A candidate company readies their booth prior to the opening of today's Venture Forum

Post Number One

There is a buzz around this conference. At last night's official launch party Rick Nathan spoke eloquently about the need for Canadian investors to step up their early-stage investments. His message? there are good opportunities out there and if we don't take advantage of them US investors will and Canada will lose a generation of its top innovators.

How does the Forum work? Candidate companies pitch their value propositions and business plans to a jury of reviewers. At the end of the conference there is a vote and the winners are announced.



What are the categories?

1. VC-Ready and VC-Backed

2. VC-Ready and VC-Backed

3. Angel and Seed

Winners are selected Friday at 3:30 (and we're told there is a Scotch tasting as well - another good reason for entrepreneurs and investors to come to this conference).