Halifax innovation hub Volta’s new startup program for AI companies, a joint project with Dalhousie University, reflects an increased focus by the organization on using partnerships to maximize resources, CEO Matt Cooper said in an interview Tuesday.

Speaking after a generative AI showcase hosted by Volta, Cooper said the more collaborative approach is a longstanding goal that has recently started to come to fruition. Describing Volta as an economic development organization, he added that partnering to deliver startup programming can help organizations limit the duplication of resources.

The AI program continues a trend begun by a collaboration agreement with the Halifax Partnership last year, as well as Tribe Network earlier this year.

“We’re not competing with other cities in Canada, we’re competing with the world,” said Cooper. “And if we don’t get this Atlantic Canadian, fragmented ecosystem to work together, I think the odds are highly stacked against us that we'll be able to do that.

“We’re seeing more support from federal and provincial (governments) to … see multiple organizations come in together to jointly put forth a program under their current funding levels.”

The AI startup program will use Volta’s standard residency model, which operates under a rolling enrolment system and offers companies mentorship and other resources. The content is aimed specifically at companies that incorporate AI into their core business models, products and operations. Dalhousie's role is to provide specialized workshops and technical training, as well as a talent pipeline for companies.

Cooper added that, while it is up to founders to decide whether AI is right for their businesses, he expects AI companies to generally attract more investment and yield greater economic development benefits as capital continues to flow into the space. For example, San Francisco-based Cognition Labs raised US$175 million in April, less than six months after it was founded.

How long companies receive support for depends on their performance in areas such as team engagement, market traction and technological progress, evaluated every 90 days. Founders must also commit to ethical AI development, meaning fairness, transparency and regulatory compliance, for example.

“If your product gets more valuable as these models improve, you’re on the right track,” Cooper told attendees at the AI showcase. “We’re looking for teams that are thinking about this intentionally.”

Cooper, who became Volta CEO in 2022 after his own career as an entrepreneur, characterized the administrative tasks involved in accessing many resources as burdensome for founders. The Dalhousie partnership aims to limit that demand on founders' time.

“Hopefully there will be more organizations that follow suit,” he said in the interview. “You end up making more impact with less resources, because we don’t have to be everything to (startups).”

You can learn more and apply to the AI program here.