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<\/div>Toronto has obvious and dedicated support and enthusiasm for startups and entrepreneurs; nowhere is that more evident than in the Ontario Network of Entrepreneurs.<\/p>\r\n
Ontario Network of Entrepreneurs<\/a>\u00a0(ONE), a government creation, supports over 130 not-for-profit organizations throughout Ontario. It aims to support businesses through their varying stages – starting with researching new ideas and assisting all the way through to a company ready to launch their product.<\/p>\r\n The ONE places a high value on developing an entrepreneurial culture. It nurtures innovation and hopeful newcomers looking to get their start.<\/p>\r\n The ONE recognizes that whether or not any given startup succeeds is less important than its underlying goal: to foster a spirit of entrepreneurship to promote a thriving community of intrepid minds.<\/p>\r\n As of 2017, the ONE has helped an impressive 5,600<\/a> Ontario entrepreneurs open new businesses.<\/p>\r\n A move to Toronto means you’ll be at the center of a community that truly values innovation. In fact, Toronto was named one of the world’s most innovative cities<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n If you’re looking for an example of a successful Toronto-based startup, look no further than FreshBooks.<\/p>\r\n FreshBooks<\/a> is an accounting platform for small businesses and has more than 10 million users.\u00a0It has a\u00a043,000-square-foot office<\/a>\u00a0in the city housing 245 employees.\u00a0Mike McDerment, Founder & CEO of FreshBooks, is full of praise for Toronto:<\/p>\r\n I think it\u2019s an attractive place to come for talented people, it’s a huge market for creative people and I think there are some companies emerging that give people hope that it can be done here…Tell every smart person you know who\u2019s interested in technology to move to Toronto as well and then start your damn company.<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n In addition to FreshBooks, Toronto is also home to Fortune 500 corporations<\/a> and hosts the Canadian headquarters of Google, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn.<\/p>\r\n <\/p>\r\n by Victor Vucicevich<\/p><\/div>\r\n Waterloo,\u00a0a small city with a population of just 550,000<\/a>, is located sixty miles west of Toronto.<\/p>\r\n In contrast to its small population, Waterloo is home to a massive 1,100 new ventures<\/a>, making it a region with the highest startup density of any area globally aside from Silicon Valley.<\/p>\r\n It’s no wonder Waterloo is such an incredibly fertile area for startup growth. A recent report<\/a>\u00a0from research firm Compass details many of the advantages of starting up in Waterloo (factors like growth, performance, funding, and exit values were all considered), ranking it the No. 25 best startup ecosystem in the world.<\/p>\r\n Waterloo hosts a significant portion of Canada\u2019s tech talent. Similar to San Francisco and the Bay Area, Toronto and Waterloo together form a corridor hosting a surplus of startup innovation between them.<\/p>\r\n Because of this, the Toronto and Waterloo corridor is frequently called \u201cThe Silicon Valley of the North.\u201d<\/p>\r\n Waterloo is home to the University of Waterloo, an outstanding resource for startup ecosystems looking to attract new talent.<\/p>\r\n The University of Waterloo has over 30,000 undergraduates and an internationally admired engineering program. Students are welcome to participate in their co-op program (graduating with one or two years of work experience, which is of high value to many companies).<\/p>\r\n Many companies, some well-known and established, count on the University to snatch up new employees. It’s telling that, after the University of California, Berkeley, graduates from the University of Waterloo are the second-most frequently hired in Silicon Valley.<\/p>\r\n “If you ask around Silicon Valley, all the top companies will have had an intern from Waterloo,” says<\/a> general partner at SV Angel Kevin Carter.<\/p>\r\n Startups in Waterloo further benefit from institutions like the Communitech Coalition and the Accelerator Centre. Both provide in-house mentorship<\/a> from entrepreneurs and venture capitalists, educational courses, and funding access.<\/p>\r\n Communitech<\/a> is one of nine North American tech hubs in the Google for Entrepreneurs network. They describe<\/a> themselves as a thriving community that: “enables tech hubs by providing them with technical content, business tools, and infrastructure upgrades so that they can support increasing demand from developers and startups and help grow their local economies.”<\/p>\r\n The Accelerator Centre<\/a> is an award-winning startup accelerator that has a mission statement<\/a> of helping entrepreneurs with “building and scaling sustainable, globally competitive\u00a0companies and giving startups the highest probability of long-term success.”<\/p>\r\n <\/p>\r\n Montreal has been rated as one of the top 20 startup ecosystems<\/a> in the world by Startup Compass.<\/p>\r\n This isn’t surprising.<\/p>\r\n Montreal boasts a tightly knit community bolstered by unique startup events like Startupfest<\/a>, a highly regarded, much anticipated annual event that brings in a couple thousand of the world\u2019s groundbreaking innovators, entrepreneurs, and prominent speakers.<\/p>\r\n Supportive non-profits and incubators like\u00a0Montreal NewTech<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Notman House further bolster Montreal<\/a>.<\/p>\r\n PwC Canada<\/a> and CB Insights have released their MoneyTree report<\/a>, which examines Canadian VC activity from 2017. Canadian companies raised $4.4 billion CAD in total, and\u00a0Montreal raised more funds than any other city on the list.<\/p>\r\n This substantial funding is largely due to Montreal’s recent transformation into a globally recognized AI hub.<\/p>\r\n Montreal-based artificial intelligence (AI) company\u00a0Element AI<\/a>\u00a0raised $102 million (USD)<\/a> in\u00a0Series A funding in June, the largest amount ever raised by an AI company.<\/p>\r\n Facebook’s announcement that McGill professor Dr. Joelle Pineau\u00a0would be leading<\/a> Facebook\u2019s fourth Artificial Intelligence Research Lab (FAIR)\u00a0amplified this activity in the AI arena and has led to a domino effect of other related activity in the Montreal scene.<\/p>\r\n Another major advantage of starting in Montreal is a surprisingly affordable real estate market.<\/p>\r\n When local startups don’t have to worry about the cost of living and are able to keep their costs lower, it’s an enticing prospect to many would-be entrepreneurs. Currently, the average house price<\/a> is $238,000, which is significantly lower than in other cities in the North American region.<\/p>\r\n Montreal’s strong talent pool is helped by the numerous universities and technical institutes that populate the area.<\/p>\r\n Outstanding business graduates flock to the city after graduating from Concordia\u2019s John Molson School of Business<\/a>. Local technical schools strengthen the startup ecosystem, providing an adept, motivated engineering workforce.<\/p>\r\n Canada knows a bit about creating a great culture for startups and entrepreneurs to succeed.<\/p>\r\n It might be time to pack your parka, grab a coffee from Tim Horton’s, and start planning your next brilliant startup business.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
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Waterloo<\/h2>\r\n
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<\/h2>\r\nMontreal<\/h2>\r\n
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