Halifax edtech company Shoelace Learning, which specializes in the gamification of learning, has announced the $3 million first close of its seed round, which it hopes will soon reach $4.5 million.

The company plans to use the money to add three more educational games to its platform and attract 10 million new users over the next 24 months.

The round was led by first-time investor Sandpiper

Innovacorp has revealed it invested a total of $2.1 million in nine companies in what was likely its final complete fiscal year, and admits the totals were lower than expected.

The Nova Scotia government’s venture capital agency recently released its Accountability Report for the 2021-22 fiscal year, which ended on March 31. After investing an above-average $9.7 million the previous year to help

Halifax-based Sustane Technologies has won the Innovator of the Year category at the 2022 Mobius Awards for Environmental Excellence, presented last week by Divert Nova Scotia.

The company has developed technology that transforms curbside garbage into high-value fuels and biomass pellets — converting up to 90 percent of the municipal-solid-waste into valuable commercial products.

Divert Nova

Halifax-based Adaptiiv Medical Technologies has revealed it closed a Series A funding round worth “less than $10 million” in the past year and a half, and is planning on a Series B raise next year.

Adaptiiv CEO Alex Dunphy revealed the funding round last Thursday during a fireside chat at BioPort Atlantic, the region’s main conference for the life sciences industry. During the talk, he described

Startup Genome, the Silicon Valley group that ranks innovation ecosystems, has released its first ever blue economy report. And Canada, particularly the Atlantic provinces, made a strong showing.

The Global Startup Ecosystem Report, Blue Economy Edition rates Atlantic Canada as the 10th most successful oceans ecosystem globally, and Vancouver as the 14th. Calgary placed 27th and

Drinkable Water Solutions on Thursday took home the $55,000 prize in the annual BioInnovation Challenge, which will help finance the commercialization of its consumer-friendly water-testing device.  

Halifax-based Drinkable has developed a device that is smaller than a smartphone and tests water for about a dozen common contaminants, such as lead, arsenic and uranium. CEO Matt Mizzi explained

Nominations will remain open for another week for the inaugural InnovateNB Awards, which will recognize leaders in innovation and entrepreneurship in New Brunswick.

The nominations – the forms for which can be found here – are open until Nov. 10, after which they will be submitted to the selection committee. The winners will be named in a gala in Saint John on Nov. 22.  

Created by such

Halifax startup hub Volta has announced the five companies participating in its second Volta AI cohort for artificial intelligence startups focused on supply chains.

The program is the result of a partnership with Scale AI, the federally backed supercluster that funds research partnerships using the same model as Canada’s Ocean Supercluser.

To participate, companies must be based in Canada, be

The Ocean Startup Project has announced the 30 idea- and early-stage bluetech startups from across Canada to win this year’s Ocean Startup Challenge.

Each year, the startup competition awards development capital, as well as training and mentorship services to dozens of emerging companies with the goal of building out the pipeline of Canadian bluetech businesses. This year, the 30 winners are

Canada's Ocean Supercluster has announced an extension and expansion of its Diversity, Equity and Inclusion-focused Ocean Allies project.

Ocean Allies 1.0 aimed to improve the inclusiveness of the blue economy in Atlantic Canada through training, mentorship and “awareness building” about systemic barriers. Ocean Allies 2.0 will expand the program nationally, with a particular focus on the Arctic