The Growcer raises $3 million Series A backed by former Farm Boy Co-CEO Jeff York
Ottawa-based The Growcer has raised $3 million in Series A funding to expand the market reach of its modular vertical farms. Growcer said it has over 80 farms across the country growing more than 10 million servings of leafy greens annually. The round was led by building-services provider Modern Niagara, cleantech investor Jeff Westeinde, and […]
Maia Farms secures $2.3 million as it looks to turn mushrooms into meat alternatives
Vancouver-based foodtech startup Maia Farms has closed $2.3 million in pre-seed financing as it looks to expand the production of its mushroom and mycelium-based protein ingredients. The round was co-led by California-based Joyful Ventures, Saskatchewan-based PIC Group, and Alberta-based Koan Capital. The round also included participation from angel investors within the Creative Destruction Lab. “We […]
ACOA grants Springboard Atlantic $9.8 million to aid research commercialization
The Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA) has given Springboard Atlantic, a collective of Atlantic Canada post-secondary institutions, $9.8 million in non-repayable funding to help companies develop their intellectual property (IP) and commercialize in the region. ACOA claims Springboard’s collaborations with post-secondary institutions have created 945 companies and generated $6.8 billion in research funds. The money […]
F|T: The FinTech Times – Jack Dorsey’s Block investigated by US federal prosecutors
Welcome to the FinTech Times, a weekly newsletter covering the biggest FinTech news from around the globe. If you want to read F|T before anyone else, make sure to subscribe using this form. Federal prosecutors are examining financial transactions at Block, owner of Cash App and Square Federal prosecutors are digging into internal practices at Block, the […]
QueerTech report finds change is lagging for 2SLGBTQIA + tech workers in Canada
While more than a third of non-queer folks believe there has been progress for 2SLGBTQIA+ employees at Canadian tech companies, their 2SLGBTQIA+ colleagues aren’t quite feeling the same level of optimism. This is one of many concerning findings in a new study published by Montréal-based non-profit QueerTech. The report features a survey and interviews with […]
Meet the economist calling for a culture shift in Canada’s innovation economy
Does Canada’s innovation sector need to borrow some of that brash American confidence to fix our productivity woes? Canadian-American economist Rob Atkinson wishes Canada would embrace big business—even foreign firms—as “beautiful,” and called for a culture shift in the country’s innovation economy. Atkinson, who has spent the last 18 years in Washington, D.C. running the […]
Applications open for Innovate BC’s Ignite program to fund local R&D projects
Innovate BC has opened applications to its Ignite program, which grants up to $300,000 CAD to fund research and development (R&D) projects in British Columbia (BC). Ignite grants are available to teams from academia and industry that are developing new technologies in BC to solve an industry problem in natural resources, engineering, or applied sciences. […]
How Simple Ventures plans to fill a gap in Canadian entrepreneurship
It’s a weird time for entrepreneurship in Canada right now. As you know from this podcast, BDC has a report noting 100,000 fewer entrepreneurs in Canada now compared to 2000. “When you think about that shark American ethos, playing to win … but then also having the Canadian kindness, I think that’s where Canada and […]
ITIF president wonders whether Canada has the “political will” to fix its productivity issues
Rob Atkinson, a Canadian-born economist who has served several White House administrations including the current one, decided it was time to bring some of what he learned home. For the last 18 years, he’s led the Washington, DC-based think tank Information Technology & Innovation Foundation (ITIF). On Tuesday, he launched its Ottawa affiliate, the Centre […]
Cyber Security Today, May 3, 2024 – North Korea exploits weak email DMARC settings, and the latest Verizon analysis of thousands of data breaches
North Korea exploits weak email DMARC settings, and the latest Verizon analysis of thousands of data breaches. Welcome to Cyber Security Today. It’s Friday May 3rd, 2024. I’m Howard Solomon, contributing reporter on cybersecurity for TechNewsday.com. North Korean hackers are trying exploit improperly configured DMARC email server security controls to hide spearphishing attacks. The warning […]