Plus: Attabotics settles patent litigation with Urbx.
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Inovia announces $34-million CAD Discovery Fund for early-stage VCs (BETAKIT)
Montréal-based Inovia Capital has launched its first Discovery Fund, closing $34 million CAD ($25 million USD) to invest in emerging North American venture capital (VC) fund managers focused on pre-seed and seed-stage startups.
The Discovery Fund formalizes Inovia’s existing efforts to invest in emerging VC firms as many face difficulties fundraising.
Flexport’s Revenue Dropped 70% in First Half of 2023
(THE INFORMATION)
Flexport’s revenue fell nearly 70% in the first half of the year to $700 million and the company burned through cash, people familiar with the company’s financials said.
The decline shows how the SoftBank- and Andreessen Horowitz-backed logistics startup’s performance has been deteriorating rapidly amid a broader freight market collapse.
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CCI calls for Parliamentary Technology and Science Officer to help get AI regulation right (BETAKIT)
A new report on the artificial intelligence (AI) sector warns that while Canada is well-positioned with personnel and leading research in the area, Canadian companies face significant barriers as they scale up.
The Council of Canadian Innovators (CCI) contends that a lack of Canadian companies scaling up is leading to many of the benefits created from public investment in research and training in AI flowing to firms outside of Canada.
Instacart to Target Much-Diminished Valuation Range of Under $10 Billion in IPO (THE WALL STREET JOURNAL)
Instacart is targeting a valuation of roughly $8.6 billion to $9.3 billion in its imminent IPO, a fraction of what the grocery-delivery company was previously worth, in the latest sign of diminished investor enthusiasm for private growth companies.
How CIOs can prepare for the “tectonic change” of generative AI
Nearly every company leader in the world is thinking about the potential opportunity—and risk—of generative AI for their business and customers.
In an interview with BetaKit, Coveo CEO Louis Têtu shared takeaways from his world tour, the growth in AI-enabled experiences, and how CIOs can prepare for the “tectonic change” of generative AI.
Tobi Lütke confirms he’s left Shopify’s hometown of Ottawa (THE LOGIC)
Shopify founder and CEO Tobi Lütke marks ‘first week living in Toronto’ in social media post, substantiating a rumour running round tech circles that the Shopify founder had left the firm’s hometown. Lütke’s move caps a larger geographic shuffle for his company.
Elevate gears up for 2023 tech festival, unveils full schedule and list of speakers (BETAKIT)
Elevate Festival, which is set to return to Toronto in two weeks for its fifth annual event, has unveiled its full schedule and speaker list.
Elevate 2023 headliners include Canadian deputy prime minister and minister of finance Chrystia Freeland, former CTV National News chief anchor Lisa LaFlamme, Sweet July founder and CEO Ayesha Curry (spouse to NBA star Stephen Curry), and retired astronaut and Elevate co-chair Chris Hadfield.
Noteworthy deal: Music marketing platform Bandzoogle acquired by U.S. firm (OTTAWA BUSINESS JOURNAL)
Ottawa-based music marketing and sales platform Bandzoogle has been acquired by U.S. independent digital music distribution service DistroKid, the companies announced this week.
Founded in 2003, Bandzoogle is an e-commerce platform aimed at musicians. In addition to building websites for thousands of artists, the 31-person company provides tools that allow musicians to sell music, merchandise and tickets without paying commission fees.
Attabotics, Urbx settle litigation over robotic storage patents (BETAKIT)
In 2021, Calgary-based robotics startup Attabotics alleged that Urbx, a Boston, Mass.-based fulfillment automation company, infringed on two of its patents. Since a US judge partially rejected a motion to dismiss in June, the pair recently announced an amicable resolution to the litigation between them.
Amazon’s Next Big Bet: Restocking Shelves at Physical Stores (BNN BLOOMBERG)
Amazon.com Inc. is offering a new service that will let its 2 million merchant partners deliver inventory directly to physical retail stores and warehouses, the latest push by the e-commerce giant to expand its logistics network beyond serving online shoppers.
The latest capability for merchants shows that the e-commerce giant is trying to control more inventory deeper in the supply chain before it’s sold.
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