The Vancouver startup scene has exploded in the last decade and the city has one of the best startup ecosystems for a city of its size.
The Vancouver advantage is that unlike larger metropolises like Toronto, San Francisco or New York City, it doesn’t have many traditional blue-chip companies with high-paying jobs. This means wages tend to be much lower and there aren’t as many opportunities to advance, which forces locals to get creative with their work.
The result is one of the most small business and startup-friendly environments in the world. However, what holds back Vancouver remains the provincial mentality of local elites and their dependence on natural resources and real estate.
Additionally, there aren’t many venture capital investment opportunities on Canada’s west coast so many startups that begin in the city relocate to Silicon Valley as they grow.
Vancouver’s Startup Scene:
The Vancouver tech scene is a major contributor to the local economy and a shining light in a city that has historically relied on its bountiful natural resources and awe-inspiring geographical location where the mountains meet the ocean.
The biggest difference between living and working in Vancouver instead of Silicon Valley and the Bay Area is people have a much better work-life balance as the surrounding mountains and beaches offer easy access to skiing, mountain biking, kiteboarding, hiking, camping, sailing, and paddleboarding.
Here are some of the local organizations promoting the startup scene in Vancouver:
2. Vancouver Startup Week – The city’s biggest startup festival happening annually in late September.
3. Launch Academy – A government and investor-backed program for startups.
4. Innovate BC – Providing funding, expertise, and connections for startups.
5. BC Business – Local business magazine covering tech companies.
6. DigiBC – Support Vancouver’s growing video game, VR and AR development industry.
7. Business In Vancouver – A local publication that publishes data about local businesses.
Creative Spaces To Meet People:
As the old axiom goes: it’s not just what you know, it’s who you know. Networking and building relationships is a good big part of getting hired for the vast majority of good creative tech jobs.
Here are some of the best groups and creative spaces in the city to meet new friends and make connections with entrepreneurial and artistic people:
1. TechVancouver – The biggest entrepreneurship meetup of startup founders and aspiring entrepreneurs in the city.
2. YVR Startups – Startup leaders and local creative professionals share their startup stories and expertise in panel discussions followed by networking mixers.
3. Internet Masterminds – A great group hosted by local social media entrepreneur Matt Astifan that features talks by successful online entrepreneurs, digital marketers and affiliate marketers.
4. Vancouver Founders – Originally called Vancouver Pixel Crafters, this meetup created by local entrepreneur and investor Boris Mann and is now managed by Launch Academy.
5. Creative Mornings Vancouver – The local Toronto chapter of Creative Mornings featuring local speakers from the creative arts and digital media communities.
Pros And Cons of Vancouver For Entrepreneurs:
Vancouver Pros:
1. One of the most beautiful cities in the world 2. Multicultural, polite and tolerant population 3. One of the greenest cities in the world 4. The healthiest and most bikable city in North America 5. A perfect blend of urban and natural environments 6. Very safe by big city standards (safely walk after dark) 7. Walkable urban neighbourhoods and no American-style freeway system 8. A highly educated workforce with incomes 50% lower than similars jobs in the USA 9. Excellent Universities, infrastructure, recreation facilities and parks throughout the city 10. A great balance of mountains and ocean for those who love the outdoor lifestyle
Vancouver Cons:
1. Most Vancouverites can barely afford to live in their own city 2. The most expensive city in the world based on local incomes 3. The celebrated Vancouver model of neoliberalism and real state speculation is collapsing 4. Largely a provincial, service-based economy floating on an ocean of expanding debt 5. Very few large blue chip companies and wages are low (why entrepreneurship is popular) 6. Canadian content and speech laws are repressive and holding back innovation 7. Very little real competition in the Canadian mobile telecommunications sector 8. A long, gloomy and depressing rainy season that lasts 6 months with very little sun 9. Massive brain drain of the best talent and startups to Silicon Valley and the USA 10. If you’re location independent, there are much cheaper and more dynamic locations
A Guide To Vancouver Startups:
There are a lot of vibrant local industries and many tech companies that are regularly hiring in the city of Vancouver.
Canada’s Innovation Grants, Funding and Incentives:
There is a low barrier in Canada to entry for entrepreneurial people who want to create their own jobs.
1. Invest Canada – Learn about some of Canada’s lucrative R&D programs and other incentives for business research and innovation.
2. Corporate Tax Credits and Incentives – Canada provides significant incentives for creative R&D in film, media, interactive digital media, computer animation, and special effects.
3. Innovation Canada – A tool from the Canadian government to find programs and services that can grow your business.
4. Wage Assistance Programs – The Apprenticeship Job Creation Tax Credit allows employers to claim up to $2,000 per year for each eligible apprentice and the Canada Job Grant incentivizes employers to better train employees.
5. Canada Media Fund -The largest endowment in the country for digital media startups. Raise up to $1,000,000.
6. VanTec Angel Technology Network – A network of local angel investors and early-stage investors who meet monthly to hear startup business pitches.
7. Greenest City Fund – Raise up to $70,000 from the city of Vancouver and the Vancouver Foundation to fund projects that benefit local neighbourhoods.
8. Vancouver Foundation – The largest local foundation that provides grants for arts programs and social entrepreneurship projects.
9. Futurpreneur – Small business loans of $50,000 and a mentorship program for new business owners.
10. BDC Young Entrepreneur Awards – A selection of finalists is chosen each year to compete for the $100,000 grand prize and a secondary prize of $25,00 in consulting services from the Business Development Bank of Canada.
11. Canada Council for the Arts – Extensive list of grants for creative entrepreneurs ranging from $2,500-$50,000.
Startup Accelerators And Incubators
1. Launch Academy – Helps entrepreneurs grow and scale their startups through education, mentorship, lean metrics, and networking opportunities. 2. Social Entrepreneurship Accelerator – Helps social entrepreneurs doing innovative things in the health, education and tourism space build out their growth marketing systems.
3. HATCH Venture Builder program – Provides established, UBC research-based venture teams with the space, resources and expertise to scale their business.
4. Creative Destruction Lab – Hosts advanced therapies, biomedical engineering, cancer, compute, climate, and minerals startups, focusing on the convergence of technologies that improve human health and wellness.
5. Althra – A 4-month, in-person incubator in Vancouver for Canadian founders. Providing capital, access to venture backed founders and investor introductions.
Venture Capital Investors
1. Rhino Ventures – A leading early-stage venture capital firm in Canada, focusing on strategic investments that extend the capacity of the founding teams.
2. Beedie Capital – Focusing on the $10M to $50M range, Beedie Capital strategically invests in Technology, Tech-enabled Services, and Metals and Mining sectors in the US and Canada.
3. TELUS Ventures – The venture capital arm of TELUS, focusing on investing in innovative startups in digital health, IoT, AgTech, digital security, and connected consumer sectors.
4. Version One – Founded and led by Boris Wertz and investing partner Angela Tran, they provide investments to startups in industries such as SaaS, marketplace, cryptocurrency, financial tech, and healthcare.
5. VanEdge Capital – A venture capital firm that specializes in investing in the gaming, digital media, SaaS solutions, enterprise software, cloud infrastructure, security, and cloud computing sectors.
Here some notable Vancouver startups and innovative tech companies.
Green Energy:
Green energy is one of the fast-growing industry in the Lower Mainland.
1. General Fusion – A global leader in nuclear fusion 2. Ballard Power – Fuel cell technology 3. Innergex – Renewable energy producer 4. Axine – Wastewater treatment 5. Etalim – Modular power generation from waste heat 6. Clir Renewables – Turns renewable energy data into action 7. Hydra Energy – Hydrogen-as-a-service for transportation 8. Moment Energy – Repurposing retired electric vehicle batteries
1. Nexii – Sustainable building technology 2. Saltworks – Turning saltwater and wastewater into potable water 3. AweSense – Smart grid technology 3. EnWave – Vacuum-microwave dehydration technology 4. Solegear Bioplastics – Biodegradable plastics 5. Ostara – Converts wastewater to fertilizer 6. SunCentral – Sunlight atriums. 7. Intuitive AI – Zero waste AI platform. 8. ChopValue – Products from recycled chopsticks 9. TruEath – Eco-friendly laundry detergent 10. Acuval – UV-LED water purification systems
Social Media:
Vancouver’s social media startup sector is very strong.
1. Hootsuite – Social media dashboard 2. PlentyOfFish – Free dating website 3. TradableBits – Social engagement platform 4. Trulioo – Global identification technology 5. Strutta – Social promotions and contest platform
Mobile Apps:
iOS and Android app development agencies in the city.
1. Axiom Zen – Mobile innovation studio 2. East Side Games – Marijuana-themed mobile games 3. A Thinking Ape – Mobile gaming company 4. TapStream – Mobile app marketing platform 5. Mobify – Mobile ecommerce platform 6. Conquer Mobile – Mobile app development 7. AirG – Mobile social discovery platform 8. HotHead Games – Sports games on mobile 9. EventBase – Event app platform 10. Generate – Creative photo and video editing app
Fitness and Wearable Tech:
Vancouver is one of the healthiest cities in the world and the health and fitness sector is a growth industry here.
1. Trainerize – Personal training software for fitness coaches 2. Train Fitness – Fully automated AI fitness trainer 3. WRKOUT – Helps wellness products recommend products 4. Ergonomy – Workplace fitness products 5. LifeBooster – Real-time safety monitoring systems 6. Plantiga – Smart insoles for athletes
Blockchain:
With interest in cryptocurrencies exploding, blockchain startups are booming.
1. Dappler Labs – The NFT company. Games on the blockchain 2. Layer Zero – Decentralized blockchain connectivity platform 2. Defined – Trader tools for the biggest decentralized exchanges 3. Hive – First publicly traded crypto mining company 4. Stably – Enterprise asset tokenization solutions 5. Covalent – Unified API for blockchain adopters 6. Blockchain Intelligence – Real-time search and data analytics 7. Manifold – Blockchain products for NFT communities
VR, AR and The Internet of Things (IoT):
Vancouver has one of the largest virtual reality, augmented reality and artificial intelligence clusters.
1. Finger Food Studios – Large AR, AI and IoT innovation studio 2. Cognitive 3D – Analytics for digital realities 3. Archiact – Virtual reality design studio 4. Antheer – Augmented reality solutions for industry 5. Fantasy360 – Virtual and augmented reality
Digital Marketing:
There is a lot of local activity in the digital marketing and CRM (customer relationship management) space.
Online shopping is disrupting the local store. These companies are on the cutting edge of ecommerce.
1. Indochino – Buy suits and dress clothes online 2. BuildDirect – A massive platform for home builders 3. Sprocket – Dropshipping for ecommerce retailers 4. iQmetrix – Wireless retail technology 5. Elastic Path – Ecommerce software
Cloud Computing:
Local companies innovating in the massive cloud computing space.
1. RadWare – Load balancing and security for data centres 2. FusionPipe – Password-less mobile security and encryption 3. Standard Fusion – cloud-based SaaS GRC application
Digital Media:
Vancouver has a thriving digital media and advertising sector.
As Hollywood North, Vancouver has a healthy industry of streaming online video companies.
1. Broadband TV – Streaming video channels 2. Lumen5 – AI-powered video creation 3. StoryTap – Video marketing platform 4. SendToNews – Sports highlight video distribution 5. UrTheCast – The world’s first live space streaming camera 6. CineCoup – The film accelerator
Hardware:
Some innovative companies building the future of computing and hardware.
1. D-Wave – A global leader in quantum computing 2. RedLen – Semiconductor radiation detectors 3. Epic Semiconductors – Innovative chips 4. Avigilon – Surveillance technology 5. Captherm – Cooling system for high-power electronics 6. Elix Wireless – Wireless power transfer technology 7. MTT Innovation – Laser project technology 8. MDA – Commercial satellites 9. Zaber – Motorized linear slides 10. Tinkerine – 3D printer manufacturer
Video Games:
Vancouver has one of the largest video game development industries in the world.
With UBC an international biotechnology leader, Vancouver is a hotbed for innovation in the medical sector.
1. Zymeworks – Protein biotherapeutics 2. Phemi – Process automation and big data for health care 3. Ayoga – Gamification of patient self-care 4. Medeo – Connect with local doctors 5. StemCell Technologies – Scientists helping scientists 6. Mckesson – Medical imaging solutions 7. Telus Health – Innovative eHealth solutions 8. Kardium – Medical device for treating atrial fibrillation 9. Coastal Genomics – Makers of a gel electrophoresis machine for gene separation 10. Abcellera – AI-powered therapeutic antibody drug discovery platform
Travel:
Emerging online travel startups based in Vancouver.
1. ToursByLocals – Marketplace for local tour guides 2. KeyCafe – Manage keys for rental properties on AirBNB 3. AlluraDirect – Mountain vacation rentals platform
Food:
Healthy eating is something of a religion in Vancouver. Naturally, food is a sexy industry for innovators.
1. Daiya Food – Dairy-free alternative to cheese 2. Vega – Vegetable and hemp protein products 3. Gardein – Vegan and vegetarian food substitutes 4. Food X – eGrocery Management Solution 5. Nude Beverages – Alcoholic beverages
AgTech
Vancouver startups who are helping improve agriculture.
I'm a serial entrepreneur, autodidact and a passionate advocate for experiential learning.
I believe the future of education starts with helping people find their "zone of genius" so they can develop their uniquely human ability to create meaning, connection and community (that A.I. can't replicate).
I'm also big on completely unplugging from tech to recharge on nature retreats and trekking adventures. That led me to start my most recent company Sacred Treks.
