Briefs: Eyeread, Volta, AVF, Naco

Eyeread Accepted into Google for Entrepreneurs

Halifax-based Eyeread, whose online product helps to teach children to read, has been accepted into the Google for Entrepreneurs program at Communitech in Kitchener.

“A six-month incubator with senior Google team members in Waterloo will allow us to get expert feedback on the Eyeread technology over the summer and fall,” said Co-Founder Julia

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Seek Various Forms of Funding

Entrepreneurs should seek financing for their businesses from unexpected sources, rather than just relying on equity investment and revenue, a conference in Halifax heard on Tuesday.

The TSX Ignite conference in Nova Scotia featured a series of panel discussions on entrepreneurship, including one titled “Funding Options that You’re Probably Ignoring.” Its panelists reviewed options like

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Dash Hudson Prospers After Pivot

Nine months after settling on a business model that analyzes market response to Instagram posts, Dash Hudson is working with some huge multi-national customers and growing revenues strongly.

The Halifax startup launched two-and-a-half years ago as an e-commerce site for menswear, and then morphed into a platform that helped clothing brands make sales through Instagram. Last summer, it developed

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Chinova Enters IndieBio in Ireland

Chinova Bioworks, a spin-off from Fredericton’s Mycodev Group, has been accepted into the IndieBio accelerator in Ireland, and received a US$100,000 (C$130,000) investment on entering the program.

Chinova is a new startup that is developing applications for chitosan – Mycodev’s main product – and using the compound as an anti-microbial agent.  Chinova is now working with a major beverage company

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Saint John Unveils Data Initiatives

Saint John has announced a series of events and initiatives that will use data analytics to improve life in the New Brunswick city.

The True Growth Network, the regional economic development partnership, announced last week that Saint John will use sensors, beacons, smart devices, and applications to collect and analyze data so the city can improve decision making. This will be complemented by a

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Job of the Week: HotSpot Parking

Our Job of the Week column today highlights an opportunity to work for a fast-growing Fredericton startup, HotSpot Merchant Solutions, which is looking for a technical lead.

HotSpot developed a mobile application that allows drivers to pay for parking with their mobile phone. Addressing this problem provides users with a pain-free parking experience. It also helps merchants advertise directly to

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Innovation Week Set for Newfoundland

Newfoundland and Labrador’s third annual Innovation Week will take place in St. John’s starting on Monday. The 17 different events will focus on bringing innovative ideas to market and growing key sectors in the province. 

Throughout the week, 16 partner organizations will offer varied events with the aim of firing up creative thinking and collaboration in sectors such as information technology,

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Visiting Omaha to Witness the Oracle

After helping to lead an $8 million student investment fund at University of New Brunswick, Tuan Anh Bui relished the reward of hearing Warren Buffet speak on the subject of investing.

The soon-to-be graduate of UNB’s Business School recently won a trip to Omaha, Nebraska, to hear Buffett address the AGM of Berkshire Hathaway, the holding company the master investor controls.

For Tuan,

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Communitech Seeks Female Founders

For the next 10 days, female entrepreneurs from across Canada and beyond can apply to attend Fierce Founders, the bootcamp for women help at Communitech in Kitchener.

Previously called the Women Entrepreneur’s Bootcamp, Fierce Founders is a two-stage, six-day bootcamp for women focused on customer validation, business fundamentals and pitches.

As well as mentorship and the chance to make

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McIntosh Is Kira Industry Champion

Keith McIntosh, the Co-CEO and President of Fredericton-based PQA Testing, was named Industry Champion and captured the People’s Choice Award at the annual Kira Awards banquet last night.

The Kiras – or Knowledge Industry Recognition Awards -- are presented annually to members of New Brunswick’s knowledge industry in recognition of excellence in developing a knowledge-based economy in the

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