Edmonton Unlimited reveals Launch Party startups

The 10 companies to be showcased at Launch Party during Edmonton Startup Week span health, food, fibre, aviation, defence, and — of course — all things AI.

The startups were chosen from among 59 applicants, "highlighting the depth and momentum of Edmonton's growing tech and startup community," Edmonton Unlimited said in its Aug. 12 announcement. The "10 companies to watch" are as follows:

• 7 Summits Snacks makes chocolate snacks tailored to high-performance athletes. Co-founder Kristyn Carriere, who has won several pitch competitions and grants, worked on the product with fellow food scientists at NAIT's Centre for Culinary Innovation.
• Aqtiva makes plasma-activated water for improved crop outcomes. It was named the New Startup of the Year at the most recent YEG Startup Community Awards, and founder Tanay Kumar received an Innovation Catalyst Grant in May to continue the work.
• Dualchemy makes advanced AI hiring solutions, promising to "replace black-box algorithms with a real-time preference engine." Co-founder Bahar Boroomand had a chance to showcase the startup at Upper Bound in May.
• InnovativAI makes AI tools for aircraft that translate and display subtitles for passengers in real time, among other services, to improve accessibility in air travel. The company, led by Ali Akbarian, showcased its Nexora technology in Hamburg earlier this year.
• Osprey Systems makes AI tools for operating unmanned vehicles in extreme environments, such as those with no satellite connectivity. It sells to defence and dual-use clients.
• Proholistic Discovery, led by Richard Tseng, makes an inference-powered engine meant to reduce failure rates in drug development, something it recently showed off a conference in Taiwan.
• Pulmvita makes an improved version of a nasal breathing tube that earned it the top prize at Startup TNT's Summit XII last year. Founder Cole Christianson also received an Innovation Catalyst Grant.
• RNARevive, led by Mardin Falla and Nina Karpoff, is developing a platform to deliver self-amplifying RNA therapeutics that allow the body to make its own medicine. The tech has garnered the company a long list of accolades in the past year.
• TaxFormify, "built by tax accountants, for tax accountants," makes AI-powered software for Canadian and American tax firms that it says can save 30 hours per month per 100 clients.
• Zylotex, founded by Lelia Lawson, Wade Chute, and Ken Barker, makes fibre from hemp for applications such as clothing, medical products, and industrial processes, which are now being explored as part of Edmonton Unlimited's Venture Pilots: Built World Tech.

The companies were selected by Ashif Mawji of ScaleGood Fund, Yasmine Al-Hussein of Yaletown Partners, and Aroon Sequeira of Valuepath Partners.

The 10 companies will make their pitches at the Edmonton Startup Week Kickoff on Oct. 5, and they will be celebrated at the 17th edition of Launch Party on Oct. 8.

This file has updated with further details from the official announcement.