New Ventures BC has announced the Top 10 companies of this year’s startup competition.
The New Ventures BC Competition started in 2000 under the direction of Wal van Lierop, to encourage innovation in BC’s tech sector.
Since then, the organization has supported 2,360 startups, who have created 3,720+ jobs and have raised $302 million in financing.
Who made the final cut? Just 10 companies are still in the running for over $250,000 in cash and prizes in this year’s New Ventures BC Competition, presented by Innovate BC.
In alphabetical order, the Top 10 are:
ABOzymes Biomedical, Vancouver
ABOzymes Biomedical effectively doubles the supply of universal donor blood (type-O) to save lives. In emergency situations when there isn’t time to cross-match the patient’s blood type, doctors have to use universal donor blood to save their life. Unfortunately, this blood type is always in short supply. ABOzymes Biomedical’s technology makes all blood O-type, so any blood can be used for any patient, regardless of their respective blood types.
aDolus Technology, Nanaimo
aDolus Technology‘s platform safeguards against counterfeit or malicious software and firmware in IoT devices. Their trusted SaaS-based ecosystem aggregates information on software and firmware from manufacturers of smart devices in critical industries like energy, medical, transportation, and aerospace. The platform, called FACT, offers an easy way to ensure files are legitimate, vulnerability-free, current, and safe to install.
Castofly Technologies, Vancouver
Castofly Technologies is a cloud-based educational technology platform for educators to seamlessly create, share, and collaborate on video content. It adds value by eliminating the need to use multiple software programs and by significantly reducing end-to-end content creation time. The files created are very small and super-flexible which unlocks collaboration synergies between educators and learners.
Daanaa Resolution, Vancouver
Almost everything uses electricity, from electric vehicles to most of the devices in our homes. To ensure a healthier and more sustainable future, Daanaa Resolution delivers more power from solar panels directly into devices at home. Their chip-based solar power transfer system brings energetic freedom and safety to communities, without wires.
DivDot, Victoria
DivDot is a payment software for high-value transactions. It enables businesses to send and receive no-limit payments for a flat fee and makes it as easy as an eTransfer. With DivDot, businesses can pay suppliers, collect payment from customers and transfer money between banks, all in one dashboard.
Fable Home, Vancouver
Fable is the direct-to-consumer home accessories lifestyle brand. They make it easy for Millenials to outfit their home. Fable creates artisanal pieces at an accessible price. Unlike traditional dinnerware retailers, their ceramics and flatware are intentionally designed to be timeless and without unnecessary price markups.
Flash Forest, Vancouver
Flash Forest is Canada’s first drone reforestation company. They are developing a product which aims to plant at 10 times the normal rate and at 20% of the cost of traditional tree planting techniques. Through aerial mapping software, automation, and ecological science, they seek to bring new levels of accuracy, precision and speed in order to dramatically scale reforestation efforts globally.
Rootd, Victoria
Rootd is anxiety and panic attack relief in your pocket. The female-founded mental health resource offers a guided process for immediate and long term relief, with stigma-breaking design and therapist-approved content. It’s already the #1 ranked mobile app on Android and iOS for individuals struggling with panic attacks and anxiety.
Shop and Shout, Vancouver
74% of people trust social networks to guide their purchasing decisions. ShopandShout’s platform allows brands to trade their products or services for social reviews and content from influencers to access new audiences, and incentivizes purchases. Their growing community of 50,000 micro-influencers are eagerly awaiting collaboration opportunities with new and exciting brands.
ThisFish, Vancouver
ThisFish is on a mission to improve the social, environmental, and financial sustainability of the seafood industry. They’re achieving this goal through their proprietary Tally software, which automates and digitizes the collection of production, quality control, and traceability data in seafood processing plants. Through the use of handheld tablets and IoT devices, Tally can provide real-time data while helping processing plants save valuable time, money, and resources.
The remaining 10 companies will be competing for multiple prize packages, including the $112,000 Innovate BC First Prize Package, the $20,000 Top Regional Startup Prize, and the $10,000 People’s Choice Award.
Voting for the People’s Choice Award will open on September 2nd and close on September 28th at midnight.
Winners will be announced at a virtual award ceremony on October 1st during Vancouver Startup Week.