This year’s recipients of the CIX Startup Awards, a showcase of Canada’s rising stars selected by North American investors, have been revealed.
The CIX Selection Committee, comprising over 100 investors and experts, evaluated submissions based on six criteria: Business Model, Quality of Product and Service Offering, Innovation, Market Opportunity, Depth of Management, and D.E.I. of Leadership.
“It has been a challenging year for Canadian startups, so it was great to see such a strong lineup of companies,” stated Neha Kera, who serves as co-chair of the CIX Startup Awards. “Congratulations to the award recipients on their impressive accomplishments; I’m excited to see their presentations at CIX Summit in March.”
Award recipients will pitch in-person this year at the CIX Summit on March 26 at the Design Exchange—a Toronto event which attracts over 500 investors and entrepreneurs from across North America’s technology ecosystem.
“The competition was intense this year, and we applaud all of the incredible applicants from across Canada for their achievements,” stated Matthew Leibowitz, co-chair of the Awards. “This final group of companies represents the country’s most promising innovators, and we’re excited for them to showcase their companies at the CIX Summit in March.”
At the Summit, attendees will engage in a curated program of on-stage content, founder pitches, networking sessions, interactive roundtables, and 1-on-1 meetings to foster connections between founders and investors.
The Summit and Awards are powered by Elevate, a Canadian non-profit that aims to unite world-class innovators who want to catalyze transformation within the country’s tech sphere.
Among the Award recipients are several from Alberta.
For example, Edmonton-based game engine innovator Artificial Agency was recognized in the “Early” category.
Artificial Agency emerged from stealth last year US$16 million in funding from Radical Ventures, Toyota Ventures, BDC Deep Tech, and others.
The company’s flagship product is an AI-powered engine that enables game developers to embed runtime decision-making into any aspect of a game, delivering a “gaming experience that feels truly alive.”
Calgary-born climate technology upstart Carbonova was also highlighted in the Early category.
The University of Calgary spin-off raised capital last year too—for technology that turns greenhouse gas emissions into carbon materials for inexpensive everyday essentials.
Meanwhile, in the “Growth” category, another Edmonton-Calgary pairing can be found: Edmonton’s Nanoprecise and Calgary’s Summit Nanotech both made the list.
Nanoprecise, recognized as a technological innovator by the Global Energy Show Canada Awards, provides industrial machine monitors to reduce downtime and CO2 emissions. They’re among Canada’s fastest growing firms.
Summit Nanotech, the only Albertan to crack this year’s Global Cleantech 100, specializes in extracting lithium from brine using nanotechnology, aiming for a more environmentally friendly and efficient process compared to traditional methods. Targeting the growing demand for lithium in sustainable applications like electric vehicle batteries, their technology reduces water use, among other potential benefits.
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