Dobson Cup participant Sonder raises US$170M during current health crisis
Despite an economic downturn that brought the travel industry to a near standstill, Dobson Cup participant and McGill’s first unicorn Sonder has raised US$170-million to stay ahead of the curve.
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Accelerate your startup with the Dobson Centre
The McGill Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship is now accepting applications for the 2020 X-1 Accelerator program. The X-1 Accelerator is a world-class program designed to accelerate early traction McGill startups towards investment readiness and launch. This year, the 10-week intensive program will be held virtually.
Thirty-two teams set to compete at the Dobson Cup finals
After two days of deliberation, 32 teams have been selected to compete in final round of the McGill Dobson Cup, powered by National Bank, on March 30, 2020.
Last week, 95 teams pitched their startups to 30 judges who were tasked with choosing eight finalists for each division: health sciences, social enterprises, small & medium enterprises, and innovation-driven enterprises.
McGill Dobson Cup names 2020 semi-finalists
The McGill Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship has announced the semi-finalists in the upcoming McGill Dobson Cup 2020, powered by National Bank. The semifinal pitches will take place from February 11–12, before the final pitches on March 30.
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McGill unicorn Sonder sets its sights on Montreal
McGill unicorn and hospitality startup Sonder has reserved premises in downtown Montreal as it makes plans to set up shop in Canada. If the move is successful, this could bring more than 500 jobs to the city within three years.
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Recap of McGill Startup Tour 2019
The McGill Startup Tour (formerly Demo Days) is about developing the McGill entrepreneurship ecosystem, showcasing the success’ of our start-ups, and promoting our highly beneficial program.
The tight-knit program was centered on three elements
Dobson Centre sits among world’s best university business incubators
The McGill Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship has secured a spot in UBI Global’s Top 20 University Business Incubators for 2019–20.
According to UBI Global, the universities that made the list surpass their global peers in regard to the value they provide their innovation ecosystems and client startup programs.
Dobson startup tour showcases Desautels entrepreneurial spirit
In fall, the McGill Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship went on the road as part of its annual Startup Tour. The six-week tour provided an opportunity for 10 teams to generate a buzz around their projects and network with industry experts and potential investors.
Sonder Becomes Dobson Centre’s First Unicorn
Sonder, a hospitality startup founded by former McGill student Francis Davidson, is now a billion-dollar company. Sonder competed in the 2014 McGill Dobson Cup Startup Competition, where it attracted the attention and investment of judge Tim Tokarsky (BSc ’99).
Read more in the McGill Reporter
Holt Accelerator welcomes fresh batch of fintech startups for training
Montreal’s Holt Accelerator welcomed its second class of fintech startup executives to a rigorous 12-week training program.
Like McGill’s X-1 Accelerator, offered by the Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship, the Holt Accelerator plays matchmaker between promising entrepreneurs and industry investors.
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Ethics: The next wave in AI development
Renjie Butalid, Associate Director of the McGill Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship, sees an opportunity for Montreal to lead the charge in the development of ethical AI frameworks. Discover the strides that the Montreal AI Ethics Institute, which he cofounded, is making in this endeavor.
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McGill’s top startups win big at McGill Dobson Cup
Entrepreneurial spirit is abounding on McGill’s campus as evidenced by the impressive lineup of finalists in the 2019 McGill Dobson Cup powered by National Bank.
With a pool of over $200,000 in seed funding up for grabs, discover who the winning teams are this year.
Read more in The Dobson Chronicles
Meet the Tesla of snowmobiles
McGill Dobson Cup winners Taiga Motors discuss the path to commercialization of the world’s first electric snowmobile, which boasts 0-60 mph in just three seconds and zero emissions to boot.
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Montreal puts stake in ground for ethical AI
If Montreal has already emerged as a global AI leader, the city continues to forge new paths by articulating its ethical framework. Renjie Butalid, Associate Director of the McGill Dobson Centre for Entrepreneurship and Co-founder of the Montreal AI Ethics Institute, shares his perspective on this important aspect of AI’s development.
These headphones can read your thoughts
Dobson X-1 Accelerator participants Orbityl are on a mission to develop a set of headphones that can be controlled by sensing your brain’s activity.
“A lot of the research that we’ve done is in brain-computer interface applications — looking for discrete thoughts that an individual is having as a mechanism to be used for control [of a device],” said Orbityl co-founder Sean Kaiser.
