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Welcome to this week’s Sunday Briefing, brought to you by Switchboard. In this issue, find out what MarineLabs’ Scott Beatty is up to in Halifax, which two local investment firms have a merger in the works, read the latest league to re-up with STN Video, and plenty more.

Now, onto today’s briefing. It’s 1,091 words, a four-minute read.

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Innovate BC Ignite awards funding to a pair of UVic projects

Collaborations with UVic seem to be the theme of the week for us here at Victoria Tech Journal. On Wednesday, we told you of the Gustavson Business School field trip hosted by VIATEC. Now, a pair of UVic link-ups with local companies have been awarded government funding.

Innovate BC gave nearly $1.4 million to five B.C. research and development projects in natural resources and applied sciences, through its Ignite program. Two hail from Victoria:

• VoxCell BioInnovation and Dr. Alexandre Brolo of UVic were awarded $300,000 to develop fully vascularized, human-like cancer tissue models by combining a custom high-resolution 3D bioprinter, advanced vascularized software, and proprietary bioinks.

• RepliCel Life Sciences and Dr. Mohsen Akbari of UVic were awarded $165,000 to develop smart microcarriers for high-density culture of therapeutic cells, without the use of enzymes.

Each year, Innovate’s Ignite program selects research projects in the natural resources and applied sciences, awarding up to $300,000 per project. To date, it has funded 46 projects, for a total value of $12 million.

News also didn’t stop there for the crown agency. It also partnered with InBC, PacifiCan, and New Ventures BC to launch a new online platform that provides a comprehensive and dynamic view of British Columbia’s capital and business landscape. Available now, Capital Compass BC offers centralized intelligence on startups, scaleups, investors, entrepreneurial resources, and investment capital flow within the province.

“While British Columbia continues to thrive and lead across many sectors, companies in our province will benefit from enhanced knowledge of available capital, resulting in stronger global partnerships and growth potential for B.C.,” said Innovate’s interim president and CEO Tomica Divic. “Through Capital Compass BC, we hope that business and investment entities working within our region will be better equipped to effectively find and access local funding sources and investment opportunities to support their development.”

🏙️ Community catchup, powered by VIATEC

Rob Bennett, VIATEC’s COO, on the LIFT CEO Retreat:

“This is the second year we're running it. We had a couple dozen people again this year. And we're again doing it on Pender Island. The whole point to the retreat is to literally get away from it with a group of people that are on a similar journey. There's a lot of sharing of the good, the bad, the ugly.

“One attendee said it really well. He said, ‘I knew everyone in the room. But I didn't know them.” Spending two days having all these serious conversations with a tasty beverage or two in your hand, you really get to know folks in a much more real way.”

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📰 More Victoria innovation news

🤝 Putting the CIN in Cindicates: Capital Investment Network is merging with Cindicates, the Victoria-based investment firm.

⚽ Putting the S in STN video: Professional soccer league MLS has reupped its deal with local video outfit, STN.

🌊 Putting the marine in MarineLabs: Victoria-based oceantech company MarineLabs was announced as a new ecosystem member of Port of Halifax’s The PIER at the Seaport.

🕴️ Tech jobs of the week

Find your next career:

• Full Stack Developer at Montra Interactive

• Enhanced Executive Support Analyst at ISM

Hiring in Victoria? Reply to this email and let us know!

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📅 Upcoming events

Oct 4 | Checkfront's Global Merger: A Fireside Chat: Join Checkfront's leadership team as they discuss their startup journey and merger with Rezdy and Regiondo.

Oct 12 | ITSM x AI: The Power of Artificial Intelligence: Join Highway Three Solutions for an afternoon dedicated to unleashing the power of Artificial Intelligence in IT Service Management. The event will provide insights, client success stories, and networking opportunities in a relaxed and engaging atmosphere.

Have an upcoming event? Reply to let us know.

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