From Elevate to Nrth, Toronto’s tech and innovation community has had a front-row seat to some of the people shaping what comes next. The first-ever Nrth Festival brought together founders, investors, executives, innovators, and technology leaders for conversations about AI, business, innovation, and the future of Canada’s economy. The conference builds on a legacy that in the past has welcomed influential voices including Michelle Obama, Sam Altman, Venus Williams, Geoffrey Hinton, and Harley Finkelstein. This year’s lineup included Kyle Lowry, CEO of North Twenty ventures, alongside leaders from Cohere, Shopify, TechCrunch, Xanadu, ElevenLabs, Clio, Microsoft Canada, BDC, Wealthsimple, Reddit, Inc., TD, and many more. The Startup Ecosystem Canada team was on the ground to connect with founders, capture conversations, and help shape Canada’s technology and startup landscape. A new name, a new chapter, and a growing platform for the people building what’s next. #NrthFestival #Nrth2026 #StartupEcosystemCanada #CanadianTech #TorontoTech #Innovation #Startups #AI #Entrepreneurship
Startup Ecosystem Canada
Venture Capital and Private Equity Principals
Strengthening the startup ecosystem through Events, Resources, and Partnerships.
About us
Startup Ecosystem Canada is designed to nurture the next generation of world-changing companies. We empower visionary entrepreneurs by connecting them with key stakeholders including Solution Providers, Media and Press, Talent, Governments and Funding Organisations. Startup Ecosystem has meticulously crafted a network that creates value by collaboration through events, resources and partnerships to drive collective success. Our team understands the challenges of stakeholder engagement in building a venture. We are committed to building a community that empowers founders to drive transformative change.
- Website
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https://www.startupecosystem.ca/
External link for Startup Ecosystem Canada
- Industry
- Venture Capital and Private Equity Principals
- Company size
- 51-200 employees
- Headquarters
- Toronto
- Type
- Privately Held
Employees at Startup Ecosystem Canada
View 80 employees at Startup Ecosystem Canada
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Toronto, CA
Updates
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Startup Ecosystem Canada reposted this
On September 19, I had the privilege of judging Future Legends! Hackathon: UofT Edition, and I came away really impressed by what students can build in a single day. Students filled the William Doo Auditorium to prototype and pitch ideas for more sustainable, connected cities, rooted in the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The quality of thinking and energy in the room was high. One project that stayed with me was Bike Better, an app that finds the safest cycling route to your destination using live accident, bike theft , bike lane, and traffic data. Anyone who has biked in Toronto knows why that matters. It was a great example of public data being put to work for the people who actually live in the city. I wish it was live so I could start using it now. Thank you to Startup Ecosystem Canada and to Eleni Belete for inviting me, and to all the student volunteers who made the day run so smoothly. It was a pleasure judging alongside Jason B. Ramsay and Russell Sng, and the rest of the qualified judging panel. And to every student who showed up and built something: you made it very hard to pick winners. #FutureLegends #UofT #TorontoHackathon
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This Saturday, Startup Ecosystem Canada is partnering with the Canadian Undergraduate Technology Conference (CUTC) for the Virtual Edition of CUTC 2026: TRANSFORM. Students, builders, researchers, designers, and future founders from everywhere are coming together on October 3rd for a free, fully online, interactive conference featuring incredible speakers like Harley Finkelstein (Shopify), Tim Bray + Frank Tompa (OpenText), and Dr. Marily Nika (Google). Moderated by the SEC Montreal Chapter Lead, Michelle Lingham, we’ll also be hosting a Startup Ecosystem Canada panel featuring: Jeffrey To | Front Row Ventures Tanjin Sultana | Coral Drishti Kothari 🍋🟩| McGill University The conversation will explore at how human skills help people stand out, solve problems, build teams, collaborate, and create value as technology continues to evolve. Throughout the day, you will be able to ask questions live, meet other ambitious students and builders, join small-group conversations, participate in activities and challenges, and hear directly from people working across startups, engineering, AI, research, and technology. October 3 | Live Online | Free Register for the Virtual Edition of CUTC 2026: https://luma.com/cutc26mtl #CUTC2026 #Technology #Innovation #StartupEcosystemCanada
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Today we observe National Day for Truth and Reconciliation 🧡 September 30 is an opportunity to reflect on the history and lasting legacy of residential schools and their impact on First Nations, Inuit, and Métis communities. Truth is an important part of understanding our shared history. Reconciliation asks us to carry that understanding forward through respect, learning, and meaningful action. Let this day be a reminder of our shared responsibility to listen to Indigenous voices, remember the past, and help build a future grounded in truth, respect, and reconciliation. Every Child Matters. 🧡 #NationalDayForTruthAndReconciliation #StartupEcosystemCanada #EveryChildMatters #OrangeShirtDay #IndigenousPeoples
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Startup Ecosystem Canada reposted this
Had a fun time at the Stripe Community and Startup Ecosystem Canada hackathons, hosted at U of T! The event was centered around the UN Sustainable Development Goals, which made it especially interesting for me coming from an Environmental Science background. My team worked on OpenBasket, an app focused on reducing food waste by helping people keep track of food before it expires, connect with local farmers, and share recipes within a community. Thanks to everyone who helped organize the event, to my team for a fun day, and to Shao Hang He for the invite :) #StripeCommunity #Stripe #FutureLegends #Hackathon #SDGs #UofT
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Startup Ecosystem Canada reposted this
A pretty fun way to spend the weekend: joining the Future Legends! Hackathon at the University of Toronto as a judge. 🚀 Hosted by Startup Ecosystem Canada, the hackathon gave teams just five hours to work through challenges across AI, sustainability, smart cities, and more. Some of the ideas were ambitious, some unexpected, and a few definitely made the judges think twice. That’s what makes hackathons fun - seeing how far an idea can go in just a few hours. Big thanks to Startup Ecosystem Canada for having us, and congrats to everyone who built, pitched, and survived the sprint! #TorontoHackathon #Hackathon #UniversityofToronto #UofT #StartupEcosystemCanada #FutureLegends
Future Legends! Hackathon: UofT Edition is officially wrapped! Last weekend brought hundreds of student builders together at University of Toronto for a day of collaboration, prototyping, pitching, and problem-solving around how we can use technology to create a more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient future. It was incredible to see students bring their creativity, technical skills, and different perspectives to build solutions that make our cities and communities better places. A huge thank you to our sponsors and to our UofT leaders who made Future Legends! UofT possible (Japleen Kaur, Sina Ahmadi Malayeri, Anika Pillai, and all of our incredible student volunteers who supported!) We’re also grateful to our judges for sharing their expertise with the next generation of builders: Salim Fakhouri | Slack Jason B. Ramsay | Nodalli ☄️ Jordan Vanriel | Mosaic Manufacturing Russell Sng | ImmerSynth Inc. Lauren Carson | Cansbridge ScholarsCansbridge Scholars Atnasia Ibsa | Info-Tech Research GroupAtnasia Ibsa | Info-Tech Research Group Nathaniel Boateng | Nobellum Edward Drobnis | Canadian Undergraduate Technology Conference (CUTC) Erin Peterson | Integrity AI Most importantly, thank you to every student who showed up! We're already looking forward to bringing Future Legends! Hackathon series to even more university campuses across Canada! Want to build your own Startup Ecosystem Canada student club on campus? Learn more: https://lnkd.in/epDuP9Uc Watch some of our favourite highlights from the Hackathon below. #FutureLegends #UofT #TorontoHackathon #StudentInnovation #StartupEcosystemCanada
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Startup Ecosystem Canada reposted this
We won 2nd Place at Startup Ecosystem Canada ‘s Future Legends Hackathon! 🏆 🎉 Last week, I had the opportunity to compete at the Future Legends Hackathon at UofT, where my team and I built BikeBetter. Biking in Toronto is dying. Researchers in the journal Inquiry Prevention reported over 30,000 emergency department visits due to cyclist injuries from 2016 to 2021. The problem is only getting worse, with Toronto seeing a 28% jump in traffic incidents this year, compared to 2025 (CBC). With recent motions to remove and reduce the number of bike lanes in Toronto, biking in Toronto will only become more challenging. We know biking to be a highly eco-friendly mode of transportation, and a genuinely viable system for students, daily commuters, tourists, and more. In order to do more to sustain biking in Toronto, we created BikeBetter, an end-to-end biking ecosystem. Our solution intertwines preventive action against climate change, encouragement of bike safety, and justice enforcement in reducing bike-related crime. We use live traffic feeds, real-time bike, accident and collision incidents, as well as bike theft reports to calculate the best route for you, optimized by time to destination and route safety according to your skill and comfort level as a biker. Moreover, we developed a bike rental marketplace so your unused bike can turnover passive income while a biker in need can plan their commute to their convenience. Lastly, we encourage community-building among bikers through promoting the identification and safe return of stolen bikes, with a bounty system as incentive. What’s next for BikeBetter? We would love to extend BikeBetter to incorporate location tracking as a measure to reduce theft, as well as extend to other major international hubs with a strong biking culture. We see immense value to be added through BikeBetter, benefitting everyone from individuals on the road to be safer, to communities enjoying easier transportation and a healthier climate. Had an amazing time with my team Brian Xiao , Andrei Mazin, and Deniz. We look forward to continue developing BikeBetter! Explore BikeBetter now! Link in replies #sustainability #toronto #hackathon #startup
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Mark Zuckerberg: You can’t 80/20 everything! Efficiency matters, but not every part of a startup should be optimized for speed. Mark Zuckerberg believes founders need to identify the areas where going deeper than everyone else creates a quality bar that defines the product. Key Takeaways: • Not every task should be optimized for minimum effort. • Identify what truly matters to your product and users. • Go further than competitors on your core strengths. • Small quality decisions can shape product culture. • A strong quality bar can become part of your competitive advantage. The 80/20 rule can help founders prioritize, but applying it everywhere can mean sacrificing the details that make a product exceptional. The goal isn’t to do everything perfectly - it’s to know where excellence matters most and invest disproportionately in those areas. ________________________________________________________ Startup Ecosystem Canada empowers visionary entrepreneurs by connecting them with investors, mentors, governments, and other key stakeholders to accelerate their vision and drive success. Our Daily Startup Wisdom is a segment where we share powerful lessons from successful founders and their journeys - bite-sized, actionable insights that you can apply to your own path. Follow us at Startup Ecosystem Canada for more practical advice, inspiring stories, and the mindset shifts needed to lead boldly. Our investment platform, Crown Jewels is designed to support purpose-driven founders with early capital, mentorship, and a trusted network. If you're ready to embrace the challenges of building something exceptional, visit us on our website - crownjewels.ca to learn more about Crown Jewels. Applications are now open. #StartupEcosystemCanada #CrownJewel #MarkZuckerberg #Facebook #Startups #Entrepreneurship #Founders #ProductDevelopment #Leadership #Innovation #StartupWisdom #Business Video Credit - Y Combinator
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Fashion is changing. The technology behind it is changing even faster. Startup Ecosystem Canada is proud to partner with Rewiring Fashion 2026, bringing Toronto’s fashion, technology, and startup communities together on October 2 at BrainStation. Hosted by Couth Studios, the event will bring together founders, operators, investors, creatives and emerging talent for conversations around where fashion and technology are heading next, from AI and discovery to new consumer behaviours, resale and circular business models. We’re especially excited for the conversation around Toronto’s FashionTech founders, featuring Devyn Olin of Cache, Marley Alles of rax, and Sajna Massey, MBA, P. Eng of Couth Studios as they share what they’re building and what it takes to grow at the intersection of fashion and technology. With leaders from Shopify, TikTok, Holt Renfrew, Aritzia, eBay, Fashion Takes Action and more, Rewiring Fashion is bringing different sides of the industry into the same room. If you're building, investing, innovating or watching where FashionTech goes next, join the conversation. October 2, 2026 | BrainStation Toronto Register Here: https://luma.com/ot0m5t47 #RewiringFashion #FashionTech #FashionTechnology #TorontoStartups #CanadianStartups #FashionInnovation #AI #RetailTech #StartupEcosystemCanada #TorontoTech
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Future Legends! Hackathon: UofT Edition is officially wrapped! Last weekend brought hundreds of student builders together at University of Toronto for a day of collaboration, prototyping, pitching, and problem-solving around how we can use technology to create a more sustainable, inclusive, and resilient future. It was incredible to see students bring their creativity, technical skills, and different perspectives to build solutions that make our cities and communities better places. A huge thank you to our sponsors and to our UofT leaders who made Future Legends! UofT possible (Japleen Kaur, Sina Ahmadi Malayeri, Anika Pillai, and all of our incredible student volunteers who supported!) We’re also grateful to our judges for sharing their expertise with the next generation of builders: Salim Fakhouri | Slack Jason B. Ramsay | Nodalli ☄️ Jordan Vanriel | Mosaic Manufacturing Russell Sng | ImmerSynth Inc. Lauren Carson | Cansbridge ScholarsCansbridge Scholars Atnasia Ibsa | Info-Tech Research GroupAtnasia Ibsa | Info-Tech Research Group Nathaniel Boateng | Nobellum Edward Drobnis | Canadian Undergraduate Technology Conference (CUTC) Erin Peterson | Integrity AI Most importantly, thank you to every student who showed up! We're already looking forward to bringing Future Legends! Hackathon series to even more university campuses across Canada! Want to build your own Startup Ecosystem Canada student club on campus? Learn more: https://lnkd.in/epDuP9Uc Watch some of our favourite highlights from the Hackathon below. #FutureLegends #UofT #TorontoHackathon #StudentInnovation #StartupEcosystemCanada