The New Ventures B.C. Competition is a well-seasoned event.
The annual affair started more than two decades ago, back in 2000, under the direction of Wal van Lierop. The driving idea behind the competition was to encourage regional innovation in tech—and the event has been an icon of the local ecosystem ever since.
This year, $250,000 in cash and prizes are at stake.
Among the finalists is SkyAcres Agrotechnologies, which launched out of Surrey in 2021 to build a network of scaleable vertical farming operations, aiming to deploy turnkey farms through franchise-like partnerships. The company hopes to convert existing commercial infrastructure, “including neglected and under-utilized spaces, into smart indoor farms and sustainable green building systems.”
Should SkyAcres win cash at NVBC, it will not be the company’s first taste of capital.
Last year, Innovate BC and the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program provided $2 million in research and development funding to help regional companies pilot technologies and create new jobs across British Columbia. The B.C. Fast Pilot invested in 14 companies at the time—including SkyAcres Agrotechnologies, which was named this year one of the most innovative technology startups in the province.
And the NVBC Competition is also not the only challenge where SKyAcres is a finalist.
Founded by Zaffia Laplante and Ishaan Kohli, SkyAcres is also currently competing with other ag-tech startups from around the world for a $3 million prize pool to be dispensed at the Grow-NY Food and Ag Summit in Ithaca in November.
In total, more than 300 startups applied from 50 countries. A panel of 30 judges reviewed applications to determine finalists. Leading up to a pitch competition at the Summit, 20 finalists will embark on a 10-week business development phase.
Grow-NY will award a total of $3 million in prize money to seven winners. This includes a $1 million top prize, two $500,000 awards, and four $250,000 prizes.
And in terms of other momentum, the firm was also selected for the Google for Startups Accelerator: Women Founders program before making its mark at the last-ever Collision in Toronto.
“We’re building the ‘AirBnb of Vertical Farms’,” the company states online, “allowing anyone with under-utilized barn, residential, or commercial space to grow and sell produce through our intelligent B2B marketplace.”
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