The Edge Fund: Championing Tech and Innovation in Edmonton
Supporting businesses in their innovation efforts is critical when it comes to achieving Edmonton’s economic growth goals. I know that the City of Edmonton’s administration feels the same way, and is looking to cultivate Edmonton’s edge within the innovation ecosystem by building up leadership, partnerships and ecosystem stewardship, funding and programs, physical or geographical innovation assets, talent attraction and retention and becoming a destination of choice for capital. This is why I am supportive of establishing an Edge Fund that will strengthen our city’s innovation ecosystem.
“Edmonton’s growth within the technology space in the last decade has been exciting to watch and be part of, and we are just getting started. We want to invest in those companies. Our City should invest in them too. Building a global company is profoundly challenging, and [Edmonton] should support those individuals in their development to move fast and focused.” —Tiffany Linke-Boyko, Flying Fish Partners
An Edge Fund would address a current gap in capital available to local innovators and entrepreneurs operating in, or entering, the Edmonton market. This fund program will also enhance Edmonton’s competitive edge and Place Brand in appealing to new innovators, as well as promoting business growth, economic diversification and talent retention. The Edge Fund would award financial support to local private sector companies, not-for-profit organizations and public institutions proposing local investments, and would offer the recipients of the fund support from City of Edmonton’s administration.
We heard from:
Kyle Konsorada (Keller Construction)
- Spoke about how the City of Edmonton could foster innovation, partnerships and accelerate the deployment of disruptive technology in transitioning Edmonton to modernized construction hub.
- “There is a huge opportunity to take ideas from the [post secondary sector], upgrade and refine it to a commercializable product. I believe the Edge Fund can make it a reality.”
Isha Datar (New Harvest)
- Shared about the immense opportunities in the emerging cellular agriculture sector, which has grown from 0 to $5B, operating more than 110 companies globally in less than ten years.
- “The City of Edmonton holds all the cards needed to lead and grow long-term international cellular agriculture development. We have the right people and institutions, which feed the world today and will absolutely feed the cellular agriculture industry of tomorrow.”
Chris Cassin (Zero Point Cryogenics)
- ZPC builds essential hardware — dilution refrigerators that can achieve temperatures as low as 10 millikelvin for quantum computing. They are one of the few companies around the world who can build this highly coveted equipment and they do this from an unassuming shop building in South Edmonton.
- Chris mentioned that an edge fund would help hard-tech companies with long sales cycles access capital during the scale up stage.
Sheetal Mehta (University of Alberta)
- Spoke about Edmonton being the City of Champions and Innovation. “We should be proud of our ecosystem here and the strategic partnerships that are forming that have been highly supportive of the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs.”
- She said an edge fund can enhance financial inclusion and support new grads building tech businesses access starting capital, no matter what social economic background they come from.
Adam Brown (formerly with Wyvern, and currently with 48hr Discovery)
- “The impact of local grants can be truly game changing in terms of the trajectory of where a company can go. A grant from the City of Edmonton is a stamp of approval. Its value is beyond the money. It validates that a key public institution believes in you and helps attract talent and investors.”
Thomas De Haas (Interface Fluidics)
- “It’s really really challenging to find investors that believe in you in the early stage. Companies have left Alberta due to accessibility to capital. This fund will help especially capital intensive hardware-based startups to grow in this city to get a foothold, attract people here, set down roots and start things off.”
Zack Storms (Start-Up TNT)
- “An Edge Fund will put more fuel into the ecosystem and compliment the work that many organizations are already doing. It can make the community more inclusive because we have amazing innovators who do not come from wealth. A fund like this means more innovation dollars going directly to the entrepreneurs and community members that can make things happen.”
Today was an incredible celebration of Edmonton’s growing tech and startup industry, and of the key partners like University of Alberta and Edmonton Unlimited, who have been steadfastly building up this ecosystem. I want to thank the administration for the hard work that they have put into this, and hope that my Council colleagues will join me in supporting this new funding program during budget deliberations.
I am proud of Edmonton’s talent and ingenuity, and I want to support the tech and innovation sector in any way I can. I look forward to watching this work evolve and know that the implementation of the Edge Fund will be integral in helping Edmonton achieve its post-pandemic economic recovery goals. Here’s to a bright future of championing tech and innovation in the Edmonton region!
