Accelerate Fund

Our Edmonton team is catching their breath after a whirlwind of activity at Edmonton Startup Week! Our top highlights from the week: 𝗩𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗦𝘂𝗺𝗺𝗶𝘁: 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗥𝗼𝗯𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗩𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺: Our portfolio company Wyvern's co-founder Callie Lissinna shared valuable insights from their fundraising journey, while Arden Tse spoke about the emerging trend of Venture Studios. 𝗖𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗘𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗪𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗔𝗜 𝗶𝗻 𝗦𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀: SCALEDai shared how leveraging AI doesn't have to look like or match what large enterprises like Amazon or Walmart are doing. Small businesses can start their AI journey through bite-sized approaches like automating social media content or optimizing deal flow funnels. The 𝗙𝘂𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵: 𝗟𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗗𝗶𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗡𝗼𝗻-𝗗𝗶𝗹𝘂𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗖𝗮𝗽𝗶𝘁𝗮𝗹 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗰 𝗦𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗲 panel hosted by the Black Business Ventures Association brought together experts from Startup TNT, MNP, BDC Capital (Canada) and Spring Activator USA with practical insights for companies at every stage. 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸 𝗪𝗮𝗿𝗺-𝗨𝗽: 𝗙𝗶𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗧𝗲𝗰𝗵 𝘅 Artemis Canada 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗥𝘂𝗻 & 𝗖𝗼𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗲 brought the community together for an energizing River Valley trail run/walk. Amazing to see how this fitness networking group has grown since Arden Tse and Matt Anderson-Baron of Future Fields launched it 1.5 years ago! 𝗔𝗺𝗶𝗶 𝗔𝗜 𝗜𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗣𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘁 showcased 7 promising AI startups with a speed dating style pitch format to a diverse audience of investors and industry leaders. Thanks to Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute (Amii), AWS Startup Team, and University of Alberta for putting together this event! 𝗟𝗮𝘂𝗻𝗰𝗵 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘆 𝟭𝟱: 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗵 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘆 𝗘𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 celebrated Edmonton's growing companies with s'mores and startup pitches. Great to see half of the companies featured within the health technologies sector and long time startup community members engaging with new community members. Congratulations to Medi-scribe on their People's Choice win! 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗔𝗹𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘁𝗮 𝗜𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗙𝘂𝗻𝗱'𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗰𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗯𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. Great to hear from UA President Bill Flanagan and Minister Nate Glubish as well as updates from UAI Fund portfolio companies. The UAI Fund is co-invested with AF in 3 of their 5 portfolio companies: Areto Labs, PulseMedica, and Wyvern. Kudos to the team at Edmonton Unlimited (including the many hardworking volunteers and event participants) for showcasing our lively and growing startup community here in Edmonton, especially on the heels of API's Life Sciences Week. Big things are happening in YEG! #EdmontonStartupWeek #YEGTech #AlbertaTech

Congrats to Edmonton’s Wyvern on your $6M USD financing round to support US and global expansion! The round was led by Squadra Ventures and AF III is proud to participate along with Uncork Capital, Y Combinator, The University of Alberta’s Innovation Fund (UAIF) and Brent Perrot. Wyvern’s first satellites in the Dragonette constellation are already in orbit, providing the highest-resolution hyperspectral imagery available on the market. Its next generation of satellites will capture even better data across a larger spectral range at higher resolutions. As demand for advanced Earth imaging grows across sectors like forestry, agriculture, energy, defense, and environmental monitoring, Wyvern is well-positioned to become a global leader in Earth observation. Congrats Christopher Robson, Kurtis Broda, Kristen Cote, Callie Lissinna and the entire Wyvern team!  We’re excited to support your continued growth and expansion. See the news: https://lnkd.in/gSmPQMiH #Alberta #Edmonton #CDNtech #DeepTech #SpaceTech  #VentureCapital #Investment 

ICYMI: We sat down with Liz O'Connell, CEO and Co-Founder of Arolytics and Benjamin Kemp, CEO of Ambyint, to talk about why they are doubling down on the oil and gas industry, how to navigate headwinds to raise capital and support an industry in transition. See the full interview: https://lnkd.in/gSbtjeMx #AlbertaTech #ABtech #Tech #Scaleup #Commercialization #Energy #OilandGas #EnergyTech #Innovation

What does it take to commercialize and scale an energy tech business while supporting an industry in transition? We asked Liz O'Connell, CEO and Co-Founder of Arolytics and Benjamin Kemp, CEO of Ambyint, about their journeys leading rapidly growing energy tech companies, how to build trust in the oil and gas sector, capitalizing on timing and securing investment in challenging times. See the full interview: https://lnkd.in/gSbtjeMx #AlbertaTech #ABtech #Tech #Scaleup #Commercialization #Energy #OilandGas #EnergyTech #Innovation

Congrats to Edmonton’s PulseMedica for being selected as one of 14 Canadian AI and ML-focused startups to participate in the 2024 Google for Startups Accelerator Canada program! During the 3-month equity-free program, PulseMedica will gain access to Google's experts and technology, with mentorship and technical project support focused on the development of their AI and ML technologies. Fantastic news to share as we celebrate Life Sciences Week in Alberta. #GoogleforStartups #Alberta #AlbertaTech #MedTech #AI #ML #LifeSciences

Alberta’s Life Sciences Week is back, and takes place September 23-27! Bringing together the province’s life sciences community, we’re looking forward to engaging with industry leaders, researchers, and emerging life sciences companies! Here’s where you can catch the Accelerate Fund team: Tues Sep 24 at 10:15 to 11 am Arden Tse joins the panel of 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘙𝘰𝘭𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘱𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘋𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘐𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯. Register: https://lu.ma/nnk8izw2 Tues, Sep 24 at 11 am to noon Catch both Arden & Yasmine Al-Hussein, MBA at 𝘋𝘦𝘮𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘺𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘌𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘚𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘐𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨.  Register: https://lu.ma/2aropel2 Plus don’t miss: DrugBank's Head Office Tour on Tues, Sept 24 from 2 to 3 pm.  Register: https://lu.ma/6qzd3ipq Yaletown Partners advisor Amit Monga moderating a panel on 𝘉𝘰𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘐𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘎𝘢𝘮𝘦: 𝘚𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘓𝘪𝘧𝘦 𝘚𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘚𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 on Tues, Sept 24 at 2:15 to 3 pm.  Register: https://lu.ma/ate89up5 Check out the fantastic lineup of events and secure your spot at https://lnkd.in/dzx5f8MH #Alberta #LifeSciences #ABtech #LifeSciencesWeek 

Congrats Syantra Inc. on securing $4.9M Series A-1 financing! This funding will help accelerate the clinical validation and commercialization of the Syantra DX breast cancer test. We’re proud to have invested in Syantra since January 2022. It's been amazing to see your incredible growth! Kudos to Dr. Kristina Rinker and the entire Syantra team on this milestone, and all your hard work to change the way cancer is detected and treated. See the news: https://lnkd.in/gAtrpkyg  #ABTech  #AlbertaTech #MedTech #Investment

What do Helcim, Virtual Gurus, Ambyint, WaitWell, Ontopical, PayShepherd and Syantra Inc. have in common? They are all forward-looking Calgary tech companies solving some of the biggest global challenges, backed by Accelerate Fund III thanks to investors like the Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund (OCIF) and Alberta Enterprise Corporation (AEC). Back in 2021, OCIF committed $6 million to AFIII to help us support fast-growing Alberta tech startups looking for early-stage funding. Since then, AFIII has invested in 19 Alberta companies—14 of which are Calgary-based which also include Zamplo, Gradient MSP and OpenHouse.ai. Access to funds is critical for Calgary startups to scale and create long-term prosperity, helping drive local economic resiliency and innovation. Learn more about our partnership with OCIF and how the $23 million AFIII has helped to foster a supportive and inclusive startup ecosystem: https://lnkd.in/g5mD4Bn2 #Calgary #YYC #YYCTech #CalgaryTech #Tech Calgary Economic Development City of Calgary Alberta Enterprise Corporation (AEC) Yaletown Partners A100

Congratulations to Syantra Inc. and the research team led by Dr. Kristina Rinker on securing over $3M in funding from the US Department of Defense! This investment will support a three-year, 2,000-participant clinical study to evaluate their innovative blood test for breast cancer detection across six sites in the U.S. and U.K. The project, in partnership with the University of Calgary and Cornell University, aims to expand clinical data and improve early detection for women from diverse backgrounds. Kudos to the entire Syantra team as you continue to advance breast cancer screening technology and save lives through early detection. #BreastCancer #MedTech #WomenHealth #Research #Innovation #ClinicalTrials #Canada #USA #UK

Last week, our team took part in the C-Tribe Festival & Conference in Edmonton to celebrate diversity and support innovators from underestimated communities. We had a chance to meet with innovators across the nation to share insights on venture capital and fundraising, what key areas we fund and risk we look for in the investor lounge. Plus AF’s Yasmine Al-Hussein, MBA and Arden Tse alongside Raissa Espiritu were the judges of the C-Tribe x Tech ElevateHer Pitch Competition! Congrats to the winners: • First place: Vishar Yaghoubian, Toothpod • Second place: Yvonne Osagie, MBET, Med Melanin • Third place: Purvaja S., Binoloop And well done to all the finalists: The Celiapp, CoLab Education, LiiT Care Connect Inc., Nexarina, Oralee Connect and Aruna Revolution. See you next year! #CTRIBE24 #Alberta #Tech #AlbertaTech #ABTech #YEGTech #Innovation #Startup #Scaleup #Founders #Investors #WomeninTech