Hey everyone,
There’s a quiet theme running through this week’s stories: cycles.
Building. Scaling. Exiting. Reinvesting. Starting again.
After Wilet’s acquisition, Vivian McCormick reflects on what actually mattered—lessons about constraint, clarity, and the kind of growth that only makes sense in hindsight. At the same time, Vancouver-founded Gen Z dating app IRLY lands a rare consumer-tech exit to Europe’s DUA AG, a reminder that breakout outcomes here don’t always follow the usual SaaS-to-enterprise script.
Meanwhile, Oxygen8’s expansion signals momentum in clean tech. Railtown AI’s financing is now fully subscribed. Hubbl raises fresh capital. Photonic and TELUS push quantum networking forward. Allied Properties is planning serious AI infrastructure downtown.
Elsewhere: B.C. tweaks the rules for interactive digital media. Hiive earns national recognition. Ethọ́s Lab expands its footprint. Metro Vancouver pitches itself as a defence innovation hub. Science World prepares for leadership transition.
Founders building. Institutions adapting. Infrastructure scaling. And in a few cases, builders letting go—and starting their next chapter.
Here’s what moved this week.
Upcoming Events
This Wednesday, February 18: #VTJTalks: The Demographic Crunch and How We Keep Tech Scaling – with speakers including:
Steve Eccles, Regional CEO and Dean, Vancouver at Northeastern University
Victoria Brydon, Principal Brydon Strategies; former Chief People Officer, D-Wave Systems
Patrick MacKenzie, CEO, Immigrant Employment Council of BC
Moderator: David FitzGerald, Founder & Principal Technical Recruiter, Starboard Recruitment
From The Journal
SPONSORED BY FORESIGHT CANADA
Validate Your Technology
New technologies do not get adopted on potential alone. They get adopted when the impact is clear, proven, and credible.
This is where a life cycle assessment (LCA) comes in.
An LCA measures the environmental impacts of your technology across its full life cycle, from production through use and end of life. It turns performance claims into data that buyers, investors, and partners can trust.
Why LCAs matter for technology adoption:
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At Foresight Canada, we work with cleantech companies to generate the data needed to move from interest to implementation. Learn more about conducting an LCA.
Funding, Deals, and More
Railtown AI’s $3.4M private placement is fully subscribed: Vancouver-based Railtown AI says its previously announced $3.4M financing is now fully subscribed, with proceeds earmarked for general working capital as it builds AI developer tools and agentic platforms.
Read more →Hubbl Technologies raises $6M Series A: Hubbl Technologies has raised $6M in Series A funding to accelerate development of its intelligence platform and expand delivery of contextual insights for customers.
Read more →Photonic and TELUS demonstrate quantum teleportation over commercial fibre: Photonic and TELUS say they achieved quantum teleportation over 30 km of TELUS’ existing commercial fibre network, positioning it as a milestone for quantum-secure networking and distributed quantum systems.
Read more →
SPONSORED BY FASKEN MARTINEAU
Race to Zero with Fasken
As the world races to achieve net-zero carbon emissions, leading Canadian companies are putting their trust in Fasken. As the first Canadian law firm to launch an emerging tech practice over 30 years ago, Fasken is the go-to law firm for those investing in ClimateTech companies or scaling companies in the industry. Learn more: Climate Tech | Services | Fasken
In Other News
Allied Properties plans a 10-story AI data centre in Vancouver: Allied Properties says a municipally approved downtown site at 150 West Georgia is slated for a 10-story AI data centre, with BC Hydro committed to 39MW and a path to 50MW, and potential up to 100MW.
Read more →Got a business idea? Futurpreneur offers young entrepreneurs aged 18–39 startup loans up to $75,000 with mentorship to start, buy or grow a small business — plus tailored programs for Black and Indigenous founders. Get started today→*
Hiive among the latest CIX Startup Awards winners: Elevate has announced the 2026 CIX Startup Awards winners—including Vancouver-based Hiive in the Growth category—selected by 94 investors from more than 370 applications.
Read more →Ethọ́s Lab expands its youth hub and hosts its annual Blackathon: Vancouver’s Ethọ́s Lab is expanding its youth innovation hub footprint while ramping up for its annual Blackathon—part fundraiser, part youth-focused hackathon programming tied to Black Futures Month.
Read more →Ready to find your ideal workspace? For businesses of all sizes—from startups to enterprises—discover coworking space that fits your needs.
Read more →*Gigpit takes on the local live music discovery problem: Victoria-born Gigpit is expanding its community-powered platform for finding local shows, and has soft-launched zero-fee ticketing in Vancouver, aiming to make local gigs easier to discover and cheaper to attend.
Read more →Where Canada’s Stablecoin Act stands right now. Read more →
Metro Vancouver is pitching itself as a defence innovation epicentre. Read more →
Science World CEO Tracy Redies to retire. Read more →
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