ventureLAB today added new participants to its Hardware Catalyst Initiative, which the organization describes as Canada’s “only lab and incubator” for budding hardware and semiconductor companies.
The announcement comes on the heels of an additional $4.7 million investment made by the Federal Economic Development Agency of Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) earlier this year, which brings the total government investment to $9.7 million.
Joining the Hardware Catalyst’s partner network are Dell Canada, Dassault Systèmes and Canadian engineering design firm NueronicWorks.
The three new participants join a global network that includes Silicon Catalyst, TSMC, Arm, and Nuvia and founding partners AMD and Synopys. To date, an estimated $15 million in resources, equipment, expertise, and mentorship for the participating companies has been committed.
“The global partner network of the Hardware Catalyst Initiative in combination with our team’s experience as leaders and entrepreneurs in this sector demonstrates the importance of a state-of-the-art lab for hardware and semiconductor companies in Canada and around the world,” said Melissa Chee, president and CEO of ventureLAB.
“As technologies become smarter and more advanced, there is a significantly heightened demand for hardware and semiconductor solutions, and this demand is impacting the global production and supply of consumer electronics, automobiles, and a range of other crucial technologies that are a must for the new innovation economy.”
Globally, the semiconductor industry is part of a US$7-trillion market that drives technology development and innovation in next-generation products like electric vehicles, robotics in precision agriculture, and 5G communication in mobiles devices, a ventureLAB release stated
It added that the industry is also a major driver of employment and economic recovery, generating nearly five new technology jobs for every one semiconductor job created.
“These new partnerships are great news for ventureLAB and for Canadian businesses,” said Mary Ng, federal minister of small business, export promotion and international trade. “The global demand for microchips has provided an opportunity for Canada’s hardware and semiconductor industry to grow and expand.”
Meanwhile, Pam Pelletier, country manager at Dell Canada, said “entrepreneurship is in our DNA so supporting emerging innovations and start-ups in Canada is a natural fit for us.
“Semiconductors are vital to many products that are essential to pandemic response, such as IT systems for vaccine deployment, digital learning for students and teachers, and work from home solutions across Canada.”
