What happened: The New Ventures BC competition honoured startups with prize packages totalling $250,000
Why it matters: Previous startups recognized in the annual competition have gone on to create 3,800 jobs and raise $380 million in financing, according to organizers
B.C. startups specializing in video creation, food-order management, autonomous boats and the collection of music royalties are in the spotlight after taking home prizes at the annual New Ventures BC competition.
Vancouver-based Lumen5 Technologies Ltd. took home the top prize of $105,000 on Thursday (September 19) for developing a platform for simplified video creation aimed at businesses.
The company has yet to raise outside capital investment since launching two years, while its artificial intelligence-powered platform has attracted nearly 300,000 users during that period.
The annual competition facilitated by the Innovate BC Crown agency distributed a total of $250,000 in cash and prizes.
In second place was Vancouver-based NiceJob Inc., which took home $60,000 for developing software to help businesses build up their online reputations.
The third-place, $35,000 prize went to Victoria’s Cuboh Software Inc. for its platform that helps restaurants streamline online food orders.
“Every year, I’m taken away by the strength of the companies in B.C.’s tech sector. The diversity of ventures in this year’s top 10 is a true representation of the creativity and innovation we see emerging from all corners of the province,” New Ventures BC chairman Mike Volker said in a statement.
Organizers said a record-setting 200 companies applied to this year’s competition.
Other industry prizes went to the following:
· Open Ocean Robotics from Victoria received the $22,000 B.C. Resource Industry Prize package for developing autonomous boats to collect ocean data
· Spectrum from Vancouver received the $15,000 Vancity Social Venture prize package for its mobile app assisting with antimicrobial stewardship at hospitals
· Cuboh received an additional $10,000 prize package for winning the Innovate BC Top Regional award, taking home a total of $45,000
· Plugzio (Parkizio Technologies Ltd.) from Coquitlam received the $6,000 BC Tech Association Growth Programs prize package for creating an electrical charger that could be used at airports or parkades for electric cars or e-bikes, billing individual users based on activation
· BeatDapp Software Inc. from Vancouver won the $2,500 People’s Choice award for developing technology that helps music companies and artists collect royalties
