Please don’t question my math if I say we’re about to start the second half of the year.

Technically, there’s only one-third of 2013 left, but we’re through the slow summer period and the final four months are so busy that it might as well be half a year.

I’m off next week so I want to take an opportunity to take a look at what’s on the calendar for the autumn, and highlight a few things to watch for.

There are a few events that have very quickly become fixtures on the calendar, and they all happen as the leaves are turning. Invest Atlantic will take place Sept. 25, and its PitchCamp will be held the night before.

Two other “camps” – MentorCamp and DemoCamp — will be held in conjunction with the Halifax Pop Explosion in October. DemoCamp Halifax, open to the public and taking place Oct. 23, tends to announce the arrival of new startups, whereas the more exclusive MentorCamp on Oct. 21 has the power to name the belle of the sophomore class of startups.

Last year, for example, the buzz at MentorCamp focused on LeadSift of Halifax, which was a big reason it was able to raise $1.1 million in seed funding.

Halifax Pop Explosion itself has released the sessions for its digital component, which features a range of instructional sessions Oct. 23-25.

BioPort Atlantic, the regional conference for life sciences, will take place Oct. 9-10 and once again will feature the BioInnovation Challenge, a pitching competition for biotech companies. (Applications for the Challenge are due today).

Meanwhile, in Fredericton, the ACcelr8 incubator will hold its grand opening on Sept. 12, and mLab Canada is due to open its doors as well, meaning the city will have two incubators. It will also mean the tenants of these complexes will soon be introduced, adding more startups to the ecosystem.

The Launch36 accelerator in Moncton will hold a 12-week program for startups across the region. Though it will not hold the traditional pitching day at the end, there will be some sort of event to present its graduates to the public.

Dalhousie University will hold another Starting Lean Class (to be followed by two more in the new year) and Saint Mary’s University will launch its Master of Technology, Entrepreneurship and Innovation program. Innovacorp will begin its I-3 competition, while the New Brunswick Innovation Foundation will get the ball rolling on its R3 Innovation Challenge for researchers. Both contests will be decided in 2014.

What all this means is that there should be a broadening and deepening of the startup community before all civilized people turn their attention to the NFL playoffs. We’ll learn of some new companies, and identify some young companies as ones to watch.

While all this takes place, there should be a range of funding announcements. Several companies that went through the first two cohorts of Launch36 have been arranging financing. And Build Ventures, the regional venture capital fund, will likely announce another deal or two.

I doubt we’re going to get a lot of new institutions as we have in the recent past, but the final few months of 2013 should introduce new companies and place a few existing ones on a sounder footing.