Ten startups pitched delegates and investors Wednesday at BioPort Atlantic's Innovator Showcase, as the Halifax life sciences conference hosted by Life Sciences Nova Scotia marked its 25th year.
More than 300 companies, researchers, investors and other stakeholders attended the three-day conference at the Halifax Convention Centre. Under the theme "Why Life Sciences Matters," it gave companies a chance to introduce their innovations to investors and other sources of capital.
Morning Pitches
BioLabMate, based in St. John's, turns seaweed into environmentally friendly materials that can replace petroleum-based plastics. Its bioresins work in existing manufacturing equipment to make products ranging from laboratory supplies and consumer goods to industrial and 3D-printed items.
Co-founder and CEO Sarika Kumari said the idea came from seeing how much single-use plastic the founders' daily work generated.
"Less than 10 per cent even gets recycled," she said. "The rest just stays in the landfill."
ClinicGlide, a Fredericton company co-founded by Scott MacIntosh, builds AI automation software to ease the administrative load on healthcare clinics. MacIntosh said the platform handled more than 11,000 scheduling tasks and 2,500 patient calls last month, resolving 85 per cent of phone requests without human involvement.
Home and Health, a Halifax company led by co-founder Alan MacKeen, connects families directly with verified, independent home-care providers for seniors.
"By 2030, one in four Canadians will be over the age of 65," MacKeen said, comparing the platform to "booking a ride with an Uber."
Ring Rescue, a Dartmouth company founded by Dr. Kevin Spencer, an emergency physician and engineer, closed the morning presentations. Its Dolphin Ring Cutter safely removes stuck rings.
"Rings have changed, removal tools haven't," Spencer said. He cited more than 2,600 product kits deployed across North America and a $2-million growth round now open at a $20-million valuation.
Afternoon Pitches
3DBioFibR, a Halifax company led by CEO Kevin Sullivan, manufactures high-performance fibers from collagen and other biopolymers for applications including sutures and ligament grafts. The company has US$1.2 million in contracts booked for 2026.
NovaResp Technologies, a Halifax company founded by Hamed Hanafi, presented cMAP. The AI software is designed to predict and prevent apnea episodes during CPAP therapy, with the goal of improving patient comfort.
Oncolinc Therapeutics, a Halifax company co-founded by Dalhousie cancer biologist Paola Marcato, targets a molecule that tumours use to hide from the immune system. The approach aims to reverse resistance to immunotherapy, allowing those treatments to work as intended.
Evening Investor Pitches
Three more companies pitched directly to BioPort's investor group.
Go Micro's Gregg Curwin grows and freeze-dries broccoli sprouts in Conquerall Mills, N.S. He said the venture grew from his mother's cancer diagnosis and his search for plant compounds that might help.
"We farm from seed to package, novel plant compounds, for disease reversal and avoidance," he said.
Breathe BioMedical, a Moncton company led by CEO Bill Dawes, is developing breath-based tests for early disease detection. Its lead product, a breath test now in clinical study, is intended as an adjunct to mammography for women with dense breast tissue.
NUCLIQ Biologics, co-founded by Nikitha Kendyala in St. John's, pairs gut-health diagnostics with AI.
"We look into the stool sample and find if there are any bacterial imbalances," Kendyala said, tracing the company's origins to her mother's recovery from cancer and tuberculosis.
