Welcome to BetaKit’s startup stories of the week! Here, you will find the week’s most important news, features, and editorials published on BetaKit. If you prefer this update hit your inbox every week, make sure to subscribe to the BetaKit Newsletter using the form at the bottom of this page.
Top Stories of the Week
Paper secures $343 million CAD with US schools drawn to its remote tutoring tech
The round comes less than a year after Paper closed a $123 million Series C round. Paper has seen significant growth in that time, doubling the number of students it serves – from one million last year to two million students now.
BetaKit Live: Checking in with BC’s SaaS Unicorns, Clio and Trulioo on February 23rd
On Wednesday, February 23rd at 4:00 pm ET, BetaKit Patreon supporters have a front-row seat to hear from both startups on transitioning strategies and searching for growth after attaining unicorn status.
Shopify shares drop following decelerated revenue growth, lowered guidance in Q4 2021
The Ottawa e-commerce company revealed slowing revenue growth, decelerating Black Friday sales, and soft revenue guidance in its latest earnings report, as the tailwinds that drove the rise of e-commerce begin to subside.
New report on Canadian venture, private equity landscape shows firms failing when it comes to inclusion side of D&I
Based on a Diversio survey of 413 individuals, the number of women venture capital (VC) investors has increased since 2019, but still make up less than 20 percent of all partners in Canada.
Allen Lau drafts a new plan for Wattpad one year after Naver acquisition
One year after being acquired by Naver for $754 million CAD, Wattpad’s CEO is charting a new course for his company. While the goal lines haven’t moved, the end zone for Wattpad is now bigger.
Canadian tech salaries jumped 38 percent since 2019, but attracting talent is tough: reports
“Global hiring has never been more popular between pandemic-related office closures, fierce talent competition, and a bevy of online tools enabling collaboration and reducing hiring complications,” the report noted.
Roach Capital closes $6.4 million CAD for first fund from prominent VCs, Shopify execs
After founding and selling his own Canadian tech companies and spending years working as a product lead at major tech firms like Shopify and Snap, Fahd Ananta has seen some success cutting early cheques into startups like Ada and Float.
The many obstacles to inclusion in startups (and one aid from Innovate BC)
As companies globally face the Great Resignation or Great Reshuffle, building inclusive workspaces is necessary to not only fill staffing gaps but also stem the tide of resignations within your organization.
Latest Funding, Acquisitions, and Layoffs
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WAT – RideCo – $20M (read more)
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TOR – LifeSpeak to acquire Wellbeats (read more)
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TOR – Convictional – $50.7M (read more)
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TOR – eState Planner – $1M (read more)
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TOR – Pipeline Signals – $507K (read more
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TOR – Couply – $300K (read more)
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MTL – BMO commits $100M to lending program for Black entrepreneurs (read more)
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MTL – Startup Montréal secures $6.5M from province for new scaleup program (read more
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MNC – Alongside – $8M (read more)
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WHAT DOES THE JOE ROGAN EXPERIENCE TEACH US ABOUT TECH PLATFORMS?
Josh O’Kane (Globe & Mail) and Katie Jensen (Vocal Fry Studios) discuss Joe Rogan and the rise of misinformation coinciding with the democratization of media.
WHO ARE CANADA’S ‘SOONICORNS’?
Mike Potter (Rewind), Stephany Lapierre (TealBook), and Lloyed Lobo (Boast.ai) discuss building tech companies in Canada, and why their companies may soon be Canadian tech unicorns.
