Voting has begun for the "people's choice" categories in the YEG Startup Community Awards, an annual event organized by business people, students, and "YEG Superfans" to celebrate success within Edmonton's startup ecosystem.
Here are the nominees for the three categories whose winners are chosen by the community:
Community Initiative of the Year, recognizing a buzz-worthy program or event that brings people together for a common purpose:
- Alberta Product Leadership Program, a career accelerator for product managers;
- DemoCamp, an event series where founders demonstrate their tech;
- Health Innovators' Meetup, a monthly event organized by Applied Pharmaceutical Innovation and the Health Innovation Hub;
- YEG Startup Community Awards, the very event you are reading about;
- YEGBio Hangout, a meetup for the local life sciences community.
Connector of the Year, recognizing someone "who is always ready to make an introduction to those who can help you or your startup grow and prosper":
- Ashlyn Bernier of samdesk;
- Tony Briggs of the eHUB Entrepreneurship Centre at the University of Alberta;
- Paramita Chaudhuri Basu of Applied Pharmaceutical Innovation and the Health Innovation Hub;
- Stephanie Enders of the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute (Amii);
- Connor Nichols of CBN Marketing;
- Dale Schaub of the Mawji Centre for New Venture and Student Entrepreneurship at NAIT.
New Startup of the Year, recognizing a company incorporated in 2022 or 2023 that is "turning heads and making waves in the local market and beyond":
- Atadel, a platform to buy groceries and other essentials online;
- CBN Marketing, a full-service marketing agency;
- City Lending Centers, a digital banking experience made for Black Canadians and immigrants;
- Kidney-Chek, a pet-med company with a kidney-checking test for cats and dogs;
- Sketchdeck.ai, which builds AI and ML tools for the construction industry;
- Swift Charge, an EV-charging company;
- Table Four, an app to connect business professionals over lunch;
- TalentCompass, an HR firm.
Voting closes May 7. The winners of these awards and the juried categories will be revealed at a ceremony at Amii on May 10. Tickets are free.
Image: Connector of the Year finalists (clockwise from top left) Ashlyn Bernier, Tony Briggs, Paramita Chaudhuri Basu, Dale Schaub, Connor Nichols, and Stephanie Enders.
Correction: This story has been updated to reflect changes to the list of companies up for New Startup of the Year.