MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021

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MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021
McGILL
DOBSON
CENTRE FOR
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Annual Report
2020-2021

                   1
MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021
Dear Partners,

                           This past year has been an unprecedented year for the Dobson Centre and we
                           are very grateful to our community of Entrepreneurs, Donors, Sponsors and
                           Volunteers who jointly made it possible.

                           During our academic year of 2020-2021, The Centre has reached a remarkable
                           milestone: The startups it has supported have now raised over $1 billion in seed
                           funding (source: Crunchbase), a sign that investors are being persuaded by our
                           entrepreneurs’ vision and see meaningful opportunities to contribute to our
                           economy.

                           As we continuously scale our programming, we were grateful to announce this
                           year a new $3-million gift from the John Dobson Foundation to help
                           drive entrepreneurship at McGill University.

 Morty Yalovsky            Founded in 1988 by the late John Dobson, BCom’49, the McGill Dobson Centre
                           for Entrepreneurship supports entrepreneurs from all 11 faculties at McGill
 Interim Dean,             University. The Dobson community has grown to include 450 active startups
                           which operate in over 35 countries and have generated more than 6,000 new
 Professor of Operations   jobs. More than 40 per cent of Dobson startups are cofounded by women and the
 Management                Centre engages with 24 partner universities around the world.
 Desautels Faculty of
 Management                This success is a direct result of the seminal work of John Dobson, the Dobson
                           Centre’s founding director Professor Peter R. Johnson, and former director
                           Professor Gregory Vit who established the signature Dobson Cup competition
                           and McGill X-1 Startup Accelerator program. We now have the privilege of
                           building on this strong foundation.

                           In 2020, The McGill Dobson Centre has also been recognized as one of the Top
                           20 University Business Incubators by the UBI Global World Rankings of
                           Business Incubators and Accelerators and PitchBook University
                           Rankings named the Dobson Centre second in Canada for undergraduate
                           programs for entrepreneurs — and first in the country for developing successful
                           female entrepreneurs.

                           As we pursue our mission to help entrepreneurs across the University to build
                           innovative companies with purpose, we intend to continue to expand our offering
                           of programs tailored to the different stages of the entrepreneurial journey, as well
                           as mentorship opportunities and access to a wide network of resources and
                           investors.

                           In the coming year, The Dobson Centre is set to open a new location in the
Marie Josée Lamothe        Bronfman Building with a main entrance on Sherbrooke Street, where it will
                           house flexible, state-of-the-art collaboration spaces and cutting-edge
Academic Director          technologies designed to fuel and ignite the entrepreneurial spirit among all
                           members of the McGill community.
McGill's Dobson Centre
For Entrepreneurship,      As the University enters its third century amid a critical time for the economy, we
                           look forward to fostering the McGill entrepreneurial ecosystem as a driver of
Professor of Practice      future job creation and strong, sustainable growth
Desautels Faculty
of Management

                           Morty Yalovsky                       Marie Josée Lamothe
                           Interim Dean,                        Academic Director,
                           Professor of Operations              McGill's Dobson
                           Desautels                            Centre for Entrepreneurship
                           Faculty of Management                Professor of Practice,          2
                                                                Desautels Faculty of Management
MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021
TABLE OF CONTENTS
 I. THE DOBSON CENTRE........................................................4/

        Our Mission and Values

        The Dobson Community in 2021

        The Dobson Centre Team

 II. DOBSON PROGRAMMING...................................................8/

        Lean Startup

        Neuroscience Lean Startup

        Dobson Cup

        X-1 Accelerator

        Mentorship Circle

        International Startup Tour

        NYC Retail Startup Tour

        Celebrating Entrepreneurship Day

 III. 2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS.........................................27/

 IV. DOBSON IN THE NEWS.......................................................47/

 V. WITH GRATITUDE.................................................................52/

 VI. Let's Stay In Touch!.............................................................54/

                                                                                            3
MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021
I. THE DOBSON CENTRE

• Our Mission
• The Dobson Community In Numbers
• The Team

                                    4
MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021
OUR MISSION
BUILDING INNOVATIVE COMPANIES
WITH A PURPOSE

The McGill Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship was founded in 1988. It has
since established itself as the hub of entrepreneurial activity at McGill
University.

Our mission is to teach, coach and support McGill entrepreneurs as they seek
to build innovative companies with a purpose.

OUR VALUES
 Integrity       Community          Diversity      Excellence          Impact
MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021
THE DOBSON COMMUNITY
    IN 2020-2021

                                                  $1B+
450 active startups          Present in        Over $1 billion + raised   40% co-/founded
                            34 countries                                     by women

10 McGill Faculties      Collaboration with   Highly engaged ecosystem    6,000 + new jobs
                          24 universities        of 10,000 + members           created

      #1 in Canada for Developing Successful Female Founders (2020)
      #2 in Canada for Producing Competitive Startup Founders (2020)
                      #2 in Canada for Undergraduate Program (2020)
              Top 20 University Business Incubators Globally (2020)
MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021
THE DOBSON
 CENTRE TEAM

                                                    KIKA ARMATA               MARIA APONTE
MORTY YALOVSKY            MARIE-JOSEE LAMOTHE
                                                    Program                   Program
Dean and Professor        Academic Director,
                                                    Manager                   Manager
of Operations             Professor of Practice
Management

CAROL CLELLAND        MICHAELA              MARIANNE              VÉRONIQUE         STUDENT
Program               DENEVA                KHALIL                BEAULIEU-FOWLER   EXECUTIVE
Administrator         Coordinator           Coordinator           Communications    TEAM
                                                                  Manager

 FACULTY ADVISORY COMMITTEE

ARVIND ARUNAKARAN         ROBERT NASON              DAPHNE ANN DEMETRY        JAVAD NASIRY
Assistant Professor,      Associate Professor,      Assistant Professor,      Associate Professor,
Strategy & Organization   Strategy & Organization   Strategy & Organization   Operations Management
MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021
II. DOBSON
PROGRAMMING

• Lean Startup.....................................................9/
       • Neuroscience Lean Startup
• Dobson Cup....................................................12/
• X-1 Accelerator..............................................14/
• Mentorship Circle..........................................16/
• International Startup Tour..........................18/
       • NYC Retail Startup Tour
• Celebrating Entrepreneurship..Day.......25/

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MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021
LEAN
STARTUP
“Lean Startup has
been integral to
getting closer to           An eye-opening program to initiate
launching the first         early-stage startups into the exciting
                            world of entrepreneurship.
stage of our
product, since
starting the Lean           The Lean Startup Program is an integral
Start-up Incubator,         part of the center’s programming.
we have gone                Startups work on moving from the idea
back and spoken             stage to developing a viable startup
to potential                concept.
customers and               Through exposure to business
from there                  frameworks and tools to diagnose ideas,
developed and               they have the opportunity to test the
                            feasibility of their concept and generate
streamlined our             challenging, yet feasible goals for their
ideas.”                     startup. They acquire the confidence and
Ffion Lew is, Co-Founder,   the clarity to pursue the next steps in
Aglet PR                    building a successful startup.

                            Neuroscience tailored program:
                            In partnership Healthy Brains Healthy
                            Lives, we also offer an entrepreneurship
                            program tailored specifically for scientific
                            researchers in neuroscience.

                            MORE DETAILS

                                                                           9
MCGILL DOBSON CENTRE FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP 2020-2021
NEUROSCIENCE
LEAN STARTUP
“[The program]
Helped us come                               Turning scientific ideas into startups
together as a
team and think
about the                                    We are delighted to partner with Neuro-
                                             Sphere, McGill's neuroscience accelerator
viability of the                             funded through Healthy Brains Healthy
project, our                                 Lives, to offer an entrepreneurship
                                             program tailored specifically for scientific
value                                        researchers in neuroscience.
proposition, and
                                             The program takes scientific innovation
opened up many                               from the idea stage to developing and
discussions                                  launching a viable startup.
about our                                    Teams acquire a general understanding
business plan in                             of key business concepts needed to bring
                                             their vision to life, while being immersed
general.”                                    into the world of entrepreneurship.

Viviana Rom ero, Founder,
8 Bit Cortex                                 MORE DETAILS

                            IN PARTNERSHIP
                                     WITH:                                                10
2020-21 LEAN START UP COHORT

            24 Startups               54 Co-Founders      9 McGill faculties
                                                            7 universities

“It has helped give clarity around               “All of the speakers were
setting up a company, but mainly                 knowledgeable and offered great
focused our thoughts on product,                 insights. I learned how
how viable it is for the market, and             fundamental the process of getting
how can we build our user base, as               user feedback and iterating is. In
without user base demand we                      particular, I learned how to ask
wouldn't be there.”                              these questions to hear the
Thomas Durcan, Founder of MBrainBio              genuine problems of the intended
                                                 audience, as opposed to
                                                 presenting my solution.”

                                                 Colleen Chang, Founder of Sobremesa
DOBSON CUP

“The program
surpassed our
expectations in many
regards, the                  The 13th edition of the McGill Dobson
                              Cup powered by National Bank, was
opportunity to gain           the first to be held fully online. Over 56
feedback from the             teams were initially selected to be a
judges and program            part of the highly competitive
coordinators along            program in January.
the way was one               The finals, which were held on March
notable takeaway for          29 and 30, saw the 26 finalist teams
us. We believe that           competing in four tracks to win over
                              $200 000 in funding:
the MDC program
has better prepared           •    Health Sciences Enterprise (HSE)
us for our upcoming           •    Innovation or Technology Driven
investor pitches.”                 Enterprise (ITDE)
                              •    Social Impact Enterprise (SIE)
Kyle Feigenbaum, Co-founder
                              •    Environmental Enterprise (EE)
MyHealthy Bud
                              The 135 founders, 96 of which stem
                              from McGill, were accompanied
                              throughout the program by more than
                              60 seasoned business
                              experts through mentoring
                              sessions, workshops and judging.

                              MORE DETAILS

                                                                           12
2020-21 DOBSON CUP COHORT

9 McGill faculties              135 founders   10 countries           58 Semi-finalists
  7 universities                                                         26 finalists

“The team at Keen to Help learned                “McGill Dobson Cup is easily one
immensely from the workshops,                    of the best university affiliated
sharpened our pitching skills, and               competitions for startups. Win or
improved our business model. With                lose doesn't matter, one always
the funding and the support of the               comes out as a more
Dobson Center we know that Keen to               knowledgeable person on the
Help will continue to make an impact             other side of it.”
within Canadian communities.”                    Sanjay Thakur, Co-Founder, RydeSafely

Jack Turner, Founder of Keen to Help.
X-1
ACCELERATOR
 “The X-1 program
helped us to get
closer to our next
milestones and                This program offers an immersive experience,
provided us tools             aimed at launching startups to the next phase –
                              investment readiness.
to generate some
investment                    Designed to accelerate McGill startups,
opportunities.’’              X-1 offers a wealth of learning

Charles Couture-Lebrun, Co-   opportunities as teams engage with
Founder, Off The Grid
                              experienced industry leaders through
                              weekly workshops and one-on-one
                              mentorship meetings.

                              Startups benefit from up to $15,000 in
                              funding as they work over the summer to
                              develop greater clarity of their market and
                              customers, as well as the business
                              acumen to effectively sell their vision to
                              investors.

                              MORE DETAILS

                                                                                14
2020-21 X1 ACCELERATOR COHORT

       20 Startups             72 Co-founders          9 McGill faculties
                                                         7 universities

“This entrepreneurship program            “The X-1 Accelerator equipped

opened my eyes to a new world of          us with the tools needed to
                                          successfully scale our
opportunity that made me think
                                          business and develop our
about healthcare from a business
perspective. It provided the tools        vision even further. We are so
                                          grateful to have participated in
and strategies necessary to take
innovation from lab to market.”           such an extensive, well-
                                          thought-out program that will
Ahmed Abou-Sharkh,
Co-Founder, PhysioBiometrics              help us grow our business for
                                          years to come.”
                                          Ophelia Sarakinis
                                          Co-founder of Vertité
DOBSON
MENTORSHIP
CIRCLE
"Mentorship has                      Mentorship to get to the next level
played an invaluable
role in the progress of              The Dobson Mentorship Circle, is a new

Algi. Being able to                  program to support startups that have graduated
learn from experienced               from our entrepreneurship programs, and who are
entrepreneurs and                    looking to receive mentorship as they navigate
industry leaders has                 the challenges and opportunities of growing their
helped us to make                    business.
smart decisions and
grow more quickly.“                  Our distinguished group of prominent business
                                     leaders, each with twenty or more years of
Alessandra Amato, Co-Founder, Algi
                                     expertise with startups, business innovation and
                                     leadership, provide a source of inspiration, a
                                     listening ear and new perspectives to broaden the
                                     horizons of fledging Dobson founders to help
                                     them grow.

                                     LEARN MORE

                                     ''It takes many attributes to be a
                                     successful entrepreneur: conviction,
                                     perseverance, dedication, and intense focus. This
                                     is not a journey for the faint of heart, making the
                                     Dobson Mentorship Circle a relevant and
                                     timely initiative.'' Dino Di Palma, Chair of the   16

                                     Mentorship Circle
DINO DI PALMA,            LORA TISI,                 RUBIN GRUBER,            SHARON STERN,
Chair Dobson              Senior Retail              Chariman Of The Board,   President of
Mentorship Circle         Strategist, U.S.           Metrika, Boston          Eastmore
                                                                              Management and
                                                                              Metro Investments

YOLANDA M.                JEFF SPEAK,                STEPHEN HARPER,          NEIL MURDOCH,
WARDOWSKI,                President at               Director at Strathmore   former CEO of
Managing Director,        Speakco                    Investments Ltd.,        Connor, Clark & Lunn
Avalon Net Worth,         Investments                London                   Capital Markets
New York

JOSEPH SASSON,       SOULA CHRONOPOULOS,                 MiICHAEL MEE,
CEO, Delon – Iris    President of ellicom & Vice         Principal,
                     President of Innovation at LCILX,   Amplitude Venturs
                     Canada
INTERNATIONAL
STARTUP TOUR
“The Dobson International
Startup Tour was a great
                             With the support of the Ministère de
opportunity to pitch our     l’Économie et de l’Innovation du Québec,
business to investors on     the Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship
the West Coast and in        launched its first virtual International Startup
Europe. We made great        Tour.
connections and received
amazing feedback from an     Showcasing Dobson's most promising
impressive panel of          startups, the goal of the International Startup
investors including one of   Tour is to promote entrepreneurial innovation
                             stemming from all faculties, while creating
the original Dragons from    opportunities for our founders with regards to
Dragons’ Den. We are         fund raising and new business partnerships on
looking forward to           an international scale.
continuing our
                             Spanning seventeen (17) cities, the
conversations with them as
                             programming included three (3) separate virtual
we close our seed round      events, anchored around Eastern Time, Pacific
this summer.”                Time and Central European Time. For each
                             geography, our startups presented their
Lucas Francioli              innovative solutions, followed by a question-and-
Founder, MoveMate            answer period led by top caliber industry experts.
                             The events were rounded out with panel
                             discussions and one-on-one investor meetings
                             In addition, The Dobson New York City Retail
                             Startup Tour introduced and connected a select
                             group of Dobson entrepreneurs to a dynamic
                             startup ecosystem composed of Finance
                             Executives, Retail Giants and Tech Executives
                             from across the globe.
                             MORE DETAILS

                                                                           18
NEW YORK CITY
RETAIL STARTUP
TOUR
“This tour was a
great experience.
We continued to
refine our pitch,        The Dobson New York City Retail Startup
and had the chance       Tour introduced and connect a select group
                         of Dobson entrepreneurs to a dynamic
to tell our story        startup ecosystem composed of Finance
countless times to       Executives, Retail Giants and Tech
all different types of   Executives from across the globe.
people through the       The programming, included personalized
TechDay and              coaching and mentoring, as well as the
                         opportunity to attend flagship tech and retail
ShopTalk events.         industry events based in New York City
I think that the         (online).
program was a            Teams gained invaluable exposure to key
success, and we          players and pitched their innovative
were honored to be       business solutions to potential clients and
                         investors, with the hope of encouraging
included in this         international investment, partnership
year's edition.”         opportunities and strong business growth.

Interius Farms            MORE DETAILS

                                                                          19
SUPPORT EMERGING BUSINESSES TO ACCELERATE THEIR
                                RAPID DEVELOPMENT

                                Québec abounds in talented individuals who dare to initiate and
                                innovate. More than 2000 start-ups with strong growth potential are
                                operating in different areas of activity. They are noteworthy for
                                their original business models and bold reliance on new
                                technologies. Ensuring the development of this thriving ecosystem
                                is essential to maintain the Québec economy’s competitiveness.

                                The Québec government is delighted to encourage the Dobson
                                Centre for Entrepreneurship at McGill University in conjunction with
                                the McGill International Startup Tour. I would especially like
                                to emphasize the multi-disciplinarity of the sectors covered and the
                                scientific relations that have developed between major Québec
                                universities. Moreover, this project is brilliantly helping to better
                                match research and its practical applications through the marketing
                                of products stemming from university research.

                                The tour will raise the international profile of Québec innovations and
                                is another example that shows that our knowledge-based economy
    LUCIE LECOURS               creates collective wealth. I salute all the participants
    Ministre déléguée à         for their commitment to showcasing Québec ingenuity and creativity
                                the world over.
    l’Économie
                                Best wishes to the innovative young entrepreneurs for a successful
                                tour!

CATHERINE LOUBIER              PHILIPPE HUNEAULT                             PIERRE GABRIEL CÔTÉ
Déléguée générale à New York   Délégué du Québec à Los Angeles               Délégué général à Londres
                               et Silicon Valley
INTERNATIONAL STARTUP TOUR

18 Startups      17 Cities    5 McGill Faculties 8 Universities     50 Founders

 A total of: 207 Investor Meetings | 93 Follow-ups

     “A   few days after the virtual        “The   NYC Retail Startup Tour

     Dobson Day, we                         was a great experience for
     were approached by an                  Geek-it! We had follow-

     attendee who introduced                ups from several angels and

     us to a sustainable VC with            mentors. We also talked with
     whom we have a meeting                 (an investment firm) and they

     next week.”                            are really interested in us.”
     Turbodega                              Geek-It!
INTERNATIONAL STARTUP TOUR
PROGRAM AT A GLANCE

             SEPTEMBER 2020
             ONE-ON-ONE COACHING AND MENTORING

             McGill    Dobson     Centre    for   Entrepreneurship
             worked with selected participants to help prepare and
             further refine pitches and business plans for their
             upcoming events.

             OCTOBER 20-22, 2020
             SHOPTALK RETAIL WEEK

             Teams engaged in one-on-one meetings with potential
             clients, partners and investors at North America’s
             largest retail event.
             https://shoptalk.com/

             OCTOBER 27-28, 2020
             VIRTUAL DOBSON DAY

             A private virtual event, co-hosted by the Quebec
             Ministry of Economy and Innovation. Teams pitched to
             and networked with an audience of invited VC
             investors, government dignitaries and industry experts
             from the New York City area.
             Register

             NOVEMBER 17-19, 2020
             EXHIBIT BOOTH AT TECHDAY ONLINE

             Teams hosted exhibit booths and engaged in
             discussions with participating conferees from
             investors, to partners and potential customers.
             https://techdayhq.com/online
TOUKER SULEYMAN,         MARC DESCHAMPS,           SANJAY PUROHIT,          ANTHONY PALERMO,
Chairman at Low          Managing Partner          Trade Commissioner -     CEO & Co-Founder
Profile and Dragon,      and Executive             Information, Communi-    Connect&GO
Dragon’s Den BBC         Chairman at Drake         cations and Technology
                         Star Partners             (ICT) at High Commission
                                                   of Canada in the United
                                                   Kingdom

 ATHENA SOSANGELIS         TOM DUCROT,              MARIE-EVE PICHE,        MICHAEL MEE,
 LORENZO,                  Principal at Fides       CFO at Verana           Principal at
 PartnerCapture            + Radio LLC              Health                  Amplitude Ventures
 Capital - New York

 STEVEN FRASER,            JACKIE HUSPETH,          JOEY ADLER,
 Director of Open          Director of Growth at    founder and visionary
 Innovation, Partnerships, InfinityQ Technology     of Dept of GOOD and
 and Strategic University  Inc.                     co-founder od
 Relations of Innoxec                               BLOQS4
PARTICIPATING PANELISTS –
RETAIL EDITION

   SAFIA MORSLY-FIKAI         TIM CECI                     LORA TISI
   Head of Information &      Founder Tim Ceci             Retail Expert
   Communications             Retail Consulting            (former President RW&Co,
   Technology, Consulate      (former Nordstrom)           American Eagle, Northern
   General of Canada in                                    Reflections)
   New York

  YOLANDA M. WARDOWSKI        GREGORY LARKIN
  Managing Director, Avalon   Partner, Boundless Tech
  Net Worth                   and best-selling author of
                              This Might Get Me Fired
CELEBRATING
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
DAY
“Just believe in
yourself. If you
know what’s right
keep walking                    In a special event
forward and don’t               celebrating Entrepreneur’s Day, we
                                were delighted to present a lively
stop! And celebrate             conversation with leading New York City
the little things               based Entrepreneurs and investors –
along the way.”                 and friends of the Dobson Centre.

Gary Hoberm an, CEO of Unqork
                                Animated by McGill alumnus, Gregory
                                Larkin, Founder at Punks & Pinstripes
                                and best-selling author of This Might
                                Get Me Fired, the event, which was live
                                streamed, featured special guests:
                                Charles Bonello, Founder of Vivvi and
                                Grand Central Tech – the biggest
                                incubator in NYC, Peter Crysdale, SVP
                                of Minerva, Gary Hoberman, CEO of
                                Unqork and former CIO of Metlife, JJ
                                Kasper, one of the most respected VCs
                                in NYC and former McKinsey partner,
                                Amanda Kirby, former SVP Tech
                                Startup Partnerships at Bank of
                                America.
                                The discussion focused on the journey
                                of entrepreneurship and celebrated the
                                important contribution that
                                entrepreneurs bring to our economy and
                                society.
PARTICIPATING PANELISTS –
ENTREPRENEURSHIP DAY

   GREGORY LARKIN               GARY HOBERMAN             JJ KASPER
   Partner, Boundless Tech      CEO of Unqork and         Founder and Partner at
   and best-selling author of   former CIO of Metlife     Blue Collective
   This Might Get Me Fired

  CHARLES BONELLO               AMANDA KIRBY                PETER CHRYSDALE
  Founder and CEO at Vivvi      Former SVP Tech Startup     Co-Founder and SVP of
  and Founder of Grand          Partnerships at Bank of     Minerva
  Central Tech                  America
III. 2020-21 COHORT

• Our Participating Startups
  (in alphabetical order)

                               27
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS

                                                           Acrylic is a pre-launch hardtech startup
                                                           helping professional artists sell their
                                                           artwork at scale by rethinking how                 3rd PLACE
                                                                                                               WINNER
                                                           paintings are produced.                             Innovation and
                                                                                                             Technology Driven
                                                           Dobson Cup                                         Enterprise Track

AGLET PR

Aglet PR gives artists and their teams the opportunity to
pitch directly to journalists, paying only for tangible results if
and when their music gets picked up. We want to create a
space where there is complete transparency between
artists, journalists, and PR professionals.

Lean Startup

                                                                                  AGRITOURISM CONNECT

                                                                                  Description of our company: Our startup
                                                                                  idea is to create a service that collects
                                                                                  data on agritourism businesses and allows
                                                                                  users to search, find, and visit these
                                                                                  businesses.

                                                                                  Lean Startup

 An Agro-tech company focused
 on using technology to improve
 food security while creating a
 significant impact on the welfare
 and profitability of the
 agricultural industry.

 McGill Dobson Cup
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS

                                                       Algi creates purpose driven food
                                                       products centred around the world’s
                                                       oldest and smallest superfood,
                                                       spirulina algae.                       1st PLACE
                                                                                               WINNER
                                                       McGill Dobson Cup                      Environmental
                                                                                             Enterprise Track

  ARC is a tablet-based application that focused on
  the strengths and intense interest in word reading
  of preschoolers with Autism Spectrum Disorder
  and Hyperlexia as a means to support their
  challenges in reading comprehension.

  Neuroscience Lean Startup

                                                 Biotech Square uncovers the
                                                 hidden lessons in drug
                                                 development using artificial
                                                 intelligence to innovate more, and
                                                 to address patients’ needs sooner.

                                                 McGill Dobson Cup

B3D Performance specializes in additive
manufacturing (3D printing) using metal
powders. We develop instrumentation to
monitor the powder quality to reduce
production costs and minimize the impact
on the environment.
X-1 Accelerator
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS

 C-Big repository is an open-science
 neuroscience bio-repository that generates
 novel iPSC cell lines from patients with human
 disease with known genetic alterations for use in
 industry and academic research.

 Neuroscience Lean Startup

                                       Customer Feedback for the Modern Retailer:
                                       Chatter uses AI-driven, conversational
                                       surveys to increase online and in-store
                                       conversion by 1.4%. Our conversation engine
                                       interprets responses in real-time to deliver
                                       actionable insights when they matter.

                                       NYC Retail Startup Tour

CHK PLZ enables restaurants and bars to
control their brand, increase efficiency, and
own their customer like they never have
before through an all-in-one suite of web
applications.
International Startup Tour

                                                        Circulus AgTech valorizes manure and
                                                        compost to produce liquid organic fertilizer
                                                        suitable for hydroponics while using high-tech
                                                        ion monitoring to reach target nutrient levels
                                                        and ensure optimal bacterial activity.
                                                        X-1 Accelerator 2020
                                                        International Startup Tour
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS

  CourseLnk is a platform that connects
  students in the same classes, faculties and
  extracurriculars. Thousands of pre-made
  chats allow students to coordinate studies
  and social life on one, centralized platform.

  McGill Dobson Cup

                                                     Universal, cloud-based, machine
                                                     learning powered platform that enables
                                                     true smart farming by optimizing
                                                     resource consumption, increasing yield,
                                                     and facilitating the orchestration and
                                                     scaling of a network of greenhouses.

                                                     McGill Dobson Cup

ePRS Cluster provides a faster solution with
immediate access to processing pipelines, designing
and deriving polygenic scores, and results to
accelerate the process of scientific discovery and
optimize the use of valuable data from small scale
studies.

Neuroscience Lean Startup

                                                       Transforming not only the
                                                       storage industry, but also the          3rd PLACE
                                                       way we manage our things                 WINNER
                                                                                                Environmental
                                                       entirely.                               Enterprise Track

                                                       McGill Dobson Cup
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
                                                 The FitDrive app helps fitness trainers
                                                 save time, increase retention and grow
                                                 their business by making it easy to
                                                 program workouts, track progress and
                                                 keep in touch with clients when training
                                                 remotely.
                                                 X-1 Accelerator
                                                 International Startup Tour

 Flowbo specializes in
 financing creators and
 influencers to monetize
 and grow their value.

 McGill Dobson Cup

                                                 Food Bundles is a digital platform
                                                 designed to optimize the distribution of
                                                 fresh food to consumers living in cities.
                                                 Digitizing the supply chain, it creates a      2nd PLACE
                                                 sustainable market for smallholder              WINNER
                                                 farmers.                                       MASTERCARD
                                                                                             FOUNDATION AWARD
                                                                                               2nd Place Winner
                                                 McGill Dobson Cup

Geek-it! is the marketplace for the geek culture. At
Geek-it!, users can buy and recommend geek
products such as anime food T-shirts, Star Wars
masks and Avengers toys. We also provide tools for
geek retailers to facilitate inventory management on
Geek-it! Marketplace.

NYC Retail Startup Tour
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
                                                          Gualtieri Inventions' aim is to include and
                                                          promote the well-being of people with
                                                          disabilities in air travel. They are
                                                          continuously striving to improve and          1st PLACE
                                                                                                         WINNER
                                                          provide solutions and support for this         Social Impact
                                                          community.                                    Enterprise track

                                                          McGill Dobson Cup

GynAware’s mission is to improve the quality of life
for women by reducing the number of unnecessary
surgeries in Gynaecology through an integrated and
cost-effective pre-surgical biopsy solution for uterine
tumors.

X-1 Accelerator
International Startup Tour

                                                       Healthybud is a pet wellness company
                                                       helping animals thrive through research-
                                                       backed nutrition, education and community.
                                                       Working alongside universities, vets and
                                                                                                         1st PLACE
                                                       nutritionists, Healthybud empowers pet-
                                                                                                          WINNER
                                                       parents to best care for their pets.             Health Sciences
                                                                                                        Enterprise Track
                                                       McGill Dobson Cup

 Heka Health is an on demand personalized
 healthcare platform that helps people who are
 injured or are in pain get a consultation as
 soon as possible while optimizing operating
 efficiency for clinic owners.
 McGill Dobson Cup
 X-1 Accelerator
 International Startup Tour
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
  Hepius Medical is developing smart
  cardiac catheter technology
  to assist surgeons in delivering safer
  and more effective ablation therapy
  to patients with cardiac arrhythmia.
                                                    STEVEN PAL
                                                  FAMILY AWARD
  McGill Dobson Cup

                                                       Hydrolux is a green hydrogen production
                                                       company distributing to warehouses looking to
                                                       transition towards fuel cell powered forklifts that
                                                       will save them money, increase productivity
                                                       and have a smaller impact on the planet.

                                                       X-1 Accelerator
                                                       International Startup Tour

Indigirecruit, an Indigenous student led social
enterprise, works to ensure adequate represent-
tation of Indigenous peoples in post-secondary
academic institutions by increasing University and
College application readiness in Canada.
X-1 Accelerator

                                                     Interius Farms provides clients with the
                                                     freshest produce while mitigating
                                                     pricing and supply chain risks through
                                                     long-term, price stabilized contracts.

                                                     X-1 Accelerator
                                                     International Startup Tour
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
JoS is an AI-powered communication application

that facilitates informed and shared decision-
making between patients, families, and surgical
teams. Their initial focus is to improve the
                                                           2nd PLACE
experienceand outcomes for children undergoing              WINNER
                                                          Health Sciences
surgery.                                                  Enterprise Track

McGill Dobson Cup

                                                 Just imagine designs and plants green
                                                 rooftops on buildings to achieve positive
                                                 environmental    and    social   impact.     The
                                                 ultimate goal is to look down from the sky
                                                 and see not a mass of conc rete, but a living
                                                 breathing city of green. Just imagine...
                                                 Lean Startup

A social network whereby users build
their volunteer profiles to enable
seamless volunteer onboarding with the                       2nd PLACE
                                                              WINNER
goal of encouraging volunteerism                             Social Impact
amongst university students.                                Enterprise Track

                                                         & AVMOR PRIZE FOR
McGill Dobson Cup                                       SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

                                                    LeapEd Foundation facilitates creative
                                                    thinking, practical learning and skills
                                                    development through the provision of
                                                    entrepreneurship training, technological
                                                    skills training and mentorship programs
                                                    for Zambian High school students.

                                                    McGill Dobson Cup
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS

                                                Lenders API is a challenger credit
                                                bureau that provides real time
                                                data to Canadian lenders.

                                                McGill Dobson Cup

Live Cell Technologies Canada
provides consumables, consulting, and
software for microscopy-based
quantification of cellular contractile
forces in response to pharmaceuticals.
X-1 Accelerator

                                                        MBRAINBIO
                                                        Our aim at MBrainBio is to ameliorate the organoid
                                                        production process, making it robust, consistent and
                                                        scalable, to levels where organoids can be provided to
                                                        users across the life science sectors for testing a given
                                                        therapeutic related to disorders of the brain.

                                                        Neuroscience Lean Startup

We're making expert nutrition advice
accessible and personalized for student-
athletes. Our platform matches users to their
ideal nutritionist from a curated network of
sports nutrition experts.

Lean Startup
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
                                                       MinutesFluidics is disrupting the
                                                       traditional testing market by developing
                                                       a faster, easier to use, and more
                                                       affordable diagnostic test for the MRSA
                                                       superbug.

                                                       X-1 Accelerator
                                                       International Startup Tour

 MoveMate connects customers with a Mate that has the
 tools, the manpower, and the vehicle adapted to their
 needs. We take care of packing and transporting
 peoples’ possessions to their new residence, as well as
 delivering any large item purchased online or at retailers.

 X-1 Accelerator
 International Startup Tour

                                           My Media Creative is a youth-run non-
                                           profit creative agency serving social
                                           impact organizations across Canada.
                                                                                                  2nd PLACE
                                                                                                   WINNER
                                           McGill Dobson Cup
                                                                                                   Social Impact
                                                                                                  Enterprise Track

My Place du Marche develops IT
infrastructure to improve food
nonprofits’ operations by creating a
digital marketplace through a
centralized network of volunteers and         MURDOCH FAMILY
                                              INITIATIVE AWARD
organizations.

McGill Dobson Cup
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
At Neophyto Foods, our goal is to make it easier
for everyone to choose foods that are delicious as
well as kind to the planet. Our first product is a
soy-based fermented cream cheese product with
a smooth and creamy texture, akin to that of dairy
cream cheese.
X-1 Accelerator

                             Building resilience against Alzheimer’s Disease

                             Neuro Nautilus is developing computerized program utilizing
                             virtual reality to stimulate memory and plasticity in the
                             healthy older adult hippocampus and neocortex, offering
                             resilience against Alzheimer’s disease.

                             Neuroscience Lean Startup

Empowering people to grow nutrient-rich
greens at home with an easy-to-use
indoor garden to effortlessly grow more
than 20 types of microgreens all year
round.

X-1 Accelerator
International Startup Tour

                                                             NURA Medical aims to reduce human
                                                             error and increase efficiency of care
                                                             in pediatric emergency departments
                                                             through the development of user-friendly,
                                                             automated intravenous solutions.

                                                             X-1 Accelerator
                                                             International Startup Tour
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
                                                Nurau’s platform provides businesses with creative,
                                                accessible, novel, custom and science-based
                                                solutions to further each individual’s goals of becoming
                                                their very best self which in turn will improve
                                                productivity and ultimately benefit the bottom line.

                                                Neuroscience Lean Startup
                                                International Startup Tour

A private, not-for-profit social impact enterprise
organization that aims at improving the overall
health of women and children through fostering
                                                            MASTERCARD
optimal feeding programs and nutrition-sensitive         FOUNDATION AWARD
agricultural programs in African communities.              2nd Place Winner

McGill Dobson Cup

                                               Off The Grid offers a spinning bike that
                                               reinjects electricity in the grid of the building
                                               reducing monthly bills for the gym, while a web
                                               application allows users to compete with others
                                               to reduce their ecological footprint.

                                               X-1 Accelerator
                                               International Startup Tour

  Save life with cellphones! An
  artificial intelligence-based
  application to diagnose oral cancer
  using cellphone images.

  X-1 Accelerator
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
                                                      Otto develops technologies that
                                                      drive growth and bring operational
                                                      efficiencies to independent
                                                      eyecare practices, empowering
                                                      them to remain competitive in an
                                                      evolving industry.

                                                      McGill Dobson Cup

Developing therapeutic wearable
technologies for gait and posture
vulnerabilities that can be marketed
directly to those at risk and those
who treat them.
X-1 Accelerator

                                                       Placify is a solution that helps people
                                                       move in their dream house now and
                                                       build equity while living in it. We are
                                                       on a mission to make homeownership
                                                       possible for everyone.

                                                       Lean Startup

PROJECT BUILD-IT aims to improve treatment
modalities and create diagnostic solutions for
patients    with cancer.   The founding team’s
synergy     comes   from    their     complementary
expertise in basic, translational, and clinical
research in the areas of Immunology and
Oncology.
Lean Startup
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS

                                    RailVision Analytics specializes in artificial
                                    intelligence and software for the rail industry.
                                    Our projects are focused on reducing fuel
                                    consumption, preventing locomotive failure
                                    and improving the safety of rail operations.
                                    International Startup Tour

Reconsolidation Therapy offers an efficient
treatment method for treating psychiatric
symptoms stemming from a bad memory. The
treatment has the potential to be improved and
patented, and used for a variety of mental
disorders locally and globally.
X-1 Accelerator

                                                    Remote Optical provides medical
                                                    devices that allow ophthalmologists
                                                    and optometrists to remotely
                                                    examine, diagnose and track optical
                                                    diseases, disorders, and damage.      3rd PLACE
                                                                                           WINNER
                                                    McGill Dobson Cup                     Health and Science
                                                                                           Enterprise Track

RELIEFAI measures physical symptoms of
childhood disorders as well as inputs from
family and mentors with the highest technology
to detect any mental disorder using machine-
learning algorithms.
Lean Startup
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
                                                      The Rydersafely platform validates that
                                                      autonomous systems can perceive
                                                      unforeseen dangers - or edge cases -
                                                      around them. This unblocks automotives                1st PLACE
                                                      to mandated assisted driving in 2021 and               WINNER
                                                                                                             Innovation and
                                                      the $2.5 trillion self-driving future.               Technology Driven
                                                                                                            Enterprise Track

                                                      McGill Dobson Cup

SEEDAI offers services across the whole data
value chain, and builds and maintains custom AI
solutions and products. We have also developed
a unique and proven methodology to help
organizations in their transformation towards AI.

X-1 Accelerator
NYC Retail Startup Tour

                                                             ShuttleControl is a Software-as-a-Service
                                                             designed to revolutionize the way courtesy
                                                             shuttle services are offered around the world.
                                                             We offer an all-in-one solution to increase
                                                             customer satisfaction and make shuttle
                                                             operations easy.

                                                             NYC Retail Startup Tour

                     “It [Neuroscience Lean Startup program] transformed my idea into
                      something more palpable. I am less scared to see my idea as a
                                                  startup.”

                                          Dr. Patricia Pelufo Silveira, Founder, ePRS Cluster
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
Simmunome Inc. builds AI-driven
disease simulations to predict outcomes
of clinical trials in the drug discovery
process. Using their approach,
researchers could avoid costly late-
stage failures before stepping into the
lab.

McGill Dobson Cup

                                                    Sktch.io is a no-code platform that
                                                    allows anyone to build dynamic
                                                    websites and apps.

                                                    McGill Dobson Cup

  SOBREMESA

  Sobremesa is an AI matcher that helps solo diners find quality
  companions to virtually converse with over meals. Using mealtimes
  as social opportunities, we strive to foster meaningful conversations
  and forge new friendships.

  Lean Startup

                                                  SquareFeet.ai optimizes the revenue
                                                  of a new residential development
                                                  project by offering automated market
                                                  research, automated initial price list
                                                                                           2nd PLACE
                                                  generation and a demand driven
                                                                                            WINNER
                                                                                             Innov ation and
                                                  dynamic price optimization.
                                                                                           Technology Driv en
                                                                                            Enterprise Track
                                                  McGill Dobson Cup
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
                                                    Stocate connects local sellers with their
                                                    customers through an online platform to
                                                    make local businesses more accessible to
                                                    their community.
                                                    McGill Dobson Cup
                                                    X-1 Accelerator

Toujours en Groupe Foundation is a non-
profit organization that aims at reaching
vulnerable people, in order to empower them
economically, mentally, and socially. They
aim to change lives today for a better
tomorrow.

McGill Dobson Cup

                                                   TRAQC is an easily integrated
                                                   solution for non-destructive and
                                                   in-line quality control of printed
                                                   electronics, reducing the production
                                                   cost by up to 80% and the production
                                                   time by up to 90%.
                                                   International Startup Tour

              learned a lot from the opportunities for one-on-one mentorship –
            “We
           both sessions allowed us to take away something that completely
         changed an aspect of our current plan (both our pitch and our financial
            projections). The visibility that the Dobson Cup gives you is also
                fantastic, and I truly believe will open many doors for us!”
                                    Chloë Ryan, Co-Founder, Acrylic Designs
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS

We give bodegas in Latin America a
frictionless, AI-powered app that automates
orders, optimizes inventory using AI and
saves them time, increases revenue and
allows them to compete with larger chains.
International Startup Tour

                                                             Our tech-enabled urban farms
                                                             cultivate local, pesticide-free
                                                             strawberries all year long to
                                                             provide consumers with a
                                                             healthier, higher quality, and
                                                             more sustainable product.
                                                             X-1 Accelerator
                                                             International Startup Tour

VitalTracer focuses on personalized medicine. We use
biomedical sensors through the wrist to continuously
detect bio-signals and store them in a secure cloud -
based environment. By using machine learning
algorithms, a complete assessment of vital signs can
be provided and shared with the doctor or caregiver as
needed.
International Startup Tour

                                           WALK-AI
                                           With the help of WALK-AI, physicians will be better equipped to diagnose
                                           ataxia at an earlier stage and prescribe appropriate intervention, improving
                                           patients’ prognoses and quality of life. By harnessing the power of machine
                                           learning, WALK-AI is programmed to detect close to 100 well-known features
                                           from gait and balance before disease onset.

                                           Neuroscience Lean Startup
2020-2021 DOBSON STARTUPS
XCOV19 aims to build a software application that
will help patients and hospitals in third world
countries overcome the pre-admission
challenges that they face. Specifically, we will
provide a service to route patients to the nearest
hospital and to pre-register them to allow for an
accelerated admission.
Lean Startup

                                                   8 BIT CORTEX
                                                   Our app uses gamified micro-tests to measure changes
                                                   in cognition, mood, and health behaviors over time to
                                                   automate the psychiatric assessment process and
                                                   expand its scope to be more informative for clinician
                                                   treatment planning.

                                                   Neuroscience Lean Startup

UNTITLED PROJECT
A non-profit start-up at the intersection of genomics, machine
learning (ML) and neuropsychiatric disease to help physicians
in diagnosing patients with neuropsychiatric diseases.

Neuroscience Lean Startup

                    “It has been really great in helping compartmentalize the
                       overwhelming amount of work of a startup into more
                      manageable and specific goals (making it easier to get
                        things done efficiently and also avoiding forgetting
                                 potentially important aspects).”
                                          Ashley Bock, Co-Founder, Just Imagine
IV. THE DOBSON CENTRE
& STARTUPS IN THE
NEWS
• 2020-21 Media Presence

                           47
DOBSON
IN THE NEWS
AUGUST 2020                         OCTOBER 2020                        NOVEMBER 2020
Dobson Centre                       Dobson Centre                       Nura Medical & PhysioBiometrics Inc.

McGill newsroom: Dobson             McGill Giving: Planting the seeds   Bonjour Startup Montréal: En
Centre receives $3M gift to         of innovation                       route vers le Web Summit
bolster entrepreneurship at
McGill
                                                                        DECEMBER 2020
                                    McGill ranks 1st in Canada, 30th
                                    globally and 18th for Female
CTV News: Startups find ways to     Founders: Pitchbook Universities
adapt and thrive during COVID-      2020 Ranking
19 crisis
                                                                        Interius Farm
                                    McGill among the world’ s leading
McGill Alumni: The Role of          universities for female founders    McGill Newsroom: Sustainably
Startups in the time of COVID-19
                                                                        grown, pesticide-free produce for
                                    McGill entrepreneurship             Canadians, McGill
Crew Sync (formerly First Mark)     programs ranked one of the best
                                    in Canada                           Rail Vision
Hollywood Reporter: Canada
Restarts Holiday Film Production    Sensequake                          McGill Newsroom: Using AI to
With Quarantine Pods, Masks                                             help railroads save fuel, cut
and Santa Masks                     Quebec Science: Invention of        greenhouse emissions, McGill
                                    the year 2020
                                                                        Off the Grid
                                    ShuttleControl
                                                                        LinkedIn: Off the Grid wins big at
SEPTEMBER 2020
                                    Auto123: 5 Simple Ways to Help      the Gala des prix innovation of
                                    Your Dealership Stand Out           ADRIQ-RCTi, LinkedIn
                                    Using Mobility Software

VitalTracer                                                             Planned
                                    Nurau
CTV News: Montreal inventor's                                           PRWeb: Planned announces
                                    C2Mtl: Drum roll                    $4.7M in funding to build the
smartwatch could help in battle     please…Announcing the winners
against COVID-19                                                        future of event planning in a
                                    of the 2020 Emerging                post-pandemic world , PR Web
                                    Entrepreneurs Contest
MoveMate
                                                                        Gynaware
                                    Off The Grid
Award recipient at Startup Fest
2020 for both the Wild Card                                             LinkedIn: Gynaware takes first
                                    24h Montréal: Un vélo               place at the Biotechnology and
Prize for the best pitch            stationnaire pour économiser de
competition                                                             Bioengineering Conference's
                                    l'Hydro                             Second Annual Pitch
Top 10 Companies voted by                                               Competition, LinkedIn
CBC in their ability to pivot due
to COVID

                                                                                                          48
JANUARY 2021                        FEBRUARY 2021                       Global News: Cheaper food
                                                                        delivery service in Montreal
                                                                        giving Uber Eats and company a
                                                                        run for their money
Off the Grid                        Eric Boyko, BCom'92 and Dobson
                                    alumnus                             The Montreal Gazette:CHK PLZ
Le Journal de Montreal: L’ hydro-                                       booms in the pandemic, offering
vélo, une idée électrisante,        From mentee of the late John        a low-cost alternative to
                                    Dobson to leading a disruptive      UberEats
CHK PLZ                             global business: Eric Boyko's
                                    entrepreneurship journey,           Sonder
CTYV News: Wine Delivery
Victory for restaurants, CTV        Arkangel AI                         Sonder Announces Partnership
News                                                                    with Government of Québec ,
                                    Google: Canadian startup            Sonder Journal
Montreal Inc.: 4 Questions à        Arkangel AI taps into Cloud tech
Roberto Casoli, LinkedIn
Montréal Inc.
                                    to remotely detect disease in
                                    seconds—including COVID-19,         MARCH 2021
VitalTracer                         Forbes Colombia: Con IA para
                                    prevenir enfermedades,              Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship
Innovating Canada: Innovation in    colombianos ganan premio
Canada’ s Entrepreneurship          mundial de Everis,                  McGill Reporter: Dobson Centre
Community, Innovating Canada                                            surpasses $1-billion milestone in
                                    LinkedIn Jose Zea                   startup seed funding
Ubenwa Health
                                    Vital Tracer                        Le Cercle canadien de Montréal:
McGill Newsroom: The birth of                                           Chris Arsenault, Founding
an idea, McGill University          LinkedIn: Azadeh Dastmalchi         Partner at Inovia Capital followed
                                    named as one of Top 25 Women        by a Q&A with Marie Josee
FitDrive                            of Influence Canada                 Lamothe

Hustle Over Everything              Off the Grid                        Chambre de Commerce
Podcast: Ep. 53: Behind the App                                         Métropolitaine de Montréal:
- How He Created a Fitness          Les Retours du 91.9 FM              Marie Josée Lamothe to speak
Company from                                                            on entrepreneurship, diversity
Scratch (Spotify | Apple)           Le Courrier du Sud: Off the Grid    and the Dobson Centre on
                                    veut récupérer l’énergie que        March 26
GynAware                            vous produisez en vous
                                    entraînant,                         The Globe and Mail: With spare
LinledIn: First place win at the                                        time during the pandemic,
Biotechnology and                                                       hobbyists are starting their own
Bioengineering conference of the    Explora TV: Réduire sa facture      micro-ecommerce businesses
University of Waterloo, LinkedIn    d'électricité en faisant du vélo!
                                                                        Ryan Thomas McInturf's Rants
MoveMate                            Local university grads create an    and Raves Podcast
                                    eco-friendly spin bike that
Founder Institute Montreal: Co-     generates electricity               La Presse: Le secteur des
founder Lucas Francioli                                                 entreprises en démarrage est en
discusses the future of             CHK PLZ                             ébullition
transportation in Montreal,
Founder Institute Montreal          MTL Blog: There's A Montreal-       L'Actualité:
                                    based App Offering                  Des entreprises en démarrage
Sensequake                          Commission-Free Delivery For        tirent leur épingle du jeu même
                                    Your Fave Restaurants               en pleine pandémie
TechWeek 2020: Quebec
Business Forum at the Mexico
TechWeek2020, LinkedIn
Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship    Global News: Cheaper food              Gualtieri Inventions
                                      delivery service in Montreal
LinkedIn: Mouvement des               giving Uber Eats and company a         CBC:Montreal woman with
accélérateurs d'innovation du         run for their money                    cerebral palsy designs custom
Québec                                                                       airplane seat for people with
                                      Squarefeet.ai                          disabilities
Sonder
                                      The Montreal Gazette: Montreal         CBC Listen: An airplane seat for
CTV News: Montreal man turns          startup uses AI to set real-estate     people with disabilities
side hustle into billion-dollar       prices
business                                                                     Circulus Agtech
                                      Forbes: Montreal Entrepreneurs
                                      Aim To Simplify Real Estate            LinkedIn: Circulus Agtech obtient
CTV News: How a McGill                Pricing With Artificial Intelligence   le soutien du gouvernement du
dropout wound up running a            Tool                                   Québec, via le programme
billion-dollar business with Jeff                                            d’Innovation Volet 1
Bezos' backing                        Renx.ca: Proptech startup
                                      Squarefeet.ai prices condo,            Eli
                                      rental projects
CNBC Make It: This 28-year-old                                               LinkedIn: EFFERVESCENCE
turned his college side hustle        The Peak                               2021 winners
into a $1.3 billion start-up backed   Weekly Podcast: Selling over
by Jeff Bezos                         350,000 Face Masks During
                                      COVID-19 with Jordan Owen,             APRIL 2021
Taiga Motors                          CEO of Squarefeet.ai,

The Financial Post:                   Droit-Inc: Pas de stage, pas de
                                                                             Dobson Centre for
Taiga's new deal turns up the         job...Je pars en affaires!
                                                                             Entrepreneurship
throttle on the electric
snowmobile dream                      LinkedIn: Jordan Owen Pricing
                                                                             Chambre de Commerce du
                                      analysis                               Montreal: La diversité
La Presse: Taïga Motors
                                                                             entrepreneuriale : au cœur d’une
construira une usine à                MTL in Tech: Mondev sons ’ AI
                                                                             relance inclusive
Shawinigan                            startup scratching a real estate
                                      itch
                                                                             Taiga Motors
Blazing trails in electric
snowmobiles | Les petits génies       Off the Grid
                                                                             Cision Newswire: Taiga Motors
de la motoneige
                                                                             Corporation (formerly Canaccord
                                      La Ruche: Off The Grid Spinning        Genuity Growth II Corp.)
Montreal jet-ski maker Taiga to       Bikes
                                                                             Announces Completion of
go public via Cannacord SPAC,                                                Qualifying Transaction; Symbols
                                      91.9 Sports: Entrevue avec
                                                                             of the Securities of the
CHKPLZ                                Charles Couture-Lebrun
                                                                             Combined Company on the TSX
                                                                             Expected to Change to "TAIG"
McGill Alumni Magazine: Helping       La Presse: Off The Grid : pour
                                                                             And "TAIG.WT" on April 23,
restaurants survive the               arrêter de pédaler dans le vide        2021,
pandemic
                                      VitalTracer
                                                                             Cision Newswire: Canaccord
CTV News: Wine delivery victory                                              Genuity Growth II Corp.
for restaurants                       uOttawa Gazette: PhD candidate
                                                                             Confirms Closing Date of
                                      from uOttawa develops a                Qualifying Transaction and
The Montreal Gazette:                 smartwatch that can help save
                                                                             Announces Redemptions in
CHK PLZ booms in pandemic,            lives
                                                                             Connection Therewith,
offering a low-cost alternative to
UberEats
Cision Newswire:                   Mixonset                             Taiga Motors
Taiga Commences Trading on
the Toronto Stock Exchange         Mixonset Partners with TIDAL for     Les Affaires : À surveiller: Taiga
                                   Revolutionary Smart DJ               Motors, Stella-Jones et Cargojet
Cision Newswire:                   Experience
Taiga Virtually Opens the Market                                        BNN Bloomberg: We have first
                                   SquarefeetAI                         movers advantage in the off-road
Yahoo Finance: Stocks in play:                                          electrify vehicle market: Taiga
Taiga Motors Corporation           La Presse Plus: Suspense sur         Motors CEO
                                   les prix des loyers
La Presse: Une année au son                                             Sonder
des véhicules récréatifs …         La Presse : Des condos appelés
électriques                        à s’apprécier plus vite que le       The Globe and Mail: Travel
                                   marché                               accommodations provider
Inside Evs:                                                             Sonder outlines aggressive
Tesla Model 3 Performance          Real Estate Magazine:                growth plans as it says it will go
Races Taiga Snowmobile In A        SquareFeet.ai stakes claim as        public
Muddy Mess                         “pioneer of price optimization” in
                                   real estate                          Real Estate Daily Beat: Sonder
Plug Boats: More electric boats                                         agrees to $2.2B SPAC deal
investments: X Shore $18M,         Real Estate News Exchange:
ePropulsion $15M                   Proptech startup Squarefeet.ai       GlobeSt.com: Sonder is the
                                   prices condo, rental projects        Latest to Join the SPAC Parade
The Battlefords News-Optimist,                                          With a $2.2B Deal
On-site, Canadian Plastics:        Front Row Ventures: Behind the
Taiga Motors Inc. plans to build   Deal: SquareFeet.ai                  Yahoo Finance: Sonder to go
assembly plant in Shawinigan,                                           public in $2.2 billion SPAC deal
Que.                               Gualtieri Inventions

BC Business:                       Desautels Faculty of
B.C. cleantech company hits the    Management:
road to keep electric vehicles     Dobson Cup Winner is
running                            Transforming Air Travel for
                                   People with Disabilities
Sonder

La Presse: Sonder entre au
NASDAQ par la petite porte         MAY 2021
Million Acre: Sonder Becomes
Latest Company to Go Public
Via SPAC: Is It Investible?        Interius Farms

Betakit: Sonder to go Public on    LinkedIn: Sustainable
NASDAQ Through SPAC Deal           Development Technology
                                   Canada announce along with
Hotel Business: Sonder merges      Minister François-Philippe
with Gores Metropoulos II; to go   Champagne an investment of
public                             $1.9M in 21 additional leading
                                   Canadian cleantech firms!
Short Term Rentalz, BTN:
Sonder rumoured to go public
with $2.5bn valuation
V. WITH GRATITUDE

Our 2020-21:
• Partners
• Mentors
• Speakers
• Panelists
• Judges
• Volunteers

                    52
Thank you...
                                      Thank you for an unequaled year.

J. Adler              D. Dasilva              S. Harper         N. Murdoch            J. Sicard
P. Alessi             A. Dastmalchi           R. Heckler        M. Nantais            A. Sosangelis Lorenzo
M. Amar               M. Davaapil             S. Hernandez      R. Nason              S. Sow​
S. Ansary             F. Davidson             G. Hoberman       D. Nault              J. Speak
P. Audette            J. Delage               O. Hogeboom       O. Novac              A. Spitzer
I. Bajeux-Besnainou   D. Demetry              J. Huspeth        M. Daniel Nicolescu   S. Stern
J. Barralet           M. Deschamps            O. Juma           S. Pal                H. Stevenson
R. Bellini            E. Devilliers           S. Kalra          A. Palermo            Andriy Strogan
C. Bernardi           D. Di Palma             J. Kasper         T. Park               T. Suleyman
C. Berube             P. Di Pierro            J. Kelisky        M. Piché              S. Suzer
J. Besnainou          T. Ducrot               A. Kirby          D. Pinault            N. Tadjine
F. Blackburn          M. Enault               S. Kokinos        J. Piquion            N. Taghvai
F. Blaise             M. Etinson              S. Kozlick        A. Popliger           N. Taleb
C. Bonello            N. Feller               É. Labelle        S. Purohit            A. Tchoupani
A. Bouchard           A. Ferrara              I. Lalani         S. Rao                S. Tenasco
H. Boulos             P. Flegel               R. Lalonde        L. Rathmell           C. Thierry
R. Bouskila           S. Fraser               F. Lamoureux      C. Rizzi              L. Tisi
E. Boyko              M. Frate                S. Landolt        C. Robinson           L. Veilleux
G. Cadet              P. Gagne                M. Lane           D. Roskams-Edris      L. Velasquez
R. Cayouette          I. Galiana              G. Larkin         P. Rwagatore          E. Verrier-Choquette
T. Ceci               F. Gervais              S. Leblanc        S. Saab               J. Walewicz
B. Chau               G. Gervais              C. Lennon         D. Saks               Y. Wardowski
C. Chow               S. Germain              C. Macdonald      J. Sasson             M. Weber
S. Chronopoulos       J. Gomez Zea            M. Maciw          P. Séguéla            M. Weiss
P. Chrysdale          R. Gruber               M. Mee            K. Self               A. Wheatley
C. Corkery            C. Guimond-Drapeau      V. Missout        J. Selick             C. Williams
B. Cornwall           N. Haeems               C. Mong Lee       N. Sharma             S. Yaphe
P. Cote               M. Hammad               S. Morsly-Fikai   D. Shemesh
                                              D. Moss
LET’S STAY
IN TOUCH.
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