The Montreal Founder Institute, the local chapter of the world's largest pre-seed startup accelerator, is proud to announce the newest Alumni from the 2019 program at the upcoming January 29th Demo Day powered by Shopify.
Over 250 people applied to the Montreal 2019 program, and after an intense four months of aggressive business-building sprints and constant evaluation and feedback from investors and mentors, just a few of them were able to make it through.
Each of these Founders have demonstrated a high level of perseverance and creativity, and their businesses have been thoroughly vetted and supported by a panel of Montreal's top startup experts and investors.
And now, without further ado, we present the Alumni of the Montreal program:
- Calixa - Ai-powered visual fashion discovery web services enabling personalized shopping experiences at scale.
- Croogloo - software for Film & TV productions to streamline workflows and reconcile data across disparate systems.
- Darkmatter - a modern framework for the age of cloud computing to streamline backend software development, creating a seamless experience for SaaS development teams.
- The Green Stop - water reflll stations for outdoor spaces to reduce plastic pollution bringing back value to infrastructure once forgotten.
- LinguAI - rapid and accurate detection of childhood speech and language disorders by using cutting-edge speech recognition AI solution and analysing childrens' speech sample.
- MoveMate - the hassle-free way to move, a marketplace connecting movers with customers moving to a new home.
- Proveit - ranking household products based on their sustainability with clear scores, available to online shoppers through a free browser extension.
- Rinse - offering active people a place to shower and change, anywhere in the city, after their bike ride, run or outdoor activity.
In celebration of these founders' accomplishments, the Montreal Founder Institute will be hosting a Demo Day powered by Shopify, in collaboration with Loyal VC, Fasken, Richter, Futurpreneur, Fundica, OVHcloud, and BCF Ventures.
Click here and register now to join us January 29th.
The Montreal 2019 program would not have been possible without help, because it truly takes a city to raise a startup. We would first like to thank the Local Leaders of the Montreal Founder Institute: Francois Poirier and Sergio Escobar. Our Local Leaders play an incredibly important role in building the local Founder Institute program, and creating an environment and network in Montreal that is conducive to building to great companies. In 2020, local leader Francois Poirier's role will be elevated from EIR to FI Montreal Program Manager.
In addition, the 2019 program was supported by some of Montreal's top technology organizations, including:
Some of Montreal’s top startup mentors helped our founders in the program, including:
- Aaron Carr: CEO & Founder, Qarrot Performance
- Abdé Essaidi: Vice-President, Canada, Axionable
- Abdullah Snobar: Executive Director , DMZ
- Adeo Ressi: Founder/CEO
- Afsoon Soudi: Co Founder & VP R&D, IRYStec
- Alessia Talarico: Investment Analyst, Volpe Ventures
- Alex Nemeroff: Co-Founder, Creative Director, Dynamo
- Alex Barrett: Investment Associate, iNovia Capital
- Alex Norman: Partner, Canada, AngelList
- Alexandre Witkowicz: Analyst, WhiteStar Capital
- Alice Dinu: VP Student Success & Research, Ready Education
- Angelique Mannella: Strategic Global Alliances, Amazon
- Ashok Prabhu Masilamani: CTO & Founder, Stratuscent
- Balaji Gopalan: Co-Founder and CEO, MedStack
- Ben Yoskovitz: Founding Partner, HighlineBETA
- Ben Melchionno: Associate Partner, IBM
- Benjamin du Haÿs: Founder & CEO, Mobeewave
- Benjamin Tuff: Managing Partner, Benjamin David Group
- Beth Thouin: Digital Marketing, consultant
- Bonnie Chau: Portfolio Manager, Volpe Ventures
- Brandon Waselnuk: Product Manager and Principle, CoVenture
- Brian Zubert: Director, Thomson Reuters Labs
- Brian Church: Country Manager, Canada
- Brice Scheschuk: CEO, Globalive Capital
- Caitlin Mac Gregor: CEO & Cofounder, Plum.io Inc.
- Caroline Pelletier: Vice President Screening and Investment Support, Anges Quebec
- Cesar L. Patricio: CEO & co-Founder, WorkMesh.co
- Chevonae Walcott: Associate, Relay Ventures
- Chris Arsenault: Managing Partner, iNovia Capital
- Chris Atkinson: CEO & co-Founder, FleetOps
- Claude Théoret: Founder, Nexalogy
- Clement Cazalot: Managing Director, Techstars Boston
- Code Cubitt: Managing Director, Mistral Venture Partners
- Danial Jameel: Founder/CEO, Forbes 30under30, Ready Education
- David Dufresne: Partner, Panache VC
- David Nadezhdin: Co-founder/CEO, Koomi
- David Sciacca: COO, LIFT session
- Dax Da Silva: Founder/CEO, LightSpeed
- Deborah Hayek: Program Lead - Foundry (Desjardins Open Innovation), Desjardins
- Dennis Van Staalduinen: President & Executive Strategist, Brandvelope Consulting
- Diana Cheptene: Senior Product Manager, Shopify
- Diana Sciortino: Investment Analyst, Volpe Ventures
- Dr. Alexandra T. Greenhill: CEO, Careteam Technologies Inc.
- Eleonore Jarry Ferron: Investment Associate, BrightSpark
- Elizabeth Wasserman: Co-Founder & CEO, Mate1.com Inc.
- Ella Hilal: Director of Data, Shopify
- Emmanuelle Coppinger: Director of Venture Managers, Next AI Montreal
- Eryk Warren: Co Founder & CTO, Unito
- Ethan Song: Co-Founder & CEO, Frank & Oak
- Francis Wenzel: Founder & CEO, TickSmith
- François Arbour: CEO / VP Music & Video, Premiumbeat / Shutterstock
- Francois Poirier: COO, Parcours entrepreneurial Rémi Marcoux
- Frantz Saintellemy: President & COO, Leddartech
- Frederic Scherer: CEO & co-Founder, Jitbase
- Frederick Townes: Co-Founder & CTO, NestReady
- Geoffrey Bernard: Senior Director, Growth, Analytics & Data Science, La Presse
- George Korkejian: Venture Manager, Volpe Ventures
- Gian Carlo Di Tommaso: Chief Operating Officer
- Giselle Bisson: Founder , Chain Reaction
- Graham Mann: Growth Specialist, Unito
- Greg Isenberg: Digital Marketer and Angel Investor
- Ha Nguyen: VP, McRock Capital
- Hakim Merah: Senior Manager, Acceleration & AI Ecosystem, Scale AI
- Ian Jeffrey: VP Product Marketing Marketing, PasswordBox
- Isaac Souweine: Entrepreneur-in-Residence, Real Ventures
- Isaac Adejuwon: CEO & Founder, Metricsflow
- James Slifierz: CEO, SkyWatch Space Applications
- Javier Gotschlich: Head of Partnerships - Hubspot for Startups, HubSpot
- Jay Ferst: Managing Partner, Ferst Capital Partners
- Jean Benoit Richard: COO, Alexsei
- Jean David Begin: Co-founder & CEO, Guestful
- Jean François Ouellet: Associate Professor, Entrepreneurship & Innovation, HEC Montréal
- Jeffrey Hoffman: Chairman
- Jerome Soucy: People & Operations, Hykso FightCamp
- Jessica Korthuis: Founder & CEO, SOHUIS
- Joanne Wong: Partner, REDDS Capital
- Joel Yaffe: Founder, GuestDriven, iTechnique, Potcoin, Glace des Arts
- John Espinoza: Co-founder , Unito
- Jonathan Greechan: Co-Founder, Founder Institute
- Jonny Caron: Launch Specialist, Unbounce
- Jose Martins: Business Development Manager - HubSpot for Startups North America, HubSpot
- Josette Renée Landry: CEO, Streamline Genomics
- Juan Cabrera: Designer & Marketing Consultant, jcabrera.studio
- Julien Denaes: Co-Founder , Alpin
- Justin Sherratt: Founder, Sortbox
- Justin Evans: Co-Founder, LANDR Audio
- Kevin Swersky: Research Scientist @ Google Brain, Google Austria
- Khalil Zahar: Founder & CEO, FightCamp (Hykso)
- Kookai Chaimahawong: VC Associate, Pangaea Ventures
- Kyell Vyncke: VP Sales & Marketing, TrackTik
- Laviva Mazhar: Investment Analyst, Luge Capital
- Leah Mazur: CEO & Founder, Loop Digital Marketing
- Lee Silverstone: Co founder/ EVP strategic partnerships, Mystral Venture Partners
- Leo Lax: Managing Director, L-Spark/Wesley Clover
- Lisa Cashmore: Vice President, Start and Scale, Communitech
- Lloyed Lobo: Co-founder, Boast.AI
- Lorne Lieberman: Managing Partner, Jant Ventures
- Louis François Hogue: Strategic, Advisor
- Louis Philippe Maurice: Louis Philippe Maurice - Founder/CEO, Busbud (Montreal FI), Busbud
- Luc Filiatreault: Luc Filiatreault - VP Venture Development, OpenText (Barcelona FI), OpenText
- Madusha Cooray: Manager, Developer Relations, Google Austria
- Magaly Charbonneau: Principal, iNovia Capital
- Marat Mukhamedyarov: Managing Partner, Good News Ventures
- Marc Alloul: Managing Partner W2/W3, W Investments
- Marc Chriqui: Angel Investor & Former CEO, Raymark (acquired by Mi9 Retail)
- Marc Boscher: Founder & CEO, Unito
- Marc Antoine Ross: Angel Investor & Chief Innovation Officer, Diagram Ventures
- Marcos Carvalho: Co-Founder & Chief Revenue Officer, NestReady
- Marcus Daniels: Co-Founder & CEO, Highline VC
- Mariah Lichtenstern: Founder-CEO, DiverseCity Ventures
- Marina Cortes: Venture Partner, Hike Ventures
- Martin Sendyk: President & CEO, Lytica
- Matt Smith: C-Level Tech Startup Expert, Consulting
- Matthias Bedard: Co-Founder & CTO
- Matthieu Houle: VP Digital Media, Yellow Pages Canada
- Mauro Repacci: Co-Founder & CEO, NestReady
- Mazen Elbawab: Project Lead Programmer - Rainbow Six Siege, Ubisoft
- Mehdi Mehni: Growth Product Lead, Wingocard
- Mehdi Merai Merai: CEO, Dataperformers
- Melissa Belbeck: Senior Associate, Whitecap Venture Partners
- Meryeme Lahmami: Associate, Strategic Investments & Women in Tech, BDC Capital
- Michael Katchen: Founder & CEO, WealthSimple
- Michel Jamati: CTO, Lexop
- Mike Kirkup: CTO, enCircle
- Mike Silagadze: CEO, Top Hat
- Mike Cegelski: Managing Partner & Angel Investor, Panache Ventures
- Mike Apted: Principal Solutions Architect - Startups, AWS
- Mohan Markandaier: Managing Partner, Good News Ventures
- Mohannad El Barachi: Co-Founder & Chief Executive Officer, SweetIQ Analytics Corp.
- Nadeem Ghafoor: VP, Canadensys Aerospace Corporation
- Naomi Goldapple: Head of AlayaLabs, AlayaCare
- Narjes Boufaden: CEO & co-Founder, Keatext
- Neha Khera: Venture Partner, 500 Startups
- Nicolas Jacques Bouchard: Principal, Panache Ventures
- Pablo Srugo: Principal, Mistral Venture Partners
- Paul D'souza: President and CEO, The D'Souza Group
- Paul Ortchanian: Vice-President, Product Development, WatchMojo.com
- Peggy Van De Plassche: Managing Partner & Angel Investor, Roar Growth
- Phil Rivard: Director of Ventures, NEXT Canada
- Philip Cutler: President & CEO, GradeSlam
- Pierre Luc Laparé: Co-Founder, Golf Avenue
- Prathna Ramesh: Managing Director & Chief Compliance Officer, Maple Leaf Angels
- Przemyslaw (Marco) Janeczek: Managing Partner, Infinite Venture Partners
- Rachel Sheppard: Digital Strategist & Startup Mentor - Helping Female Founders Launch & Grow Their Businesses Around the Globe, Founder Institute HQ
- Raff Paquin: Director, Data, LightSpeed
- Raffi Tchakmakjian: CEO, LIFT session
- Raymond Luk: CEO, Hockeystick
- Rob Attwell: Founder, COO/CFO, Careteam Technologies Inc.
- Russ Armstrong: Head of Business Development, Boast.AI (Boast Capital)
- Ryan Micheletti: Head of Global Operations, Founder Institute
- Sanjay Singhal: Co-Founder and CEO, 500 Startups
- Sanjay Zimmermann: Investment Associate, White Star Capital
- Sebastien Roy: Director, Data Science, Wheels Up
- Sergio Escobar: CEO & Partner, Volpe Ventures
- Shahab Samimi: Senior Associate, 7 Gate Ventures
- Shahzad Khan: CTO, Gnowit Inc
- Shiva Bhardwaj: Founder, CEO, Pitstop
- Siddharth Srivastava: Vice-President, McRock Capital
- Sophie Boulanger: CEO, BonLook
- Steven Abrams: Partner, IT Venture Fund, BDC Capital
- Suzanne Grant: cofounder and ceo, iBIONICS
- Sylvain Carle: Partner, Real Ventures
- Taylor Sicard: Co-Founder, BVGrowth
- Thomas Punch: VP Business Development, WatchMojo.com
- Tim Jodoin: Founder - President, Edispin Inc.
- Tom Lowden: Head of Labs, US East and Canada, WeWork Labs
- Trevor Longino: Chief Marketing Officer, Unito
- Udit Bhatnagar: Investment Associate, McRock Capital
- Ulrich Soeffing: Data Science Manager, MarketMuse
- Vanessa Cherenfant: Managing Director, Sadax Technologies
- Vaughn DiMarco: Director, INVEST-AI
- Vicken Kanadjian: Co-Founder & Managing Director, Cesium Inc.
- Win Bear: Head of Business Development , Silicon Valley Bank Canada
- Yishel Khan: CEO & Founder, DOT Mind Unlocked
- Yona Shtern: Founder/CEO, Beyond The Rack
In the Founder Institute's pre-seed accelerator program, early-stage entrepreneurs and teams build their business alongside a critical support network of local startup experts that share equity in their success, and through a structured and challenging business-building process that has helped alumni raise over $975M.
After Graduation, the new Montreal Founder Institute Portfolio Companies now have a fast-growing company that has been fully validated by experienced startup founders, with access to the Founder Institute's global network and post-graduate support programs to continue building their business.
Leaders of the world’s fastest-growing startups have used the Founder Institute to raise funding, get into seed-accelerators, generate traction, recruit a team, build a product, transition from employee to entrepreneur, and more. Based in Silicon Valley and with chapters across 200+ cities and 90+ countries, the Founder Institute’s mission is to Globalize Silicon Valley and empower talented and motivated entrepreneurs to build companies that will create one million new jobs.
The next Montreal Founder Institute program is being planned now. If you are interested in being notified when applications open, visit FI.co/apply/montreal.
Alumni of the Founder Institute are creating some of the world's fastest growing startups, having raised over $975M in funding, and building products people love across over 200 cities worldwide.
See the most recent news from our Grads at FI.co/news, or learn more about their stories at FI.co/journey.
