. Medtelligent was founded in 2005 with an original...

At JTEKT North America, innovation isn’t just a buzzword; it’s an invitation. An invitation to businesses facing their toughest challenges. When it comes to solving the problems that seem unsolvable, JTEKT isn’t shy about one thing: we’re actively “looking for trouble.” Not the kind of trouble that comes with poor...

Since its founding, the DigiHub has become a model that is being emulated and recognized as the 3rd digital hub in Quebec behind Montrèal and Québec City. As a key player in Shawinigan’s economic shift towards a digital economy and a smart city status, the Digihub has always been at...

Philadelphia Youth Basketball (PYB) was launched in 2015 with a bold vision: to help young people build positive and powerful lives. PYB has spent the past decade leveraging the iconic game of basketball by building a holistic program, a robust organization, and a world-class Center that provides a comprehensive array...

I TRAVELLED TO ANFIELD JUST BEFORE THE HARD LOCKDOWN. I’M A HUGE LIVERPOOL FAN AND WANTED TO WATCH THE TEAM PLAY AT HOME BEFORE THEY WON THE LEAGUE, WHICH – FORTUNATELY – THEY DID. SO I RETURNED HOME ON A HIGH, BUT THEN GLOBAL AND LOCAL SPORT CAME TO A...

Everyone has heard about Apple, or Meta, or Uber. But what about StockX, or Autobooks, or KLA? When the economy crashed in 2008, it was standard for Michiganders to graduate from school here and find work in another state. Many flocked to tech jobs on the coasts. But in the...

IMUNOVA-EXPLORE THE MOST ADVANCED TECHNIQUES IN ANIMAL RESEARCH, ALONG WITH BIOTECHNOLOGICAL SOLUTIONS FOR PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT AND DIAGNOSTICS. Imunova: Pioneering Breakthroughs in Biotechnology for Animal Health Curitiba (Brazil)-based biotechnology firm, Imunova, is at the forefront of innovation in animal health, dedicated to testing and developing cutting edge products for the veterinary...

The Wond’ry, Vanderbilt University’s center for innovation, serves as a catalyst for efforts to build and strengthen innovation capacity in the region. The Wond’ry provides space, mentorship, programming and other resources designed to facilitate cross-disciplinary collaboration among students, faculty, staff, and alumni from across all parts of Vanderbilt and from...

ABOUT PGVC Pritzker Group, founded by Tony and J.B. Pritzker, has three principal investment teams: Venture Capital, which provides early-stage venture funding to technology companies throughout the United States; Private Capital, which acquires and operates leading North America based companies; and Asset Management, which partners with top-performing investment managers across...

Motus Drive was founded by Ferhan Jemal after seeing firsthand the challenges his uncle faced due to limited mobility and the high costs associated with powered wheelchairs. Motivated by this experience, Ferhan spent eight years studying the wheelchair market, talking with industry experts, prototyping, and gathering direct feedback from wheelchair...

Precina helps patients feel better, faster. Our chronic care practice monitors patients’ diabetes every day – just as they do. Our practice combines medical care with social workers to address the complex challenges of controlling diabetes and related comorbidities. We meet with patients consistently and give them unlimited access to...

“I developed OxiWear for myself to demonstrate that I could live a normal life without letting the disease define me.” In 2019, Shavini Fernando, a visionary innovator and determined entrepreneur, founded OxiWear – a groundbreaking company dedicated to transforming how we monitor and respond to critical health metrics. Diagnosed with...