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
While some Canadian tech companies move to support Ukrainians, others cut ties with Russia
In a microcosm of global events, some in Canada’s tech community are moving to aid Ukrainians while others are cutting ties with Russian affiliates as the Russian invasion of Ukraine is in its third week.
Virtual Gurus closes $8.4 million amid US-driven demand for diversity-focused virtual assistants
Led by CEO Bobbie Racette, who is a Cree-Métis and LGBTQ+ woman, Virtual Gurus is on a mission to disrupt the virtual assistant market through curated matches and a talent marketplace that focuses on employing historically underrepresented individuals.
With $150 million USD in fresh funding, Montréal’s Talent.com is ready to take on Indeed worldwide
“Our goal is to become Pepsi to Coke,” co-CEO Lucas Martinez said. “Indeed is number one and we want to be number two worldwide.”
Canadian FinTech leaders press Government of Canada for progress on open banking
Canadian tech leaders are calling upon the federal government to appoint an open banking lead and start implementing other recommendations made by the Advisory Committee on Open Banking in last year’s long-awaited report.
Inside the province-wide push to make BC a global leader in cleantech
The stark impacts of climate change are accelerating around the world, and one of the places these impacts been highly evident in the last year is the province of British Columbia. Scientists have already linked a series of tumultuous weather events experienced across BC in 2021 to a warming planet.
Alberta NDP tables bill to create new provincial venture fund for tech
Claiming that Alberta is losing ground to other provinces when it comes to attracting investment for the tech sector, the provincial NDP has introduced legislation they hope will reverse that.
Latest Funding, Acquisitions, and Layoffs
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VAN – Pressboard acquired by Impact.com (read more)
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CAL – Validere – $55M (read more)
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CAL – Platform Innovation Centre closes $2M from Gov of Canada (read more)
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EDM – HonestDoor – $2.2M (read more)
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TOR – Corl – $20M (read more)
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TOR – MinuteBox – $5M (read more)
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TOR – Wisedocs – $4.1M (read more)
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TOR – MedMe – $3.4M (read more)
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TOR – Scribble Data – $2.2M (read more)
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OTT – Fullscript acquires Emerson Ecologics (read more)
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MTL – Bloom – $1.4M (read more)
WHY CANADIAN TECH’S RISE IS BUILT ON A STACK OF JENGA BLOCKS
“We’re going from an unprecedented monetary boom cycle to probably an unprecedented monetary contractionary cycle.”
RBCx’s Anthony Mouchantaf joins to discuss the current Canadian tech boom, and explain why ‘all that glitters is not gold.’
RYAN HOLMES’ NEXT ACT
“[We’re] trying to solve this problem of how we identify and accelerate young entrepreneurs.”
LOI Venture founder and GP, Ryan Holmes, discusses investment in youth entrepreneurship, the changing eras of Canadian tech, and life after Hootsuite.