Announcing the 5th Cohort of the Hardware Catalyst Initiative

ventureLAB is proud to present our 5th cohort of Hardware Catalyst Initiative, a competitive program dedicated to supporting the development of hardware and semiconductor-focused products and services to enable and equip Canadian hardware companies to grow, scale, and develop products of tomorrow. 

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The Hardware Catalyst Initiative is Canada’s only hardware and semiconductor-focused lab and incubator, and is the primary destination for hardware companies across the country. Offered to Canada-based startups at no costs and with no equity requirement, participating companies will be provided with direct resources to accelerate commercialization at scale through raising capital, retaining talent, commercializing technology and IP, and customer acquisition. 

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The cohort 5 companies have gone through a competitive selection process, as well as the Hardware Catalyst Initiative bootcamp, a rigorous addition to the current selection process to ensure companies are set up for success in hardware, an industry that is notoriously difficult to succeed in with long lead times for both product validation and investment alike.  

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The Cohort 5 Companies in the Hardware Catalyst Initiative:

Whenergy

Whenergy provides a peer-to-peer commerce platform for electrical power sources (grid, solar, storage) and power users (EV charging). Custom hardware solution operates on 5G network. Pilot projects with Alectra (Brampton) and Toronto Hydro.

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STUDIO 1 LABS INC.

Studio 1 Labs has developed fabric sensors for car seats that can meet FMVSS standards for passenger occupancy detection, and provides features that reduce costs for components and computer processing.

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Daanaa Resolution Inc

With Daanaa Resolution's power electronics and chip technology, energy is transferred freely, safely, and efficiently in AC and DC modes without requiring external power electronic devices like converters. Their circuits are versatile, designed to integrate seamlessly with existing technologies and hardware, working bidirectionally for medium-free power and data transfer. Their technology is also applicable to electronic devices, electric vehicles (EV), battery management systems (BMS), and solar power for improved efficiency and system simplification.

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Reeddi Inc.

Reeddi provides a modular Li-Ion Battery system for renting charged battery modules to customers, then recharging them collectively at a solar charging station. Strong adoption by households and small businesses in rural Africa, displacing diesel generators.

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McGuire Aero Propulsion Solutions Inc

McGuire Aero Propulsion Solutions is developing a power generation technology for commercial micro-power-plants integrating multiple generating & storage assets on a common DC electrical bus. The primary generating assets is a patented turbine module providing 200kWe output.

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AIM Colours Inc.

AIM Colours is developing Tech-enabled press-on fingernails (using encapsulated battery- free electrophoretic display), where the color image can be customized and changed from a mobile eCosmetic application.

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Afimacheck

AfimaCheck is developing a thermal reader for lateral flow assay (common strips used for pregnancy and COVID tests) to enhance detection and accuracy for workplace drug-of- abuse testing, food safety, agriculture supply chain, and clinical testing.

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AiimSense Inc.

AiimSense is developing point of care brain imaging systems for early diagnosis of stroke. At a fraction of the cost of an MRI, the solution brings diagnostic imaging and monitoring closer to the point of first response, and available to rural community hospitals.

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Pocket Clinic Corp.

Pocket Clinic is developing a compact smart insulin pump to help diabetics minimize blood glucose swings without the burden of existing pumps. It features cloud-based monitoring of glucose levels and a smartphone interface.

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Attest Laboratories

Attest Laboratories is developing a portable magnetic resonance spectrometer to rapidly test for metabolite biomarkers without using a disposable test strip or taking a blood sample. It is aimed at primary care and senior living facilities where frequent tests are performed daily.

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Neoglacia Inc

Neoglacia is developing a precision robotic process for preparing biological samples for cryo-electron microscopy. The solution helps speed up the workflow of biological studies in the development of vaccines, therapeutic drugs, and provide insight into viruses and other aspects of living systems.

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If your company is a Canada-based startup that specializes in offering automotive and smart mobility hardware products, and you are looking for resources to help grow and scale your company, mark your calendar - Hardware Catalyst Initiative will officially start accepting applications for the 6th cohort on February 1st.

Apply to the Hardware Catalyst Initiative and take your hardware company to the next level.

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About Hardware Catalyst Initiative

ventureLAB’s Hardware Catalyst Initiative is Canada’s only lab and incubator for founders building hardware and semiconductor-focused products, enabling the creation of transformative technologies that will power our products of tomorrow. Funded in part by the Government of Canada, through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), the Hardware Catalyst helps tech companies accelerate their time to market in a sector that normally incurs lengthy entry and scale times, enabling Canadian hardware and semiconductor companies to grow and scale locally, and compete globally.

About ventureLAB

ventureLAB is a leading global founder community for hardware technology and enterprise software companies in Canada. Located at the heart of Ontario’s innovation corridor in York Region, ventureLAB is part of one of the biggest and most diverse tech communities in Canada. Our initiatives focused on raising capital, talent retention, commercializing technology and IP, and customer acquisition have enabled thousands of companies to create over 4,500 jobs and raise more than $200 million in investment capital. At ventureLAB, we grow globally competitive tech titans that build-to-scale in Canada, for global markets.