Welcome to this week’s Midweek Memo. In this issue, read about the Blue Economy opportunity, women in engineering, and how to get your team on the same page.

Now, onto today’s briefing. It’s 707 words, a three-minute read.

VoxCell wins the last-ever Collision PITCH competition

On the last day of the last Collision conference, three Canadian startups pitched their businesses to judges Marlon Thompson, chief experience officer at Spring Impact Capital; Rachel Slaybaugh, partner at DCVC; and Eva Wong, co-founder and COO of Borrowell.

The finalists had already beat out the 557 other applicants, including 70 who were invited to pitch and 10 semi-finalists. In the end, it was Victoria’s VoxCell BioInnovation that took home first place.

VoxCell is revolutionizing 3D bio-printing with a universal bio-ink kit that mimics natural soft tissue, allowing pharmaceutical companies to test new drugs faster. Currently, the company focuses on printing human-like cancer tissues.

“VoxCell has created the first bio-printed human-like cancer tissue models that drug developers can utilize to directly inject their drug candidates through the blood vessels. This allows us to identify ineffective drugs much earlier in the process,” said Asees Kaur, business operations coordinator at VoxCell BioInnovation. “And our market isn’t just constrained to cancer, this is just what we’re starting [with] because it's a US$16 billion market. Our next market from here is neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson’s.”

From securing initial funding in 2020 from friends and family, the Victoria-based startup is now backed by VCs and angel investors.

📰 More Victoria innovation news

⛵️ Sail away with me: COAST hosted a summer mixer to explore the potential of the Blue Economy in Port Alberni, where partners including Ocean Networks Canada, Dock Plus, Canadian Maritime Engineering, and Independent Seafoods are already helping build the ecosystem.

💪 Ladies, leave your man at home: Ocean Networks Canada highlighted two women on the ONCabyss expedition, celebrating International Day of Women in Engineering. Our sister publication, The Westshore, chatted with the ONC team about the expedition here.

👯‍♂️ And you know, we’re on each other’s team: MarineLabs CFO Christopher Moreno shared his thoughts on getting teams on the same page when it comes to budgeting, sales forecasting, and operational efficiency. Moreno is also a serial entrepreneur and professor of entrepreneurship.

🕴️ Tech jobs of the week

Find your next career:

• Analyst, Compensation at BCI

• Senior Network Analyst at BC Transit

• Manager, Cybersecurity at City of Victoria

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

📅 Upcoming events

June 27 | ProductTank Victoria and ProductBC Summer Meetup: The Rise of No-Code/Low-Code

Join the ProductTank Victoria and ProductBC communities for an exciting in-person panel discussion on the no-code and low-code revolution. Come to:

• Hear valuable insights and practical tips from industry leaders

• Explore innovative use cases for no-code/low-code tools

• Tackle the unique challenges PMs face in this space

• Connect with fellow PMs over beverages and appetizers

August 23 | VIATEC Summer Tech Together

Picture this: Crowd surfing the CEO of your team to the raddest live band under the sun, and savagely beating your tech rivals in the potato sack race, all while showing off those summer gains in the tug-o-war.

• Chill and Connect: Soak up those summer rays with top tech teams in our city.

• Demolish Your Tech Rivals: Prove to the Tectorian community why your company is the best by sprinting to the finish line in the three-legged race and flaunting your superior senses in the blindfolded obstacle course.

• Bring Your Conductor Hat: Take a relaxing cruise through the heritage grounds on the trains with your kiddos.

• Wave Your Glow Sticks: Mosh-pit with your boss and embarrass your kids in front of the main stage.

Have an upcoming event? Reply to let us know.

🙋 I need a…

We at Victoria Tech Journal know you, our community, pretty well. Are you searching for someone in your field to have coffee with, a hiring hookup, a lead on local investors, or a suggestion for a great Victoria tech tool? Whatever you’re hunting for, let us know. We’ll post it in this section and make it happen.

Email your requests to [email protected].