The New Brunswick innovation Foundation is bringing back Breakthru, its legacy startup competition.

Organizers are offering $200,000 in equity investment and in-kind support to help entrepreneurs turn ideas into ventures.  The Grand Prize will provide $100,000 in equity investment and two runners-up will receive $50,000 in equity investment.

The three companies will enter due diligence with NBIF. Each investment provides the startup with the critical funding and support needed to execute on its business objectives, organizers said on LinkedIn.

To qualify, proposed ventures must be in the early or pre-seed stage of development, meaning the business is still in concept, prototype, or market validation phase and has not yet raised significant external capital or achieved meaningful commercial revenue.

Organizers said business ideas must have a strong business case, real market demand, financial and commercial potential, a clear innovative and competitive edge, a capable team and economic impact for New Brunswick.

Before the pandemic, Breakthru was big news and a passion project of then-CEO Calvin Milbury. It was held every second year and awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars to the top three startups, which had all gone through months of preparation and mentorship. Since 2019, there have been several smaller-scale events with the Breakthru name.

In March this year, NBIF awarded a $50,000 investment at the Breakthru Accelerating Cleantech pitching event. The pitching competition winner, which received a $50,000 investment from NBIF, was AgroGene Solutions, which was founded by four researchers at Universite de Moncton and provides monitoring services for beekeepers.

Applications for Breakthru close Friday, November 28.
Apply here.