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Alberta launches new innovation strategy focused on attracting tech talent, capital (BETAKIT)
The Government of Alberta has unveiled its new innovation strategy, which outlines how the province plans to strengthen its tech sector and diversify its energy-reliant economy.
Osler releases multi-year study of 300+ Canadian VC and growth equity financings
Osler’s Emerging and High Growth Companies practice has released its first comprehensive study of 332 anonymized venture capital and growth equity financings from 2019–2021, valued at US$5.7 billion, providing data and insights for founders, entrepreneurs, investors and advisors contemplating transactions this year and beyond.
The report is unique as it draws on both publicly available data on venture capital and growth equity financings, as well as Osler’s confidential anonymized data sources. The report authors have distilled actionable insights on the data, including on common terms and structural considerations.
Read the Deal Points Report: Venture Capital Financings
Canada’s Viral Nation raises $250-million from Eldridge and John Ruffolo’s Maverix to grow influencer marketing business (THE GLOBE AND MAIL)
John Ruffolo’s Maverix Private Equity has made its first deal, joining U.S. billionaire Todd Boehly to invest in a Canadian company that has become a big player in the online influencer space.
University of Alberta spinout DrugBank closes $9 million from Brightspark, Amplitude, Theodorus to fuel drug discovery with its data platform (BETAKIT)
Training machine learning (ML) and artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms requires quality data. In the pharmaceutical sector, obtaining this data can be tough because most of the knowledge about drugs is contained in scientific publications in an unstructured text format.
SkyHive Receives Strategic Investment from Deutsche Bank (TECHCOUVER)
Vancouver’s SkyHive, a workforce technology innovator that delivers powerful insights for improved human capital management (HCM), has received a ‘sizable equity investment’ from Germany’s Deutsche Bank via its strategic Corporate Venture Capital unit.
What businesses are getting wrong about SR&ED tax credit claims (BETAKIT)
The Canadian Government Scientific Research and Experimental Design (SR&ED) program was created to support and reward investments by businesses in innovation. Yet many businesses aren’t utilizing the program to its full potential, and therefore they miss out on all that SR&ED can offer.
Behind Mark Zuckerberg big plans for AR glasses (THE VERGE)
Zuckerberg calls AR goggles a “holy grail” device that will “redefine our relationship with technology,” akin to the introduction of smartphones. During the special effect-laden video announcing Facebook’s corporate rebrand to Meta last October, they acted as the connective tissue for his metaverse pitch, letting people play games and work with virtual humans Star Trek-style. At one point, Zuckerberg wore them while fencing with a hologram. “Don’t be scared to stab,” his virtual sparring partner quipped.
Scale AI moves to scale supply chain AI startups with new funding, partnerships (BETAKIT)
Scale AI, Canada’s artificial intelligence (AI) cluster, has announced it is investing $24 million to support five AI projects in supply chain operations. The federally and Québec government-supported AI cluster is also partnering with MaRS to support the commercialization of 12 Canadian supply chain solutions AI startups.
Biden administration takes step forward on AI policy (AXIOS)
The Department of Commerce has appointed more than two dozen experts to a committee that will advise President Joe Biden on artificial intelligence policy.
Ontario utility agencies back BluWave-ai project to manage increased EV power grid use (BETAKIT)
BluWave-ai and Hydro Ottawa are collaborating with two Ontario provincial government agencies in a project that will use artificial intelligence (AI) to manage electric vehicle (EV) charging during peak demand periods.
Companies are using AI to monitor your mood during sales calls. Zoom might be next. (PROTOCOL)
Virtual sales meetings have made it tougher than ever for salespeople to read the room. So, some well funded tech providers are stepping in with a bold sales pitch of their own: that AI can not only help sellers communicate better, but detect the “emotional state” of a deal — and the people they’re selling to.
The five things every Security Operations Centre manager needs to know (BETAKIT)
Security looks different for every startup. This is where the security operations centre (SOC) manager comes in. The focus of an SOC manager is broad risk mitigation: ensuring regulatory and legal compliance, controlling business-essential risks such as encryption or personally identifiable information (PII) protection, and balancing taking action to lower risk with both company risk tolerance and available resources.
A.I. Is Mastering Language. Should We Trust What It Says? (NEW YORK TIMES)
OpenAI’s GPT-3 and other neural nets can now write original prose with mind-boggling fluency — a development that could have profound implications for the future.
Volta opens applications for second Scale AI-supported supply chain program (BETAKIT)
In partnership with Canada’s artificial intelligence (AI) cluster, Scale AI, Halifax innovation hub Volta has opened applications for the second edition of its Volta AI program.