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Innovation Consortium Celebrates Success in Scaling Alberta Tech

July 25, 2023 by Knowlton Thomas Leave a Comment

There has never been a more exciting time to be in tech in Alberta than today.

These are the words of Nate Glubish, the Minister of Technology and Innovation for Alberta.

To back up his position, he cites a simple fact: “Alberta has more tech companies today than ever before.”

According to Glubish, that means “more and more early-stage companies are growing, maturing, and successfully commercializing their technologies in Alberta.”

Data from CBRE’s 2023 Scoring Tech Talent report agrees, showing Calgary has the second fastest growing tech sector in Canada.

“We continue to build one of the strongest tech sectors in Canada,” the minister posits.

Glubish, alongside the rest of the Province of Alberta, is en route an ambitious journey to supercharge regional innovation.

The Alberta Scaleup and Growth Accelerator Program is a driver of this trajectory, aligning itself with the government’s vision of creating 20,000 jobs and accelerating revenues from tech firms to $5 billion by 2030.

Conceived by a consortium led by Alberta Innovates, the program represents a coalition of stakeholders including Prairies Economic Development Canada, the City of Edmonton via Edmonton Unlimited, and the City of Calgary’s Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund. A commitment of $35 million has been pledged to nurture and retain business accelerators over a three-year period.

“Investments made over the last year through the Alberta Scaleup and Growth Accelerator program are positioning Alberta tech firms to take their place on the leading edge of Canada’s innovation economy,” believes Dan Vandal, Minister for PrairiesCan.

As the Scaleup program reaches its two-year milestone, a retrospection unveils impactful contribution to the region’s entrepreneurial landscape.

The program has delivered accelerator services to budding entrepreneurs and innovators across169 Alberta-based companies. These firms have raised investments worth $147 million, created 118 new jobs, and grew revenues. The program also attracted more than 100 non-Alberta companies to the province, with six of those companies registering their businesses in Alberta upon completing an accelerator program.

“This program is an important part of our province’s innovation ecosystem and provides a platform for entrepreneurs to scale up their ideas, create good paying jobs, and diversify our local economy,” stated Randy Boissonnault, Alberta’s Minister of Tourism.

Accelerators introduced to bridge the scale-up gap in Alberta include Alberta Accelerator by 500, Plug and Play Alberta, Telus Community Safety and Wellness Accelerator powered by Alchemist, Thrive Canada Accelerator, and Alberta Catalyzer.

“By laying the groundwork now, we ensure that companies who grow and mature in Alberta have access to training and capital today and into the future,” says Alberta Innovates CEO Laura Kilcrease.

With a multi-pronged approach, the accelerators are helping Alberta ventures flourish.They are also driving Alberta’s global innovation mindset by attracting global technology firms and investment to the province.

“With access to accelerators through the Scaleup GAP program, bright minds can scale big ideas to the size of their ambitions in Alberta,” stated Brad Parry, chief executive of Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund. “When we invest in our visionaries, our community welcomes net-new jobs, attracts investment and experiences growth across diverse industries.”

Filed Under: News Tagged With: Alberta Accelerator by 500, Alberta Innovates, Alberta Scaleup and Growth Accelerator Program, Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund (OCIF), Plug and Play Alberta, Thrive Canada Accelerator

About Knowlton Thomas

Knowlton Thomas is Editor-in-Chief of The Midway Advance and Senior Writer for Calgary.tech. Over more than a decade of journalism, he has penned thousands of articles and dozens of essays on technology, health, and culture across a variety of publications.

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