Stories of Innovation
INNOVATE™ Toronto
AIRMATRIX
BUILDS THE WORLD'S MOST PRECISE DRONE ROAD SYSTEMS
Co-founded by University of Toronto graduates, Bashir Khan, Ayaan Haider and Shayaan Haider in 2018, AirMatrix builds the world’s most precise drone road systems. AirMatrix is innovating at the bleeding edge and is affiliated with Communitech, MaRS, IRAP and DMZ. AirMatrix is a member of Transport Canada’s action team on...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
NAKO TIMEPIECES
A LUXURY WATCH DESIGNER BRAND WITH HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
Born and designed in Gaborone, Botswana Nako Timepieces are merging innovation and luxury watchmaking that is proudly rooted in Botswana. BRAND PERSONALITYAn embodiment of Afrocentrism, Tswana origins, selfdiscovery, character and endurance. Having stepped over the line of classic iconic style and into the realm of simplicity — Nako Timepieces identifies...
INNOVATE® Kansas City
STORYTAILOR
CREATE MOMENTS OF TOGETHERNESS, NOT MORE SCREEN TIME.
Storytailor®is a Kansas City studio turning story time into a hands on adventure for families everywhere. Founded in 2022 by award winning children’s author and illustrator JQ Sirls and product builder Herston Fails, the company builds live stories that wrap around each child like a custom fitted cape. One moment...
INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1
MATTER
At MATTER, We Help People And Organizations Transform Ideas Into Solutions That Improve The Healthcare Experience
At MATTER — a global innovation hub headquartered in Chicago — entrepreneurs come together with industry leaders, scientists and clinicians from across the globe to collaborate on developing next-generation healthcare technologies. We believe that collaboration between entrepreneurs and industry leaders is the fastest, most effective way to accelerate innovation, advance...
INNOVATE™ Stockholm
AAX BIOTECH
PIONEERING THE NEXT WAVE OF PRECISION ANTIBODY THERAPEUTICS
In the heart of Sweden’s thriving life sciences ecosystem, a young biotechnology company is redefining how the world understands and engineers therapeutic antibodies. Founded by researchers from the prestigious Karolinska Institutet, AAX Biotech is on a mission to transform antibody-based medicine—turning scientific breakthroughs into next-generation therapies for some of the...
INNOVATION Quebec
CYBERECO
A UNIQUE AND INNOVATIVE CYBERSECURITY CATALYST IN QUEBEC AND CANADA
The genesis of CyberecoIn 2018, Desjardins Group, National Bank, Deloitte and RHEA Group decided to join forces to advance cybersecurity by creating Cybereco. The initiative was motivated in particular by the founders’ desire to work together to meet the challenges of the talent shortage, to improve the cyber resilience of...
INNOVATION Quebec
CHAIRE DE RECHERCHE EN PRÉVENTION DE LA CYBERCRIMINALITÉ
RESEARCH CHAIR IN CYBERCRIME PREVENTION - UNIVERSITÉ DE MONTRÉAL
Understanding how cybercrime can be prevented and helping protect its victims against online harms. The Research Chair in Cybercrime Prevention was launched in September 2018 at the initiative of the Université de Montréal, Desjardins and the National Bank of Canada. It is headed by Benoît Dupont, professor of criminology and...
AI Québec
IA QUÉBEC
LE LABORATOIRE D’INNOVATION EN COMMERCE AU DÉTAIL À L’ÉCOLE BENSADOUN DE COMMERCE AU DÉTAIL DE L’UNIVERSITÉ MCGILL
L’École Bensadoun de commerce au détail de l’Université McGill a récemment lancé un laboratoire d’innovation en commerce au détail, fruit d’une collaboration entre l’Université McGill et Alimentation Couche-Tard inc. (ACT). Situé sur le campus de l’Université McGill, le laboratoire est à la fois un dépanneur et un laboratoire vivant, et...
INNOVATE® Milwaukee
FINDORFF
TRANSFORMING A SPACE SO IT BETTER BENEFITS THE STUDENTS, FACULTY, AND COMMUNITY
TRANSFORMING A SPACE SO IT BETTER BENEFITS THE STUDENTS, FACULTY, AND COMMUNITY For over a decade, Findorff has been honored to build, reimagine, and renovate various spaces at Marquette University. From smaller and expedited projects to multi-million state-of-the-art facilities, Findorff understands the importance of innovation and deeply appreciates and values...
INNOVATE™ Stockholm
STARTUP PEOPLE
WIDENING THE GATE FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF FOUNDERS
When Stockholm’s startup scene began to thrive in the early 2010s, it was known for producing unicorns – but also for its fragmentation. Founders often worked in isolation, disconnected from the support, partners, and investors that could help them endure the long, difficult middle miles between idea and success. SUP...
INNOVATION Quebec
L’INSTITUT QUANTIQUE
DE L’UNIVERSITÉ DE SHERBROOKE
Créé en 2016, l’Institut quantique (IQ) de l’Université de Sherbrooke réunit plus de 300 scientifiques spécialistes reconnus mondialement en matériaux, information et ingénierie quantiques dans le but d’effectuer des travaux en recherche fondamentale et de développer les technologies quantiques. Que ce soit en matière d’architecture d’ordinateur quantique, de supraconductivité ou...
INNOVATE® Gaming & Esports
UKNIGHTED XP
We Play For The World
A 501(c)3 nonprofit charity dedicated to communities, leaders, and organizations by offering innovative consultant services. In 2018, UKnightedXP, Inc. (UKXP) was like all ventures in the beginning – an idea and a dream. Devastated by hurricane Michael, the Panhandle of Florida was reeling from one of the most devastating category...
INNOVATE™ Curitiba
SOLVIS
PIONEERING CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE MEASUREMENT FROM ‘PSST’ TO TOUCHSCREEN
Solvis provides customized devices, kiosks, and a customer feedback and experience management platform. Solvis’ story has a unique start: In the late 90s, a customer voiced dissatisfaction with a toy shop in Curitiba. Initially dismissed as gossip, the complaint prompted the CEO of Solvis, Leonardo Vilas Boas Badotti, the former...
INNOVATE® Washington DMV Edition
VIRGENT AI
Move Beyond AI-Curious to AI-Powered
As we enter the largest technological revolution of our generation, Virgent AI is guiding leaders and industries beyond AI-curious to AI-powered. Based in Annapolis, Maryland, this forward-thinking AI-centric technology startup specializes in developing and deploying advanced AI agents and AI-enabled applications to solve real-world business problems. At their core, their...
INNOVATE® Blockchain
DUTCH BLOCKCHAIN COALITION
BLOCKCHAIN MAKES WEB 3.0 POSSIBLE
THE DUTCH BLOCKCHAIN COALITION (DBC) IS A COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION OF AFFILIATES FROM GOVERNMENTAL AUTHORITIES, CENTERS OF EXPERTISE AND THE COMMERCIAL SECTOR. ITS MISSION IS TO INCREASE BOTH KNOWLEDGE AND USE OF BLOCKCHAIN IN THE NETHERLANDS, THEREBY SPEEDING UP THE DECENTRALIZATION OF DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE. IN THAT CONTEXT, THE DBC IS PRIMARILY...
INNOVATE™ Atlantic Canada
Genesis
A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats
Poised on a cliffside overlooking historic St. John’s harbor, the oldest city in North America, Genesis is literally, and figuratively, on the cutting edge of creating the world’s best startup community. Founded in 1997, Genesis helps build amazing tech companies, with the higher mission of creating widespread opportunity for Newfoundland...
INNOVATE® Milwaukee
DCI MARKETING
CELEBRATING ITS 80TH ANNIVERSARY IN 2024, DCI MARKETING FOSTERS A CULTURE OF INNOVATION FOCUSED ON SPECIFIC SOLUTIONS FOR FORTUNE 50 COMPANIES, MAJOR RETAILERS AND CONSUMERS.
As American forces crossed the English Channel to liberate France in June 1944, Milwaukee native Lloyd A. Sauer was thinking forward to a post-war era. Sauer purchased a small company called ColorPrint Products Printing and began producing window signage for shoe stores. But it was Cadillac and Harley-Davidson that propelled...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
ECOHUB (PTY) LTD
“ONE MAN’S WASTE, ANOTHER MAN’S SUSTAINABLE ECO BUILDING”
July 2017 I left my 9-5 job of being a full time Lecturer, and founded Ecohub (Pty) Ltd, a startup that innovatively uses plastic waste combined with other additives to produce affordable, architect designed flat pack ecobricks to build ecohouses. As the only Founder, I took a risk and sold...
INNOVATE® Northern Virginia
Enployable
Redefining How Talent is Discovered
The future of hiring won’t be decided by résumés, but by who can see potential others miss. For decades, employers have relied on job titles, keywords, and pedigree as proxies for capability. Those filters were built for scale, not for insight. In doing so, they’ve excluded qualified people every day....
INNOVATE® Georgia
JOULEA
REDEFINING ENERGY EFFICIENCY - MAXIMIZING PROFITABILITY WHILE MINIMIZING CARBON FOOTPRINT.
The building sector, which accounts for 40% of all U.S. energy use and associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, wastes $150 billion annually due to inefficient design, operation, and maintenance of buildings. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, buildings are responsible for 76% of the nation’s electricity consumption. Moreover, the...
Global Innovation Spotlight
KOSPA GROUP
BYE BYE PLASTIC
PROBLEM The dependence of the global economy on fossil fuel plastics has been growing continuously. While plastic production has been progressively rising and production is expected to double again in the next 30 years, no adequate solutions have been implemented to deal with consequent waste management and disposal. SOLUTION Increasing...
INNOVATION Quebec
Kemitek
CCTT IN GREEN CHEMISTRY AND PROCESS SCALE-UP
Founded in 2002, Kemitek is both a CCTT and a Canadian Technology Access Centre (TAC) affiliated with the Cégep de Thetford. Our mission is to help companies innovate in the fields of green chemistry and process scale-up while actively contributing to the continued existence of a regional centre of excellence...
INNOVATE™ South Africa
YOCO
PASSION, TALENT AND A SHARED SENSE OF PURPOSE SEE YOCO GROW INTO A LEADING AFRICAN TECHNOLOGY COMPANY IN A FEW SHORT YEARS
In a few short years since launching in 2015, Yoco has grown into an African technology company that is ready to take on the world. With its focus on creating opportunities for small businesses, breaking down the barriers they face, and helping them to participate fully in a more inclusive...
INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1
FAST RADIUS
MAKING NEW THINGS POSSIBLE BY TRANSFORMING MANUFACTURING AND SUPPLY CHAINS FOR THE DIGITAL AGE
OUR STORYFast Radius is a leading cloud manufacturing company. Our Cloud Manufacturing Platform™ is a first-of-its-kind solution that provides end to-end solutions for manufacturers to design, make, and move parts in an easier, more accessible, and more sustainable way. Founded in 2017, Fast Radius is headquartered in Chicago with offices...
INNOVATE™ Toronto
AIRMATRIX
BUILDS THE WORLD'S MOST PRECISE DRONE ROAD SYSTEMS
Co-founded by University of Toronto graduates, Bashir Khan, Ayaan Haider and Shayaan Haider in 2018, AirMatrix builds the world’s most precise drone road systems. AirMatrix is innovating at the bleeding edge and is affiliated with Communitech, MaRS, IRAP and DMZ. AirMatrix is a member of Transport Canada’s action team on...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
NAKO TIMEPIECES
A LUXURY WATCH DESIGNER BRAND WITH HISTORICAL SIGNIFICANCE
Born and designed in Gaborone, Botswana Nako Timepieces are merging innovation and luxury watchmaking that is proudly rooted in Botswana. BRAND PERSONALITYAn embodiment of Afrocentrism, Tswana origins, selfdiscovery, character and endurance. Having stepped over the line of classic iconic style and into the realm of simplicity — Nako Timepieces identifies...
INNOVATE® Kansas City
STORYTAILOR
CREATE MOMENTS OF TOGETHERNESS, NOT MORE SCREEN TIME.
Storytailor®is a Kansas City studio turning story time into a hands on adventure for families everywhere. Founded in 2022 by award winning children’s author and illustrator JQ Sirls and product builder Herston Fails, the company builds live stories that wrap around each child like a custom fitted cape. One moment...
INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1
MATTER
At MATTER, We Help People And Organizations Transform Ideas Into Solutions That Improve The Healthcare Experience
At MATTER — a global innovation hub headquartered in Chicago — entrepreneurs come together with industry leaders, scientists and clinicians from across the globe to collaborate on developing next-generation healthcare technologies. We believe that collaboration between entrepreneurs and industry leaders is the fastest, most effective way to accelerate innovation, advance...
INNOVATE™ Stockholm
AAX BIOTECH
PIONEERING THE NEXT WAVE OF PRECISION ANTIBODY THERAPEUTICS
In the heart of Sweden’s thriving life sciences ecosystem, a young biotechnology company is redefining how the world understands and engineers therapeutic antibodies. Founded by researchers from the prestigious Karolinska Institutet, AAX Biotech is on a mission to transform antibody-based medicine—turning scientific breakthroughs into next-generation therapies for some of the...
INNOVATION Quebec
CYBERECO
A UNIQUE AND INNOVATIVE CYBERSECURITY CATALYST IN QUEBEC AND CANADA
The genesis of CyberecoIn 2018, Desjardins Group, National Bank, Deloitte and RHEA Group decided to join forces to advance cybersecurity by creating Cybereco. The initiative was motivated in particular by the founders’ desire to work together to meet the challenges of the talent shortage, to improve the cyber resilience of...
INNOVATION Quebec
CHAIRE DE RECHERCHE EN PRÉVENTION DE LA CYBERCRIMINALITÉ
RESEARCH CHAIR IN CYBERCRIME PREVENTION - UNIVERSITÉ DE MONTRÉAL
Understanding how cybercrime can be prevented and helping protect its victims against online harms. The Research Chair in Cybercrime Prevention was launched in September 2018 at the initiative of the Université de Montréal, Desjardins and the National Bank of Canada. It is headed by Benoît Dupont, professor of criminology and...
AI Québec
IA QUÉBEC
LE LABORATOIRE D’INNOVATION EN COMMERCE AU DÉTAIL À L’ÉCOLE BENSADOUN DE COMMERCE AU DÉTAIL DE L’UNIVERSITÉ MCGILL
L’École Bensadoun de commerce au détail de l’Université McGill a récemment lancé un laboratoire d’innovation en commerce au détail, fruit d’une collaboration entre l’Université McGill et Alimentation Couche-Tard inc. (ACT). Situé sur le campus de l’Université McGill, le laboratoire est à la fois un dépanneur et un laboratoire vivant, et...
INNOVATE® Milwaukee
FINDORFF
TRANSFORMING A SPACE SO IT BETTER BENEFITS THE STUDENTS, FACULTY, AND COMMUNITY
TRANSFORMING A SPACE SO IT BETTER BENEFITS THE STUDENTS, FACULTY, AND COMMUNITY For over a decade, Findorff has been honored to build, reimagine, and renovate various spaces at Marquette University. From smaller and expedited projects to multi-million state-of-the-art facilities, Findorff understands the importance of innovation and deeply appreciates and values...
INNOVATE™ Stockholm
STARTUP PEOPLE
WIDENING THE GATE FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF FOUNDERS
When Stockholm’s startup scene began to thrive in the early 2010s, it was known for producing unicorns – but also for its fragmentation. Founders often worked in isolation, disconnected from the support, partners, and investors that could help them endure the long, difficult middle miles between idea and success. SUP...
INNOVATION Quebec
L’INSTITUT QUANTIQUE
DE L’UNIVERSITÉ DE SHERBROOKE
Créé en 2016, l’Institut quantique (IQ) de l’Université de Sherbrooke réunit plus de 300 scientifiques spécialistes reconnus mondialement en matériaux, information et ingénierie quantiques dans le but d’effectuer des travaux en recherche fondamentale et de développer les technologies quantiques. Que ce soit en matière d’architecture d’ordinateur quantique, de supraconductivité ou...
INNOVATE® Gaming & Esports
UKNIGHTED XP
We Play For The World
A 501(c)3 nonprofit charity dedicated to communities, leaders, and organizations by offering innovative consultant services. In 2018, UKnightedXP, Inc. (UKXP) was like all ventures in the beginning – an idea and a dream. Devastated by hurricane Michael, the Panhandle of Florida was reeling from one of the most devastating category...
INNOVATE™ Curitiba
SOLVIS
PIONEERING CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE MEASUREMENT FROM ‘PSST’ TO TOUCHSCREEN
Solvis provides customized devices, kiosks, and a customer feedback and experience management platform. Solvis’ story has a unique start: In the late 90s, a customer voiced dissatisfaction with a toy shop in Curitiba. Initially dismissed as gossip, the complaint prompted the CEO of Solvis, Leonardo Vilas Boas Badotti, the former...
INNOVATE® Washington DMV Edition
VIRGENT AI
Move Beyond AI-Curious to AI-Powered
As we enter the largest technological revolution of our generation, Virgent AI is guiding leaders and industries beyond AI-curious to AI-powered. Based in Annapolis, Maryland, this forward-thinking AI-centric technology startup specializes in developing and deploying advanced AI agents and AI-enabled applications to solve real-world business problems. At their core, their...
INNOVATE® Blockchain
DUTCH BLOCKCHAIN COALITION
BLOCKCHAIN MAKES WEB 3.0 POSSIBLE
THE DUTCH BLOCKCHAIN COALITION (DBC) IS A COOPERATIVE ASSOCIATION OF AFFILIATES FROM GOVERNMENTAL AUTHORITIES, CENTERS OF EXPERTISE AND THE COMMERCIAL SECTOR. ITS MISSION IS TO INCREASE BOTH KNOWLEDGE AND USE OF BLOCKCHAIN IN THE NETHERLANDS, THEREBY SPEEDING UP THE DECENTRALIZATION OF DIGITAL INFRASTRUCTURE. IN THAT CONTEXT, THE DBC IS PRIMARILY...
INNOVATE™ Atlantic Canada
Genesis
A Rising Tide Lifts All Boats
Poised on a cliffside overlooking historic St. John’s harbor, the oldest city in North America, Genesis is literally, and figuratively, on the cutting edge of creating the world’s best startup community. Founded in 1997, Genesis helps build amazing tech companies, with the higher mission of creating widespread opportunity for Newfoundland...
INNOVATE® Milwaukee
DCI MARKETING
CELEBRATING ITS 80TH ANNIVERSARY IN 2024, DCI MARKETING FOSTERS A CULTURE OF INNOVATION FOCUSED ON SPECIFIC SOLUTIONS FOR FORTUNE 50 COMPANIES, MAJOR RETAILERS AND CONSUMERS.
As American forces crossed the English Channel to liberate France in June 1944, Milwaukee native Lloyd A. Sauer was thinking forward to a post-war era. Sauer purchased a small company called ColorPrint Products Printing and began producing window signage for shoe stores. But it was Cadillac and Harley-Davidson that propelled...
INNOVATE™ Botswana Vol.1
ECOHUB (PTY) LTD
“ONE MAN’S WASTE, ANOTHER MAN’S SUSTAINABLE ECO BUILDING”
July 2017 I left my 9-5 job of being a full time Lecturer, and founded Ecohub (Pty) Ltd, a startup that innovatively uses plastic waste combined with other additives to produce affordable, architect designed flat pack ecobricks to build ecohouses. As the only Founder, I took a risk and sold...
INNOVATE® Northern Virginia
Enployable
Redefining How Talent is Discovered
The future of hiring won’t be decided by résumés, but by who can see potential others miss. For decades, employers have relied on job titles, keywords, and pedigree as proxies for capability. Those filters were built for scale, not for insight. In doing so, they’ve excluded qualified people every day....
INNOVATE® Georgia
JOULEA
REDEFINING ENERGY EFFICIENCY - MAXIMIZING PROFITABILITY WHILE MINIMIZING CARBON FOOTPRINT.
The building sector, which accounts for 40% of all U.S. energy use and associated greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, wastes $150 billion annually due to inefficient design, operation, and maintenance of buildings. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, buildings are responsible for 76% of the nation’s electricity consumption. Moreover, the...
Global Innovation Spotlight
KOSPA GROUP
BYE BYE PLASTIC
PROBLEM The dependence of the global economy on fossil fuel plastics has been growing continuously. While plastic production has been progressively rising and production is expected to double again in the next 30 years, no adequate solutions have been implemented to deal with consequent waste management and disposal. SOLUTION Increasing...
INNOVATION Quebec
Kemitek
CCTT IN GREEN CHEMISTRY AND PROCESS SCALE-UP
Founded in 2002, Kemitek is both a CCTT and a Canadian Technology Access Centre (TAC) affiliated with the Cégep de Thetford. Our mission is to help companies innovate in the fields of green chemistry and process scale-up while actively contributing to the continued existence of a regional centre of excellence...
INNOVATE™ South Africa
YOCO
PASSION, TALENT AND A SHARED SENSE OF PURPOSE SEE YOCO GROW INTO A LEADING AFRICAN TECHNOLOGY COMPANY IN A FEW SHORT YEARS
In a few short years since launching in 2015, Yoco has grown into an African technology company that is ready to take on the world. With its focus on creating opportunities for small businesses, breaking down the barriers they face, and helping them to participate fully in a more inclusive...
INNOVATE® Chicago Vol.1
FAST RADIUS
MAKING NEW THINGS POSSIBLE BY TRANSFORMING MANUFACTURING AND SUPPLY CHAINS FOR THE DIGITAL AGE
OUR STORYFast Radius is a leading cloud manufacturing company. Our Cloud Manufacturing Platform™ is a first-of-its-kind solution that provides end to-end solutions for manufacturers to design, make, and move parts in an easier, more accessible, and more sustainable way. Founded in 2017, Fast Radius is headquartered in Chicago with offices...