👋 Good morning, and welcome to (or welcome back to) VTJ’s Sunday Briefing: your weekly digest of the city’s innovation news, deals, insights, and more.
Along with sharing plenty of must-know announcements from the startups building and innovating in Vancouver, we’re excited to share our very own: we officially welcomed our newest team member and account executive, Nicole Hsueh!
Nicole has been working in the local tech scene for over four years. From account management to career advising and business development, working with people is her jam. Outside of work, her go-to is a mix between watching reality TV and Sunday football, going to workout classes, and hanging out with her goofy Goldendoodle, Patrick.
Be sure to look out for Nicole at our coffee meetup on Tuesday at FUNK!
Now onto today’s briefing. It’s 1,104 words: a four-minute read.
-Lisa
P.S. We’re trying a new look and would love to know what you think! Take our poll at the bottom so we can make your experience even better.
🗞️ FROM VTJ
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🤝 FUNDING & DEALS
Teal, a fintech startup that aims to be the Stripe for accounting, raised $11 million in seed funding to provide the infrastructure for companies to build accounting features within their platforms.
Verdi, an agtech startup offering a platform for farm automation and personalized plant health care, received a follow-on investment for an undisclosed amount from SVG Ventures to expand across North America.
VulcanX Energy, a spin-out from UBC that patented technology to produce hydrogen and solid carbon from natural gas pyrolysis, was awarded $75K from the B.C. Centre for Innovation and Clean Energy.
DIGITAL, Canada's Global Innovation Cluster, invested $26 million in four health tech companies, including Gotcare, a home care platform, and RxPx, a patient management software.
Get the latest funding and deals announcements and stories curated in our Members-only Morning Report.
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🗞 IN OTHER NEWS
Mosaic Accelerator, the early-stage accelerator for non-technical, marginalized, and BIPOC women, is offering a four-week MVP development bootcamp in partnership with Cue North, a digital advisory company and product studio.
Vancouver.dev community put a call out for insights on how we can collectively shape and carry out strategic initiatives to enhance Vancouver’s tech landscape through an online survey.
Rochelle Grayson, digital executive and strategist, announced she and James Rowe have co-founded Circle of AI to make AI accessible and actionable for everyone — from small business owners to non-profit leaders and key players in large enterprises.
Startup TNT, which helps early-stage entrepreneurs raise angel and seed funding in their community, celebrates entering BC for over a month through its weekly happy hours — bringing together many founders and investors.
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💡 IDEAS & INSIGHTS
Kaylee Lieffers, founder of Blanka, an e-commerce marketplace that offers on-demand access to private-labeled products, shared insights on what fellow entrepreneurs should consider when joining an accelerator.
Allen Lau, co-founder of Two Small Fish Ventures, published an op-ed in the Globe and Mail on how the depressing numbers of the venture capital slump don’t tell the full story of the landscape.
Peter Smyrniotis, executive operator and VC, shared why summer is the perfect time to renovate and expand your venture and 10 smart moves you can make to re-shape it.
Mark Boardman, founder of Minivillage, a social tech startup that offers a platform for housing providers to transform buildings into connected communities, was featured on the Vancouver Urbanism podcast discussing important topics about housing.
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👀 CAN’T MISS
May 28 | Vancouver Tech Morning Coffee (new location: FUNK coffee bar): Ease into the week with new connections and fresh ideas and inspiration by meeting the VTJ team and tech community through our weekly meetup series.
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May 29 | Tech Industry Social by VTJ x CBRE's HTFG: Join us and our partners at CBRE's The High Technology Facilities Group for our next social — bringing together founders and leaders for networking, deal-making, and just plain old catching up.
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May 31 - June 7 | Vancouver Startup Week (VSW): VSW is a week-long celebration that builds momentum and fosters connections among entrepreneurs, investors, and leaders within the Greater Vancouver startup community. Learn from local companies that have grown to become globally recognized through the many panels, fireside chats, and hands-on workshops around town.
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May 31 | VSW X #VTJTalks: Immigrant Founders - Blending Heritage & Innovation: In partnership with VSW, we’re hosting a panel featuring inspiring immigrant founders who will share their journey in tapping into their heritage to innovate and advice and tips for others looking to make an impact in their community and beyond. Esteemed panelists include Roya Aghighi, Paschal Okwundu, and Mark Boardman.
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