With this cruel winter still making its presence felt, scientists and farmers met Saturday at Wolfville’s Acadia University to learn how big data can help the agricultural sector cope with extreme temperatures and other problems.

Although big data is an emerging field, attendees heard how its analysis can protect crops from cold, increase plant resilience to disease and improve plant breeding and productivity.

Big data is already lessening the impacts of extreme and fluctuating winter temperatures on grapes in Ontario’s vineyards, said keynote speaker Jim Willwerth of the Cool Climate

Halifax-based Up My Game has landed funding from Innovacorp and a handful of angel investors, and has added a seasoned hand to its board of directors.

The company, which aims to develop the world’s best video tool for coaches, announced Friday that it raised a $250,000 seed investment from Innovacorp. CEO and Founder David Keefe added in an email that the company had also drawn a bit of investment from some angels.

He said in a statement from Innovacorp that he will use the money to roll out the product and for corporate development.

"We're pleased to have the seed round of financing

The government of Newfoundland and Labrador on Thursday embraced the startup economy by announcing a $10 million investment in Build Ventures and the creation of a new VC operation, the Venture Newfoundland and Labrador Fund.

In delivering the 2014 budget, Finance Minister Charlene Johnson said the government aims to support innovative businesses with high growth potential.

“Access to venture capital in emerging growth sectors, such as ocean and Arctic technology and other knowledge-based industries, will improve the global competitiveness of companies operating in those sectors,

Whether he’s coaching young basketball players or mentoring fledgling entrepreneurs, Jeff White, co-founder and chief operating officer of New Brunswick’s East Valley Ventures, lives his belief that success depends on building strong teams.

 “A team approach is the central cog of families, organizations or companies,” said the six-foot-six former varsity player, who played for St. Francis

After owning the podium at the Innovacorp entrepreneurship competitions this year, Jim DeLeskie is now turning his attention to business development of his cyber-security company, with a special focus on Japan.

DeLeskie is the CEO of Heimdall Networks, the Sydney-based winner of the 2014 I-3 Technology Startup Competition, Innovacorp’s event that aims to find the best new startups in Nova Scotia.

The company, whose software battles distributed denial of service, or DDoS, attacks, captured $225,000 at I-3, as the overall winner, the winner for the Cape Breton region and as the top IT

If you believe in the law of averages, there is now a startup somewhere in Atlantic Canada that didn’t exist this time last week. And by next Wednesday, there will have been another launch.  Or maybe two.

One thing that has struck to me as I’ve gone through the results of our recent survey is the speed with which Atlantic Canada is now producing startups. The region launched more than one company a week last year, and the pace hasn’t slowed down in 2014.

We’re now reaching the end of the first quarter, so we should have seen 13 new companies if we’re to reach our new-startup-each-week

Almost a year after altering its business model, SHIFT Energy of Saint John is on track to complete two pilot projects that should validate its automated energy optimization software, or EOS.

SHIFT Energy is one of several industrial Internet companies in New Brunswick, meaning the province is developing a group of startups developing machine-to-machine learning software in which equipment reacts to disparate sensor readings to improve efficiency or save money.

The company was spun out of Saint John-based Mariner, a global provider of IP video monitoring technologies and other

BioMer Innovations of Halifax released the following press release:

New start-up BioMer Innovations is picking up steam with another successful result; achieving a first place finish at the Boyne Clark Innovative Ideas Competition on March 20th, 2014. 

The Nova Scotia Association of Community Business Development Corporations (CBDC), in cooperation with Common Good Solutions, organized the

I get to Fredericton every few weeks or months, so my image of company development in the New Brunswick Capital is a bit like time-lapse photography. I get a shot every four to eight weeks, and it looks like everything is unfolding quickly and effortlessly.

So in a flying visit to the city last week for the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation's R3 Gala, I was able to catch up with several founders and organizers and was struck by their steady progress.

Barely half a year old, Planet Hatch is now wrapping up the selection process for the second cohort of its Accelr8 program. Executive

Innovacorp, Nova Scotia's innovation agency, this morning announced the winners of the Spark Cape Breton competition in the following press release: 

Spark Cape Breton Winners Named

Six new technology companies in Cape Breton have been named winners in the inaugural Spark Cape Breton competition.

A total of $200,000 in cash will be awarded to the following ‎companies:

Artisync Technologies Co-Op Ltd. – Rob Parsons – Sydney

 Amount:  $50,000

 Artisync is developing a cloud-based hub for the comic book and graphic novel industry that will allow artists to network, communicate and