IPO

Three U of T startups are among 36 projects from across the country receiving funding from the federal government in support of their clean technology innovations.

Nanoleaf, QD Solar and ARDA Power Inc. received a total of almost $6 million from Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), a governmental foundation which helps clean tech entrepreneurs commercialize their products by removing the funding barrier that hinders so many high potential startups.

“Nanoleaf is creating truly innovative products right here in Canada, but it’s difficult to get access to the capital needed to compete globally,” said U of T engineering alumnus Gimmy Chu, co-founder and CEO of Nanoleaf. (Visit the Nanoleaf site.)

“With this support from the Government of Canada, we can sustain our already impressive pace of product development and continue to make a truly positive impact for the planet and the people living on it.”

With an infusion of more than $2.8 million from SDTC, Chu said Nanoleaf will continue to develop their low-cost and highly intelligent “Smarter Kit” (pictured at right), adding to their collection of the world’s most energy-efficient LED light bulbs which are already on the market.

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“Researchers at U of T are regularly turning their discoveries into marketable inventions,” said Vivek Goel, vice-president of research and innovation. “I’m very pleased to see the support that these three companies are receiving from the government to continue the important work they’re doing in sustainable development.”

(Image below: Aurora lighting system by Nanoleaf)

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Bionym raises $14 million for heartbeat-sensing wearable to replace passwords, key cards

sgupta — Wed, 01 Oct 2014 12:18:22 +0000

Bionym raises $14 million for heartbeat-sensing wearable to replace passwords, key cards sgupta Wed, 10/01/2014 - 08:18

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Bionym is "not an overnight success" but the result of years of hard work, mentors say (image courtesy Bionym)

Brianna Goldberg

Author legacy

Brianna Goldberg

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Alumni developed company through U of T accelerator, entrepreneurship supports

The Engineering alumni behind a wearable device called the “Nymi” – a bracelet-style product that eliminates the need for passwords, PIN codes and more by authenticating your heartbeat – scored $14 million in investment this week from key industry players including Ignition Partners, Relay Ventures, MasterCard and others.

“We’re establishing the Nymi as the de facto platform for persistent, trusted identity, and this round of financing is providing us with the resources needed to bring the platform to market,” said Karl Martin, CEO of Bionym. (Read more about Bionym)

“We’re at the forefront of a revolution in identity-based interactions with devices and services, and our momentum continues to grow with the support of our investors and strategic partners.”

Bionym began as research at the ��Ƶ and developed through a number of the University’s startup supports.

One of the U of T experts who helped Bionym grow from early-stage to launch was Kurtis Scissons. He worked with the company to commercialize their research in his role as entrepreneurship manager at the Innovations & Partnerships Office (IPO), and also serves as co-director of the UTEST accelerator for early-stage software companies, a program produced jointly by U of T and MaRS Innovation. Bionym was not a part of UTEST, but Martin has helped the program’s young companies as a speaker and advisor. (Read more about UTEST; Read more about the IPO)

Jesse Rodgers, director of the highly competitive Creative Destruction Lab program at the Rotman School of Management, also worked with Bionym to help the company become massively scalable and gain equity value. (Read more about Creative Destruction Lab)

Brianna Goldberg of U of T News spoke with Scissons and Rodgers about Bionym's success.

What qualities of promise did you see in Bionym in the early days when they worked with you?

Scissons: Obviously they have a very interesting technology but more so it was the great balance of technical skill with business drive within the founding team. Coachability was a key personality trait for Karl and his co-founder, who both listened, respected and appreciated when others took time to provide advisory support.

Rodgers: Bionym is founded on research. The determination and dedication it takes to do that research is a quality that carries with them today.

What’s been the key to their success, from your perspective?

Scissons: A few things. Their technology was both created and proven out by world class researchers at U of T, which gave it credibility. Their timing was also impeccable. Wearable computing is a burgeoning industry and there is a growing interest in it in light of prevalent security issues and data breaches with current state of the art authentication protocols. Their ECG model is a novel approach.

Finally, they had a great team. The founders had the right mix of talent and passion for entrepreneurship. Today the team has continued to grow “organically,” meaning that the roughly 40-person Bionym team continues to find talent primarily from the ��Ƶ. They are a great example of entrepreneurs that fully took advantage of the entrepreneurship eco-system here at U of T by engaging with the Innovations & Partnerships Office, the Creative Destruction Lab, Next36 founders and MaRS.

Rodgers: They have been successful at raising capital from great investors and building interest in their product. Those are great first steps towards long term success. They got there with a positive attitude, a desire to learn and be coached, and a vision on how their research can used by everyone.

What does the Bionym example say to the young companies you’re working with at UTEST and Creative Destruction Lab?

Scissons: This is not an overnight success. The technology was developed for years within the U of T Biometrics Security Laboratory. The team came up against challenges in the early commercialization days but overcame them. Their successful pivot is a strong example for current UTEST companies that may struggle. Karl Martin also continues to give back to the U of T entrepreneurship community, lending his time to speak with and advise current UTEST companies.

Rodgers: At the Lab we use their personal growth in understanding research alone isn't enough to build a company with; a product mindset is essential. That change in thinking towards product has helped the company grow to where it is now.

Brianna Goldberg writes about startups and entrepreneurship for U of T News; read more about entrepreneurs at U of T.

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Spotlight on Startups: 9 ways U of T supports startups

sgupta — Wed, 13 Nov 2013 09:12:26 +0000

Spotlight on Startups: 9 ways U of T supports startups sgupta Wed, 11/13/2013 - 04:12

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Brianna Goldberg

Author legacy

Brianna Goldberg

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How the ��Ƶ fosters entrepreneurship

Nailing down statistics about U of T's entrepreneurial efforts means entering into a perpetual game of catch-up, with the University's startup culture continuing to develop new supports for its faculty and students all the time.

This Spotlight on Startups series profiles the many entrepreneurial efforts growing from the hundreds of companies spun out from research and connections sparking at the ��Ƶ:

U of T hosts more than 50 enterprise-fostering courses, programs, labs, clubs, contests and speaker series across its faculties, departments and campuses — and then there are all the innovations developing in informal settings. U of T ranks No. 1 in North America for number of startups launched. And its roster of spin-off companies driving innovation in Toronto and around the world continues to grow.

And so, though the number of new enterprises and accelerators remains on the climb, our friends at the ��Ƶ Office of Research and Innovation offered up a few of their favourite U of T entrepreneurial catalysts in their publication, U of T Ignites Innovation.

Their suggestions became the base of the following nine key supports that U of T offers to its entrepreneurs. Why not round it out to a 'Top 10' list? Because then we wouldn't be leaving room for all the new ways of helping U of T startups that are just around the corner.

1. CREATIVE, TALENTED PEOPLE

U of T's students and faculty make U of T a global knowledge generator, ranked 21st in the world in the 2012 Times Higher Education rankings. Its nearly 7,000 faculty members are experts in hundreds of disciplines. And they are recognized for their expertise – U of T wins more faculty awards and prizes than any other Canadian university. Sixty-eight per cent of U of T inventions include a student or post-doc as a co-inventor. Students are top executives of many U of T start-up companies. (Read more in U of T Ignites Innovation)

2. UTEST
The ��Ƶ Early Stage Technology (UTEST) program is a joint initiative of the ��Ƶ, The Connaught Fund and MaRS Innovation to provide early stage software companies with start-up funding, work space, mentoring and business strategy support. UTEST enables passionate U of T entrepreneurs to transform an idea to a product at a stage which is typically too early for traditional technology incubators. (Read more about UTEST)

3. TECHNO
This hands-on workshop series is aimed at science and engineering students who want to turn their scientific discoveries into products, services and companies. In this series, The Impact Centre offers mentorship in intellectual property strategy, product development, finance, human resources, business plans and presentation skills. Techno workshops have resulted in the formation of more than 30 start-up companies. (Read more about Techno)

4. THE INNOVATIONS & PARTNERSHIPS OFFICE (IPO)

The IPO is U of T’s hub for industry partnerships, commercialization and entrepreneurship. The goal: to get new technology out into the world and to enable university-industry partnerships. The IPO connects government and business with U of T researchers. From 2007 to 2011, our inventors disclosed 774 inventions. In the same period, we filed 253 patent applications, signed 166 licenses and formed 63 start-ups. (Read more about the IPO)

5. BANTING AND BEST CENTRE FOR INNOVATION AND ENTREPRENEURSHIP

Banting and Best supports entrepreneurs turning research discoveries into innovative products and companies. In turn, these companies create skilled jobs for local students and graduates of the ��Ƶ. In addition to lab and office space for start-up companies, Banting and Best’s centres like TechnoLabs and the Innovations & Partnerships Office provide aspiring entrepreneurs with education, mentorship and resources to support their company. The centre is named for Frederick Banting and Charles Best, discoverers of one of Canada’s greatest innovations – insulin. (Read more about the Banting and Best Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship)

6. COURSES

U of T offers entrepreneurship-fostering courses across faculties, departments and divisions. Students can learn about innovation in a classroom setting whether they're enrolled in the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, the Faculty of Arts and Science or elsewhere. One flagship course, IMC200, was developed by The Impact Centre to help students examine the path from discovery to market and understand important concepts including intellectual property, product development, company structure and decision making, marketing and sales.

7. SPACES

Networking spaces such as The Hub at UTSC and the Digital Enterprise Management Society at UTM offer students opportunities to share ideas and make connections with other eager entrepreneurs. (Read more about The Hub at UTSC or about the Digital Enterprise Management Society at UTM)

8. ENVIRONMENT

The culture of entrepreneurship at the ��Ƶ infuses all three campuses with startup spirit. For those students not enrolled in a program that directly connects them with entrepreneurship, there are overarching services such as the new Rapid Launch program offered by the U of T Career Centre and open to students and recent grads from all disciplines. (Read more about Rapid Launch)

9. COMPETITIONS

The AppStar competition at UTSC and Young Entrepreneurs Challenge at UTM are just a few of the many opportunities for U of T entrepreneurs to put their concepts to the test. A student team from Rotman won the inaugural MBA World Trophy for Cyclica Inc., a life sciences technology company leveraging big data to develop new medicines more cheaply. (Read more about AppStar, the Young Entrepreneurs Challenge or the MBA World Trophy)

10. Wait and see...

Brianna Goldberg is a writer with U of T News.

Visit the ��Ƶ entrepreneurship site to learn more about U of T's enterprise-fostering courses, labs, programs and more.

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IPO

Federal government backs three U of T startups and their clean tech innovations

Read more U of T News stories about Nanoleaf

Interested in startups and entrepreneurship? Visit the BBCIE

Bionym raises $14 million for heartbeat-sensing wearable to replace passwords, key cards

Spotlight on Startups: 9 ways U of T supports startups