Google backs 14 Canadian AI startups in new cohort
Google has named 14 Canadian startups to the latest cohort of its Google for Startups Accelerator: Canada programme. The group includes companies using artificial intelligence across healthcare, construction, agriculture, finance and manufacturing.
The seventh Canadian cohort includes startups from Vancouver, Victoria, Calgary, Kitchener-Waterloo, Toronto, Montreal and Quebec City. For the first time, it also includes a participant from Sudbury.
Programme format
Google for Startups Accelerator: Canada runs for about three months and is equity-free. It offers founders mentorship, plus sales and product guidance, along with dedicated technical support for startups using AI in their product, service or operations.
This year's cohort will work with Google specialists over 10 weeks. The curriculum covers business model development and product work linked to AI systems. Participants also get access to selected Google AI products, mentorship, and eligibility for Google Cloud credits and free Cloud TPUs for machine-learning research.
Google has positioned the accelerator as part of a broader effort to invest in Canada's startup ecosystem. Since 2020, 145 Canadian startups have participated in Google accelerator programmes in the country. Those graduates have raised more than CAD $580 million and helped create 1,400 jobs, according to an Accelerator Impact Report cited by Google.
Healthcare focus
Several of the selected firms work in healthcare and life sciences, where AI adoption has raised questions about data handling, clinical workflows and governance.
Playspace, a Toronto-based digital therapy platform for paediatric care, wants to draw on Google's experience with health systems as it scales its technology stack.
"We want to learn best practices around healthcare data architecture for high-volume environments, latency optimization for real-time therapeutic content generation, and responsible AI frameworks specific to pediatric populations. Google has already solved these problems for some of the largest health systems in the world, and that's exactly the playbook we want to learn from," said Brendan Herjavec, CIO, Playspace.
Waive Medical, based in Sudbury, is automating routine administrative work in healthcare, with a focus on what it calls the multiscreen problem. It sees the accelerator as a source of product and technical guidance as it expands its customer base.
"We are at a critical juncture as a startup as we continue to scale and grow to hundreds of clinics using our system. To reach the next stage in our journey, we recognize that we need mentorship and support from some of the top product and technical minds - the Google for Startups Accelerator seems perfectly aligned with that," said Shreyansh Anand, Co-founder & CEO, Waive Medical.
Other health-related participants include EyeCareX in Vancouver, which is working on automated eye exams, and Banting AI in Toronto, which is building a system that turns clinical trial protocols into structured data. Amical in Quebec City is developing an AI companion for people with cognitive disorders, including Alzheimer's, integrated into a phone.
Industry spread
Beyond healthcare, the cohort reflects the breadth of AI product development in Canada, spanning business software, industrial monitoring tools and sector-specific automation.
Actuality, based in Toronto, is building AI software that automates responses to construction requests for proposals. LandLogic, also in Toronto, is developing a platform that brings together zoning, planning and land data to support real estate and development decisions.
In finance, AllMind AI in Waterloo is developing a research terminal for institutional investors. Optionality in Montreal is building an AI platform focused on exit planning and mergers and acquisitions.
On the industrial and manufacturing side, Innovate-Ops in Kitchener is delivering industrial internet of things tooling with AI to monitor equipment health and energy use. Accord, based in Toronto, is positioning its product around sales playbooks and revenue operations, while Opener, also in Toronto, is building an AI sales representative aimed at consumer packaged goods.
Agriculture features in the cohort through CropMind in Calgary, which is moving from pilots to a commercial rollout in Canada and the US.
"CropMind is at a pivotal stage: transitioning our AI-powered crop intelligence platform from successful pilots to full commercial rollout across Canada and the U.S. We see the program as a catalyst to compress our learning curve and strengthen both technical robustness and market execution discipline," said Damilare Odumosu, Co-Founder & CEO, CropMind Inc.
MyHealthspan in Victoria is developing an AI preventive health operating system for employers that combines tests and coaching.
Demo Day plans
The cohort is due to present its progress at a Demo Day hosted by Google during Toronto Tech Week in May, with options to attend in person or watch via a livestream.
The cohort includes Accord, Actuality, AllMind AI, Amical, Banting AI, CropMind, EyeCareX, Innovate-Ops, LandLogic, MyHealthspan, Opener, Optionality, Playspace and Waive Medical.