Build it and investors will come [to Startup Week]

When Edmonton Unlimited started inviting investors to Deep Tech Day during Edmonton Startup Week, it invited 10. Then four more invited themselves.

It's a small detail that says a lot. Edmonton founders often say they need more investors. Investors often say Edmonton needs more deep tech companies. At this year's Startup Week, Oct. 5 to 9, the two sides met.

Investors make the trip to Edmonton 

Reza Mohseni, Investment Portfolio Manager

Reza Mohseni, Investment Portfolio Manager at Edmonton Unlimited, was part of the team that organized the investor meetings. Of the 14 investors who took part in Deep Tech Day, three were from Edmonton. Others came from Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary and Montreal.

Deep Tech Day wasn't the only draw. Ryan Watkins, Senior Associate with Ottawa-based Mistral Venture Partners, who leads their Calgary office, spent Startup Week meeting Edmonton founders.

Ryan Watkins, Mistral Ventures

"Edmonton has a lot more going on than most people realize," Watkins says. "I spent a week meeting founders building some really interesting companies, particularly in applied AI, but also in quantum, cryogenics and medical devices. There's serious technical talent coming out of Amii and the U of A, and increasingly, the ambition to turn that research into businesses. The investment community is growing alongside it, and Mistral is excited to be here."

Mohseni says the contrast with last year is stark. “This was the first time we brought investors in at this scale, " he says. And he says engagement is about more than money: “Founders learn what investors look for, and investors learn what’s being built here."

The feedback he's collected from visiting investors has been consistent. "We don't have a talent problem here," Mohseni says. "We have great scientists. We have great people working on great products."

Visiting investors also told Mohseni Edmonton needs more later stage deep tech companies. He defines deep tech broadly: life sciences, robotics, AI, quantum and dual-use defence technology, rather than standard software and apps.

Investors putting down roots in Edmonton 

Some investors aren't just visiting. This spring, Toronto-based Graphite Ventures, which invests in seed-stage B2B companies, added two team members in Alberta: a principal in Calgary and Alexandra Wilson, an analyst based in Edmonton. The firm also recently took over management of the U of A Innovation Fund.

Alexandra Wilson, Graphite Ventures

This was Wilson's third Startup Week. "This year felt very different," she says. "It felt like a lot of buzz. This is my busiest year yet."

Wilson offered some advice to founders when it comes to valuations, as she's seen some companies set them high with little to show for them. "If you want to get investors early and you want people to help you meaningfully … then I think there needs to be just some reality checks involved," she says.

Getting founders investor-ready

Bringing investors to town was only half the work. Edmonton Unlimited met with most of the 68 applicants before selecting 32 companies for investor meetings.

The companies that were selected attended a preparation workshop led by SproutFund’s Shaheel Hooda and Kristina Milke to sharpen their materials. Mohseni has also seen founders change how they pitch. After feedback from an earlier investor event in June, many now bring a one-page summary investors can scan in a minute, instead of relying on a long pitch.

For Mohseni, the work of building Edmonton's investment community is far from finished, and he treats it the way founders treat their companies.

"This is also a startup for us," he says. "We are testing. We are learning and we are improving what we have to help companies."