Alberta is beating British Columbia in VC investment

Welcome to this week's Sunday Briefing. In this issue, read about money for an advanced manufacturing project, how a University of Calgary professor is purifying water from the moon, and a hackathon to prevent wildfires while Jasper burned. Plus, there’s 14 other stories you’ve missed.

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🗳️ Question of the Week

Canada’s advanced manufacturing sector gets a boost

Last week, the federal government announced a new project as part of NGen’s initiative to support 15 advanced manufacturing projects.

The new venture will focus on developing a fully autonomous, end-to-end production system enabled by artificial intelligence and robotics, designed to automate routine manual functions in the assembly process.

“Canada has always been a trailblazer, leading the way boldly by applying the newest technologies and methods,” said George Chahal, Member of Parliament for Calgary Skyview. “These advancements in AI and advanced robotics will allow the Canadian manufacturing sector to remain environmentally sustainable, globally competitive, and continue providing excellent well-paying jobs to Canadians. As we always have, we are building tomorrow right here in Canada.”

The announcement is part of a broader NGen funding initiative, which has deployed funding across Canada with a total value of $59 million. NGen is the industry-led not-for-profit organization that heads Canada’s Global Innovation Cluster for Advanced Manufacturing.

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🤝 Funding, Deals, and Partnerships

• OCIF, Avatar Innovations supports Calgary's cleantech innovation from inside energy sector. Avatar Innovations is a corporate venture studio that’s helping professionals inside the oil and gas sector invent, build, and market decarbonization technologies that will help bridge the gap in the energy innovation ecosystem. Calgary Economic Development

• E3 Lithium to receive $5 million from the government of Alberta for its fully integrated demonstration facility. E3 Lithium is constructing a demo project that will help achieve the company’s goal of producing battery-grade lithium carbonate from locally sourced brines in Alberta. E3 Lithium

• CruxOCM announces $17M Series A funding round led by M12 (Microsoft Venture Fund). This funding brings CruxOCM's total capital raised to $27 million, and will be used to fuel innovation and deliver greater value to its energy industry clients. CruxOCM

• Rogers and SenseNet partner to introduce wildfire detection Technology. The partnership will help to combat climate change-related events in Canada. Rogers Communications

📰 Need To Know

• Venture capital investment in Alberta hit $383M in the first half of 2024, surpassing neighbouring B.C. by almost $100M. Across Canada, VC investments totaled nearly CAD $3.6B across 279 deals. Canadian Venture Capital & Private Equity Association

• Calgary’s Next Economy: SEPT streamlines in-house legal admin tasks. The goal is to continually build a broader client base, learning more about the different facets of each area of an organization, so they can tailor the system to meet the needs of these companies. Livewire Calgary

• High-tech systems to predict and spot wildfires pitched during Olds event. Edmonton-based Nu Terra Labs is currently working with the City of Edmonton to run a pilot in the city’s river valley. The Albertan

• Segev LLP opens Calgary office to help clients access Alberta opportunities. Segev now has approximately 23 lawyers across Alberta, Vancouver, Toronto, and the United States, with a presence that extends into India. Segev LLP

• Wildfire hackathon targets misinformation as Jasper fire underlines need. The University of Alberta hosted a recent wildfire hackathon at roughly the same time as a wildfire burned structures in Jasper, when 25,000 residents and park guests were forced to flee. Taproot Edmonton

• Indigenous Lens program introduces youth to film industry. A thee-day pilot program geared towards empowering and educating Indigenous youth as storytellers launched at Lethbridge Polytechnic. Global News

• NAIT launches five new programs. Across its degrees, applied degrees, diplomas and certificates, the polytechnic offers roughly 90 programs. Education News Canada

• Can water from the moon be purified? A University of Calgary prof is trying to find out. Dr. Elmar Prenner, a longtime professor in the U of C’s faculty of science, is a semifinalist in the Aqualunar Challenge, which tasks researchers from across Canada and the United Kingdom with developing technology that can extract contaminants from frozen moon water. Calgary Herald

• Ocumetics launches new injector for accommodative lens, ahead of 2025 human trials. This achievement marks a significant milestone in Ocumetics’ journey toward its first-in-human study, scheduled for early 2025. Calgary.Tech

• Canada-Alberta job grant program pause could impact many businesses, province says. Industry experts say the halt will have a ripple effect for some time to come. CBC News