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DiscoveryLab

DiscoveryLab at Enterprise Square

Our next pitch event is being held in partnership with the University of Alberta and UA Innovation Fund on Tuesday March 11, 2025 at Enterprise Square, Edmonton. Join in by presenting your plan or by sharing advice & connections.

Both virtual and in person slots are available, with the latter prioritized for AI, Health, Agriculture or Energy focussed companies with a connection to UofA.

We welcome virtual presenters in any tech sector, location or stage, those selected based on their submitted plan are given videos, pre- and post-event feedback, and the opportunity to have their investment-readiness reviewed.

Register now

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See the world differently. Tell your story.

DiscoveryLab offers events where teams pitch plans to a panel of investors and advisors, and keynote talks are offered on a theme. Scalable innovations in any sector, location or stage of development are presented as are transformative technologies for diagnostics, medical devices, therapeutics, biotech, agtech, AI, cleantech, edtech, food/drinks, materials, energy, environment and resources.

We welcome new members including investors, industry experts and business advisors to join in to advise the diversity of teams presenting.

Presenters receive constructive feedback on the business plan summary and slidedeck they submit beforehand, a video recording of their pitch, an evaluation and scores, new connections and leads for funding.

Note: Teams that are pitching are invited to submit their business plan summary at least two weeks before the event to qualify for a slot and gain feedback to strengthen their pitch.

Presenters can also check out our Presenter Guide.


Events & Opportunities

Community Coffee at Edmonton Unlimited every Wednesday from 7:30 – 11 AM

Edmonton Tech Wednesdays Jan 15 from 5:30 – 8:30 PM

Alberta Catalyzer's 2025 Traction Cohort: applications now welcome

From Idea to MVP in Edmonton with ERIN and New Idea Machine on Jan 14

RDAR Research Showcase at YEG on Jan 16

Farm Summit in Lethbridge on Jan 16

Shifting to a Product Management Mind-set on Jan 16

Shifting to a Product Management Mind-set online on Jan 16

Indigenous Solar Leadership by Solar Alberta on Jan 23

NABI Networking at Noon in St. Albert on Jan 21

Startup Genome Global Growth Program webinar on Jan 21-22

eHUB SPARK - Pitch Night in Edmonton on Jan 23

2025 Sustainability Industry Night in Calgary on Jan 23

Hydrogen In Transport - Driving Automation! in Edmonton on Jan 27

Tech Liftoff Demo Day at Mount Royal University on Jan 28

ERINnovation Meet-Up with Jam the Social App on Jan 29

Vision to Venture - Business Model Canvas Workshop in Calgary on Jan 29

Creative Research Methods for Product Discovery in Calgary on Jan 29

Trends & Perspectives from Silicon Valley VCs in Calgary on Jan 30

Sustain YEG: Monthly Meetup at Edmonton Unlimited on Jan 30

Northern Lights Technology & Innovation Forum in Calgary on Feb 6

Investing Decoded: Busting Myths, Building Wealth in Calgary on Feb 6

Prairie Bioeconomy Guild: Natural Products Canada in Edmonton on Feb 12

Kickstart a free hybrid course from Amii offered from Feb 14-21

Crafting a Compelling Problem Statement & Value Proposition @ UofC Feb 18

Annual Growing the North Conference in Grande Prairie from Feb 18-20

ASTech Awards Regional Innovation Spotlight in Grande Prairie on Feb 19

NAIT Student Pitch It To Me Competition on Feb 25

Social Innovators Breakfast Club in Calgary on Mar 3

Innovation in Aging Symposium in Calgary on Mar 3

Applied Research in RINSA - Innovation: Getting STARTed @ Lethbridge Mar 13

Southern Alberta Economic Summit 2025 in Lethbridge on Mar 27

Scaleup Canada Edmonton50 Applications due Mar 31

Scaleup Canada Calgary50 Applications due March 31

Transformational Connections: Create Partnerships for Impact @Calgary Apr 1

Methane Leadership Summit 2025 in Banff on Apr 15-16

Canadian Hydrogen Convention @ Edmonton Convention Centre from Apr 22-24

High Level Innovation Conference! in Lethbridge from May 2–3

Inventures in Calgary, May 21-23

AI4Good Lab on building machine learning projects from May 5-June 26

Pathway to Silicon Valley for female founders looking for investment, June 3-4

Our aims are to play a positive role by:

1. provide an open forum for entrepreneurs and innovators to pitch for free and connect with investors, business advisors and industry experts,

2. building trust and mutual understanding to ensure sustainable and rewarding multi-party relationships,

3. identifying major challenges that require innovative thinking,

4. mapping out precompetitive spaces for open-source collaboration,

5. developing fair and reasonable intellectual property strategies for progression and scalable funding,

6. structuring and optimizing core activities and facilities for supporting innovation, and 

7. increasing data quality, reproducibility and decisiveness while eliminating unnecessary duplication and costs.

We welcome collaborators and partners who are interested in working together to support the innovation ecosystem.

For clarity, DiscoveryLab does not recommend advisors or investors, make investments or provide funding, but can make introductions. Each person and company has the responsibility of obtaining legal advice and performing due diligence before signing contracts or taking investments.



Funding Programs

Edmonton Edge Fund with $5 million for local tech and innovation is launching this year.

Post-Secondary Institution Business Development Support for students, faculty and staff at Edmonton’s post-secondary institutions: Executives in Residence access and up to 150 hours of free advice.

Alberta Export Expansion Program is resuming funding for the development of export markets for Alberta’s SMEs through the reimbursement of international business travel costs.

Alberta’s Hydrogen Centre of Excellence is making $20 million available over 24 months to support hydrogen production, storage, transmission, end-use projects under its Advancing Hydrogen - Competition 1 program.

Business Development Support (BDS) program open call for students, staff and alumni of Edmonton-based postsecondaries wanting to connect to industry specific expertise they need. Apply here.

BDC has launched of Thrive Venture Fund and Lab for Women, a $500-million investment platform to support the growth and economic impact of Canadian women-led businesses.

Canadian Digital Adoption Program from the Government of Canada is offering startups and SMEs grants to grow their online presence and upgrade and adopt digital technologies.

Capital City Pilots for Edmonton-based startups to test pilot-ready IP. using $10,000 in expert support, exclusive access to municipal clients, and resources.

Experiential Learning in Innovation, Technology, and Entrepreneurship (ELITE) Program for Black Youth age 15-22.

SRIA Innovation Fund to accelerate the adoption of innovative low-carbon solutions for buildings of all types



Local innovation supports: