thriveFORWARD Start-ups Have Already Raised a Total of $8.3 million in Follow-on Investment

VENTURE13, COBOURG, ONTARIO, December 19, 2023—In the midst of a difficult fundraising environment and coming out of a venture capital industry slowdown in 2022, 11 companies out of over 100 in the thriveFORWARD start-up portfolio have already raised a total of [at least] $8.3 million in incremental follow-on investment* as a result of technology validation, completion of prototypes and early product commercialization.

thriveFORWARD seed funds and accelerates some of the most innovative new ‘clean and green’ ventures in southern Ontario, companies that are attracting strategic investment from angels and venture funds for nanotech, medtech, artificial intelligence and machine learning, fintech, food production, robotics and more:

• Enurgen provides an innovative software operating system for end-to-end utility-scale solar asset management. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 matching performance-based funding from NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative for early commercialization of the DUET system designer. Enurgen went on to raise over $1 million in an investment round led by 2048 Ventures.
• Coastal Carbon is the world’s first marketplace that focuses on verification services in ocean carbon credits. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 matching performance-based funding from NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative for underwater remote monitoring platform development and commercialization. Coastal Carbon went on to raise $1.6 million from Canada’s Ocean Supercluster.
• Chexy is enhancing rental market transactions between tenants and landlords with a rewards-based fintech platform. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 in funding from NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative for beta testing to accelerate technology readiness. Chexy went on to raise $1.3 million from Crossbeam Ventures.
• Vessl is an innovative prosthetics engineering and design venture. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 in funding from NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative for completion of mechanical testing of the prosthetics solution. Vessl went on to participate in the Techstars Physical Health Fort Worth Texas Accelerator program and secured an additional $20,000 in investment. “We love working with NCFDC and FedDev Ontario through thriveFORWARD,” said Sydney Robinson, Founder of Vessl. “Thank you for your continued guidance and support.”
• Tenomix is a ground-breaking medtech startup solving inefficiencies in the cancer pathology workflows. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 in funding from NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative for prototype completion and went on to raise a major venture round led by FACIT.
• Hyivy is a data-driven device and pelvic health platform for women. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 in funding for an initial production run of devices to support clinical testing activities and went on to raise a major venture round, also led by FACIT. “We’re excited to acknowledge the support of NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative through the FedDev Ontario Jobs and Growth Fund,” said Rachel Bartholomew, Founder and CEO of Hyivy.
• New Protein International offers clean sustainable technology for plant protein production. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 in funding from NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative for strategic lab equipment acquisition and installation and went on to raise $250,000 from Natural Products Canada. “Our thriveFORWARD project results in Canada’s first hexane-free soy protein pilot plant and is a key piece of infrastructure to enable future collaboration with other oilseed protein companies within Canada,” said Graham Markham, Chief Development Officer at New Protein International.
• Neptune Nanotechnologies is developing next generation nano-structured materials reclaimed and manufactured from ocean waste. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 in funding from NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative for nano-crystal production scale-up and field testing. Neptune went on to raise $1.8 million from the China Canada Angel Alliance (CCAA), with strong participation from Ontario Centre of Innovation (OCI), Liquid Metal VC, and a few other private investors.
• ENERZA has developed a conditional risk assessment tool for electrical utility providers through autonomous on-wire robotic monitoring. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 matching performance-based funding from NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative to complete field testing. “thriveFORWARD enabled us to prepare a demonstration for a local utility company after accelerating critical high-voltage testing, positioning us for our next fundraising round, which this project also enabled,” said James Aein, Co-Founder & CEO of ENERZA. ENERZA graduated from the Berkeley SkyDeck Global Accelerator and secured follow-on investment from Access Industries (an undisclosed amount).
• VETSon is revolutionizing how livestock medicine is practiced with a mobile application. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 matching performance-based funding from NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative for testing including an initial pilot project and went on to raise an undisclosed amount from RHA Ventures.
• Cyclic Materials is creating a circular supply chain for rare earth elements. The start-up was approved for up to $25,000 matching performance-based funding from NCFDC’s thriveFORWARD initiative for a test program that helped to position Cyclic for a follow-on $27 million Series A led by Impact Energy Ventures and BMW i Ventures.

This exciting result—right out of the gate—represents a 3.3X multiple of FedDev Ontario and the Government of Canada’s initial commitment of $2.5 million for direct financing of Start-ups as part of NCFDC’s Jobs and Growth Fund (JGF) initiative. Most thriveFORWARD seed funded companies are wrapping up their projects by December 31, 2023, and even more venture rounds are in the process of closing. These entrepreneurs and innovators are helping our region to prepare for sustainable growth as they build the industries of the future by transitioning to a green economy, fostering an inclusive recovery, enhancing competitiveness, and creating jobs.

“With targeted, timely and precise seed funding for early-stage ventures we can ensure that the most promising southern Ontario technology entrepreneurs complete important strategic milestones, demonstrating their potential to private sector investors,” said Wendy Curtis, Executive Director of NCFDC. “Whether through organic growth, access to financing or getting onto a solid venture capital track like these fourteen fantastic companies, we’re excited to see thriveFORWARD Start-ups advance, bringing their home-grown talent and technology to Ontario, Canada and the world.”

For more information about the thriveFORWARD initiative, please visit the official webpage.

Catch upcoming episodes of NCFDC’s flagship Frontier Entrepreneurship Podcast featuring founders from thriveFORWARD-backed Start-ups on Podbean and Spotify.

*Excluding statistical outliers and including undisclosed amounts that were reported to NCFDC and included in the total.

Contact

Victoria Pichler
Marketing & Communications Coordinator – NCFDC
647-570-7851