DMZ has received $500,000 CAD from the Embark Student Foundation’s Major Grant Program to expand its student-focused entrepreneurship programming. The Toronto-based incubator specifically plans to expand Basecamp, its hybrid summer entrepreneurship program that helps students turn their ideas into tech solutions for social or economic challenges. Basecamp will now be offered in two phases: “Sprint” and “Voyage.” The Sprint phase will include a four-week pitch coaching experience that gives students the chance to pitch their businesses at tech conference Collision, win a trip to New York City ..read more

Vancouver-based digital healthcare company Well Health Technologies has acquired 10 primary-care medical clinics across British Columbia (BC) and Ontario from Loblaw-owned Shoppers Drug Mart.   The deal, made through its subsidiary the Well Health Clinic Network, will see Well Health acquire all primary care medical clinics operated by Shoppers Drug Mart under The Health Clinic by Shoppers banner. The banner is made up of 35 physicians across four clinics in BC and six clinics in Ontario, according to Well Health, and will be rebranded under the Well Clinic name.  Well Health s ..read more

Montréal-based cleantech company Eocycle Technologies has closed $25 million CAD in Series A funding as it looks to expand its distributed wind turbines in the United States and Europe. The deal closed earlier this month and was led by Export Development Canada (EDC), which contributed a $10-million equity investment. The round saw additional participation from Fonds de Solidarité FTQ and Investissement Québec, which contributed $10 million in equity financing and a $5-million loan, respectively. To date, Eocycle has raised $47 million in equity financing. “A just environmental transition al ..read more

Among the over 250,000 attendees drawn to South by Southwest (SXSW) each year, aspirations vary widely. As one of the world’s largest tech conferences, SXSW offers a key opportunity for startups, investors, and tech enthusiasts from all over the world to connect, learn, and close deals over eight days of tech-focused programming in Austin, Texas. “By exposing our companies to those environments, we can help them change their mindsets and think globally.” According to Tim Murphy, vice president of Alberta Innovates’ health division, the crown corporation had a clear objective going into this ..read more

The AI Times is a weekly newsletter covering the biggest AI, machine learning, big data, and automation news from around the globe. If you want to read A|I before anyone else, make sure to subscribe using this form. Ottawa has used AI in nearly 300 projects and initiatives: research Canada’s federal government has used artificial intelligence in nearly 300 projects and initiatives, new research has found — including to help predict the outcome of tax cases, sort temporary visa applications and promote diversity in hiring. Joanna Redden, an associate professor at Western University, pieced tog ..read more

Today, the Government of Canada publishes its 2024 budget. Analysts do not expect #Budget2024 to be heavy on new spending commitments, with interest rates remaining steady and significant spending having already been announced in recent weeks for housing. Housing commitments and last week’s announcement of $2.4 billion to AI startups, compute, and safety, together already clock in at over $25 billion. Instead, the Canadian tech community will be looking for meaningful updates on past commitments, such as open banking and the Artificial Intelligence and Data Act (AIDA), which is part of Bill C ..read more

Richmond, British Columbia-based last-mile delivery startup UniUni, which primarily serves e-commerce giants Shein and Temu, has secured $50 million USD ($69 million CAD) in Series C financing.  The round was led by venture capital (VC) firm DCM and will be used to develop the proprietary tech stack powering UniUni’s logistics platform and to expand its delivery coverage in the United States (US), UniUni founder and CEO Peter Lu said in a statement.  UniUni describes its logistics platform and B2C last-mile delivery model as an “Uber-style” service. “In just a few years, UniUni ha ..read more

While Canada’s FinTech ecosystem awaits legislation to make open banking a reality—which the federal government has promised for Budget 2024—it remains unclear when the country can expect to see the Real-Time Rail (RTR) payment system launched. Today, Payments Canada announced that following the completion of its latest review, the development of the long-anticipated and oft-delayed RTR has resumed, but did not share a date for when the country can expect a new, modernized payment system to be implemented. “It’s hard to be excited about something that’s been so fraught with uncertainty.” Ale ..read more

To fuel its product and artificial intelligence (AI) development efforts, last summer, Kitchener-Waterloo-based Vidyard secured about $21 million CAD ($15 million USD) in financing led by Export Development Canada (EDC). Vidyard COO Jonathan Lister told BetaKit that the previously unannounced funding, which closed in August of last year, has gone towards expanding its sales and marketing software—including layering in new AI capabilities—and positioning the startup for potential mergers and acquisitions (M&A). Today, Vidyard has announced its entry into the AI avatar market, introducing a ..read more

The SaaS Weekly is a weekly newsletter covering major SaaS news from Canada and around the globe. Subscribe to S|W using this form to ensure you don’t miss out on the most important SaaS news every week! Hootsuite to acquire social media analytics company Talkwalker Hootsuite is set to acquire Luxembourg-based artificial intelligence consumer intelligence and social listening company Talkwalker for an undisclosed amount. Hootsuite said the deal is aimed at helping its customers get more out of their social media relationships and will fuel the Vancouver tech company’s shift in focus from soci ..read more