As Startupfest closed off its “sweet sixteen” edition, more than a dozen startups nabbed cash prizes worth a total of $825,000.
Moncton, New Brunswick-based AgroGene Solutions, which makes a hive-monitoring software solution for beekeepers, won the $100,000 Best of the Fest prize at the Montréal tech conference on Friday out of 275 pitches. The company is developing tech solutions to monitor the health status of honeybees and detect pathogens that could result in hive losses. Since bees pollinate the majority of crops that provide most of the world’s food, the health status of the insects is important for sustainable food production.
“We have discovered how to detect infections earlier, before symptoms appear,” AgroGene co-founder and CEO Pascale Michaud. “We pair a molecular diagnostic with a data platform to help beekeepers keep their hives alive.”
The 16th edition of Startupfest closed on July 10 with the announcement of its various pitch contest winners. Founders, investors, tech workers, and ecosystem players from across the country convened in Montréal for three days of networking, panels, and pitches.
The audience favourite of the award ceremony was Lyme Alert, a Cambridge, Mass.-based startup that develops portable tests to check ticks for the presence of Lyme disease. It also won the $100,000 Women In Tech Investment Prize.
The list of all Startupfest 2026 award winners is as follows:
Best of the Fest Investment Prize ($100,000): AgroGene Solutions, which makes hive-monitoring software for beekeepers.
Audience Choice Award: LymeAlert, which develops at-home tick tests.
Grandmothers’ Choice Award: Kiwi Charge, which deploys autonomous EV chargers.
Women In Tech Investment Prize ($100,000): LymeAlert, which checks ticks for Lyme.
Black Entrepreneur Investment Prize ($100,000): EN Solutions Hydro, which specializes in AI-powered software for hydro power plants.
The Dual-Use and Sovereign Tech Investment Prize ($100,000): 3D BioFibR, which produces collagen fibres at commercial scale for tissue engineering.
2SLGBTQIA+ Investment Prize ($100,000): Tissue Tinker, which engineers human tissues.
Canadian Impact Investment Prize ($100,000) and Impact Grant ($25,000): Finleaf Technologies, which turns fish waste into fertilizer.
Fintech Grant ($100,000): Padder, which provides guarantor services to help renters access housing.
Black Innovation Zone Scale Grant Prize ($10,000) — Early Stage: Yvonne Osagie, of health-advocacy platform MedMelanin.
Black Innovation Zone Scale Grant Prize ($10,000) — Growth Stage: Faith Oloruntoba, of AI travel concierge Cotriply.
Black Innovation Zone Scale Grant Prize ($20,000, each): Danneelle Crisp, of emergency triage platform ElleLogic AI, and Joshua Ekundayo, of voice-learning platform ClassClown.
Fonds de solidarité FTQ Productivity Grant ($10,000): OWI Labs, which develops a data layer to help companies make better decisions.
Impact Grant ($25,000, plus $25,000 from Mistral Venture Partners): ElleLogic AI, an AI platform to streamline emergency care in hospitals.
Feature image courtesy Madison McLauchlan for BetaKit.