Techstars

Techstars Central LLC, founded in 2006 and based in Boulder, Colorado, operates as a startup accelerator and venture capital firm focused on supporting early-stage technology-oriented companies. It specializes in a mentorship-driven accelerator program, selecting ten startups each summer to participate in a three-month incubation period, offering funding of $120,000 in exchange for equity. Techstars invests primarily in sectors such as fintech, artificial intelligence, blockchain, augmented reality, and IoT, while avoiding investments in medical devices, healthcare technology, and local service-oriented businesses. In addition to its primary accelerator, Techstars has various specialized programs, including those focused on music, retail, mobility, and social impact, with global reach extending to regions such as Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The firm prefers taking minority stakes, typically between six and ten percent, without seeking board representation or investor rights. Techstars has built a robust network of entrepreneurs, mentors, and corporate partners to foster innovation and growth within its portfolio, which includes over 1,000 companies with a significant collective market capitalization.

Ethan Austin

MD of the Techstars Western Union Accelerator

Max Kelly

Managing Director of Techstars London

Lesa Mitchell

Managing Director

Vijay Tirathrai

Managing Director

Mark Tortorella

Advisor

Nathanial Zola

MD

Past deals in Quebec

Mia

Pre Seed Round in 2021
Mia is a developer of a no-code application that allows to rapidly deploy and demo machine learning models. Its platform enables companies to transform machine learning models into applications and bring them to life.

Moduly

Pre Seed Round in 2021
The Future of Smart Home Energy

Eli

Seed Round in 2020
Eli enables women to take control of their health across their lives, by providing them with powerful information on their daily hormone profile. We develop an at-home device to monitor hormones in saliva and an app to provide personalized insights. Eli's initial focus is to give women a no-compromise option to own their fertility and contraception decisions.

MicroPredictome

Seed Round in 2019
MicroPredictome provides medical tests leveraging the power of the microbiome and AI. The company envisions a clinically relevant simple-to-use at-home test for gastrointestinal diseases. It utilizes machine learning and the microbial profile of stool that will help increase access to precise care by minimizing the time between symptoms and diagnosis.

Blaise

Seed Round in 2019
Blaise is an AI-based software platform that enables transit operators to bus services using their existing vehicles. The company is driven by a mission to empower citizens and communities by making sustainable transportation more efficient, effective and accessible.

Eli

Pre Seed Round in 2019
Eli enables women to take control of their health across their lives, by providing them with powerful information on their daily hormone profile. We develop an at-home device to monitor hormones in saliva and an app to provide personalized insights. Eli's initial focus is to give women a no-compromise option to own their fertility and contraception decisions.

FLITE Material Sciences Corp.

Pre Seed Round in 2019
FLITE has a laser-based technology that changes the surface topology of familiar materials (glass, plastic, metal, ceramics and semiconductors) to make them attract or repel water and oil - without the use of chemical coatings.

MYR POS

Pre Seed Round in 2019
MYR POS (formerly Koomi POS) is a 100% cloud-based POS made specifically for quick-service and takeaway restaurants. Facing new realities of app and online ordering, MYR is the first POS that allows restaurants to fully bridge mobile, online and regular ordering.

AFX Medical

Pre Seed Round in 2018
Precision Medicine for Brain Diseases

Chef Connie

Pre Seed Round in 2018
Chef Connie provides assistance in the kitchen by planing and publishing menus using an integrated tool. It is a meal kit provider that often changes their menus weekly or sometimes even daily, and they are always adjusting their meals depending on the diners' needs and palates. Chef Connie was founded by Aidan Nulman in Canada, in 2018.

Streamline Genomics

Seed Round in 2018
Streamline Genomics offers a platform to help clinicians and researchers benefit from genomic sequencing without the need for data analysis expertise. They offer a complete suite of tools required for your transcriptome & genome analysis. Their platform is easy to use and does not require programming knowledge. Their approach is to help you analyze your data and provide the required support.

Wisk

Seed Round in 2018
Wisk Solutions Inc. is a Toronto-based company that specializes in developing and selling software designed to manage alcoholic operations. Founded in 2014, Wisk's software facilitates inventory management, consumption analysis, product pricing, and the optimization of purchase orders. Its clients include a variety of establishments such as hotels, clubs, restaurants, and bars. The software aims to enhance operational efficiency by reducing the time required for inventory counting and data compilation, thereby providing users with a more accurate and precise inventory solution.

NUKERN

Pre Seed Round in 2017
NUKERN is a Software as a Service, enabling web hosts and digital agencies to do more with their time. Nukern automates things that are needlessly complex and time-consuming for them, like the recurring billing and the web hosting account provisioning. Whether our clients use cPanel, Plesk, DigitalOcean or AWS - we automate the billing and provisioning for all platforms.

OMsignal

Series B in 2016
OMsignal Inc. is a Montreal-based company that specializes in manufacturing bio-sensing clothing equipped with embedded sensors to monitor vital bodily functions. Their product line includes the OMbra, a sports bra designed to capture deep and accurate body signals, and the OMshirt, which records heart rate and breathing patterns. The accompanying OMrun mobile application connects to these garments, providing real-time data on heart rate, breathing rhythms, calorie count, cadence, pace, and distance, along with run recaps and progress tracking. Founded in 2011, OMsignal aims to seamlessly integrate health monitoring into everyday life by allowing users to access their physiological data through mobile devices. Products are available for purchase online.

MakerBloks

Seed Round in 2016
MakerBloks Inc. designs and manufactures electronic building blocks that combine real world play with a digital story. It offers color-coded and magnetically-connected blocks; and starter, spy expansion, and music expansion kits. The company provides its products online. MakerBloks Inc. was founded in 2014 and is based in Montréal, Canada.

Heddoko

Seed Round in 2016
Heddoko is a company focused on enhancing human movement through innovative technology. It has developed a smart compression suit embedded with motion-tracking sensors that captures full-body movement in 3D. This technology allows for real-time analysis and live coaching feedback, enabling users to gain health insights during training sessions. Heddoko aims to reduce injuries and improve performance by transforming movement data into actionable knowledge. Their system encompasses four key areas: evaluation, intervention, prevention, and rehabilitation, catering to both athletes and individuals in various settings, including workplace environments. By bringing advanced motion capture technology from the lab to practical applications, Heddoko treats all individuals as athletes, fostering stronger and more efficient teams.

Provender

Seed Round in 2015
Provender is an online platform that enables farmers to create direct-trade associations with buyers. The platform allows farmers to quantify and organize their yields, and make that data accessible to buyers everywhere. Provender was founded in April 2013 and is based in Montréal, Quebec.

OMsignal

Series A in 2014
OMsignal Inc. is a Montreal-based company that specializes in manufacturing bio-sensing clothing equipped with embedded sensors to monitor vital bodily functions. Their product line includes the OMbra, a sports bra designed to capture deep and accurate body signals, and the OMshirt, which records heart rate and breathing patterns. The accompanying OMrun mobile application connects to these garments, providing real-time data on heart rate, breathing rhythms, calorie count, cadence, pace, and distance, along with run recaps and progress tracking. Founded in 2011, OMsignal aims to seamlessly integrate health monitoring into everyday life by allowing users to access their physiological data through mobile devices. Products are available for purchase online.

OMsignal

Seed Round in 2013
OMsignal Inc. is a Montreal-based company that specializes in manufacturing bio-sensing clothing equipped with embedded sensors to monitor vital bodily functions. Their product line includes the OMbra, a sports bra designed to capture deep and accurate body signals, and the OMshirt, which records heart rate and breathing patterns. The accompanying OMrun mobile application connects to these garments, providing real-time data on heart rate, breathing rhythms, calorie count, cadence, pace, and distance, along with run recaps and progress tracking. Founded in 2011, OMsignal aims to seamlessly integrate health monitoring into everyday life by allowing users to access their physiological data through mobile devices. Products are available for purchase online.

Jintronix

Seed Round in 2012
Jintronix is a Montreal-based technology company that takes pride in developing applications to push the bounds of human ability. Their mission is fuelled by the enormous potential of computing tools that have the ability to sharpen the tools they were born with: their minds, their senses, and the muscles at their command. They develop turn-key systems that combine cutting-edge sensory interfaces with exciting 3D gaming content to create challenging, fun, and stimulating experiences that enhance rehabilitative therapies for conditions ranging from Stroke to Developmental Coordination Disorder. Jintronix draws on the skills of a passionate interdisciplinary team that includes physical and occupational therapists, engineers, medical researchers, game designers, and patients themselves.

Vanilla Forums

Pre Seed Round in 2009
Vanilla Forums, Inc. is a company based in Montreal, Canada, that offers a hosted community forum solution. Its platform enables organizations to create engaging online communities where users can participate actively, earn badges and points for positive contributions, and curate content. By fostering these interactions, Vanilla helps businesses enhance audience engagement, increase website traffic, reduce customer support costs, and ultimately boost revenue. The company emphasizes the importance of aligning the community's identity with the brand and culture of its clients, ensuring a welcoming environment that incentivizes positive participation among members.