The next generation of student entrepreneurs will take centre stage at the University of Toronto this week, following in the footsteps of alumni and other community members who have helped create more than 1,800 startups and, over the past decade, tens of thousands of jobs.
Held at the Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus Sept. 17, the annual U of T AcceleratorFest will see the university's 13 accelerators showcase how they're supporting entrepreneurs and their potentially game-changing ideas across the three campuses.
"AcceleratorFest is for everyone in the U of T community who is passionate about innovation, entrepreneurship and building solutions that create impact," says Jon French, director of U of T Entrepreneurship .
"Whether you have an idea and are curious or have an existing company you want to scale to be globally competitive, this event is for you."
French says AcceleratorFest offers attendees a glimpse of the expansive U of T ecosystem - which now also includes an early-stage life science venture capital fund and the city's largest wet-lab incubator - that is driving Canadian innovation and contributing to Toronto's status as "one of the world's most important AI hubs," according to CNN.
The programming includes a Desjardins Speakers Series talk by Aleisha Cerny, co-founder and CEO of clean energy startup Serenity Power, and Michael Helander, co-founder and CEO of advanced materials company OTI Lumionics, about what it takes to build a successful venture.
The day will be rounded out with a tour of the spaces, labs and organizations at the Schwartz Reisman Innovation Campus , showing off an important gateway to the supports, networks and opportunities available at every stage of the entrepreneurial journey.
The event comes as U of T further cements its reputation as a leading university for research-based startups, placing first in Canada for graduate and MBA alumni founders in recent rankings by PitchBook . It also ranked second in Canada and 17th globally for undergraduate founders, placing ninth among public institutions.
U of T's performance in the Seattle-based financial data and research company's rankings contributed to an overall strong showing by Canadian post-secondary institutions, with six others making the top 100 and the University of Waterloo cracking the top 10 globally in the undergraduate category.
In a separate PitchBook ranking for women startup founders , U of T led the country at 26th globally for graduate entrepreneurs and placed 17th on the corresponding undergraduate list.
"We're now seeing Canadian universities represented across the entire top 100, unlike any other year," French says.
"The fields driving venture creation right now - AI, advanced materials, life sciences, quantum - are fields where U of T and its domestic peers have been leading for years."
Altogether, entrepreneurs from the U of T community have created more than 1,800 venture-backed companies. In the past 10 years alone, they have raised over $27 billion and created more than 27,600 jobs, according to figures compiled by U of T Entrepreneurship.
