Scared of AI

TOGETHER WITH

Welcome to this week's Sunday Briefing. In this issue, read about the recent Tech Thursday AI panel, plus 7 other stories you've probably missed. Have a great day. We'll see you again Wednesday.

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“Good AI is invisible.” – AI in B2B: a Tech Thursday recap

On June 15, Tech Thursday brought together a panel featuring folks at companies that build products that leverage AI for their B2B clients. The speakers were Chloe Smith, co-founder and CEO at Mercator.AI, Heather Chapple, managing director at AltaML, and Ryan Kazmerik, director of data science at StellarAlgo. The moderator was Drew Gillson, global AI portfolio lead at Google.

I’m Phillipe Burns, the talent marketing lead at Neo Financial, and the lead organizer of Tech Thursday events in Calgary and Winnipeg. The following is my recap of the event’s top ideas and insights, which were condensed and lightly edited for clarity.

Mercator.AI has built a tool that tracks the full lifecycle of a plot of land for general contractors to keep an eye and bid on potential projects.

AltaML builds custom AI solutions for their clients through their Applied Labs.

StellarAlgo uses crowd data from sports teams to build advanced customer analytics for teams to leverage.

Leaders at all three firms have strong feelings about AI’s current and future impact on business.

🗳️ Question of the Week

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📰 Need To Know

• Luxidea builds simple tools to solve complex problems. The company identifies solutions incubated in academic laboratories and develops them into tools for the greater ecosystem. Calgary Tech Journal 

• Giant U.S. subsidies begin luring Canadian clean tech companies and talent to move south. 'We're going to grow in the United States because that's where it makes sense,' says company CEO. CBC News

• Is Calgary still an oil and gas town or has it moved on? The current paradox facing the industry is one where we must reduce carbon emissions while simultaneously ensuring that the world still has access to a secure, affordable energy supply. The Globe and Mail

• Alberta’s fintech companies have gained incredible momentum in the last few years. The Start Alberta database has tracked $750M raised across 92 funding rounds in fintech since 2017. Start Alberta

• Helping vulnerable kids thrive. Two world-leading programs spearheaded by researchers at the University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine (CSM) are poised to make a significant difference in key areas of pediatric care. The Globe and Mail

• Harvest Venture Builders expands leadership team with the launch of its new climate and energy AI vertical. This ecosystem will provide the framework for Calgary, Alberta, a world leader in energy technology, to emerge as the global hub for Energy AI. Harvest Venture Builders

• The A100, a support and mentoring organization for Alberta tech founders, is partnering with REES (Respect, Educate, Empower Survivors), to combat harassment in the local ecosystem. BetaKit

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💡 POV: Ideas and Insights

• The Logic on how Calgary’s StellarAlgo broke into the big leagues

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