Know What&#x27;s Happening in Entrepreneurship

Resolve AI

Resolve AI has launched a multi‑agent system that operates across code, infrastructure, and telemetry to automatically triage alerts and investigate incidents. Unlike traditional tools that merely correlate signals, the platform conducts structured investigations that emulate expert production engineers. It transforms fragmented logs and metrics into evidence‑backed explanations and actionable next steps, streamlining production debugging. The solution aims to reduce mean time to resolution for complex outages.

By Lightspeed » Ideas

ElevenLabs

ElevenLabs is expanding AI-driven interaction through two core offerings: the Agents Platform, which lets businesses deploy scalable voice and chat agents, and the Creative Platform, which generates speech, music, images, and video in over 70 languages. Both platforms are built...

By Lightspeed » Ideas

BDC Head Says Bank Pulled Back From Life Sciences “Too Early” As It Preps New VC Fund

The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) is preparing a new life‑sciences fund of roughly C$100 million to re‑enter direct medtech investing, launching before April. BDC’s president Isabelle Hudon said the bank withdrew from the sector too early after its 2013...

University of Galway Launches New Prototype Hub in Partnership with Medtronic

The University of Galway has opened a Medical Device Prototype Hub in partnership with Medtronic, marking a key milestone in their five‑year, €5 million innovation agreement. The hub, housed within the university’s Technology Services Directorate, provides rapid prototyping, 3D printing, and...

ElevenLabs Raises $500M Series D at $11B Valuation

ElevenLabs announced a $500 million Series D round that lifts its valuation to $11 billion, led by Sequoia Capital with Andreessen Horowitz and ICONIQ Capital increasing stakes. The funding backs the company’s push toward $330 million in annual recurring revenue by 2025 and fuels...

Making Healthcare Better: The Manufacturing Technologies Powering MedTech Innovation

Stryker highlights how advanced manufacturing, robotics, AI and digital twins are reshaping MedTech, accelerating product cycles and enabling patient‑specific solutions. Additive manufacturing and 3D printing now move concepts to production in weeks, while digital twins create precise virtual replicas for...

Building with AI Is Now the “Price of Admission” For Software Startups, Inovia Report Says

Inovia Capital’s 2025 State of Software report shows AI‑native startups now account for 40% of Canadian software deal value, up from 12% a decade ago. Investors treat deep AI integration as a baseline requirement, rewarding AI‑focused firms with larger rounds...

Salesforce Survey Reveals AI Is the #2 Growth Tactic for 2026 as Irish Sales Teams Turn to Agents

Salesforce’s State of Sales survey of over 4,000 reps, including 100 in Ireland, shows AI agents are the second‑most important growth tactic for 2026. In Ireland, 87% of sales organisations already use AI for tasks such as prospecting and forecasting,...

Podcast•Feb 4, 2026•26 min

Product Walkthroughs, the Next Open Source Product & Other Listener Questions

In this episode, Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson answer listener questions, covering how they record unscripted product walkthrough videos, the upcoming open‑source product Writebook, and the way the 37signals team combines Basecamp with their new kanban tool Fizzy. They...

By REWORK (37signals)

Lithuanian Axiology Raises €5M Seed to Scale DLT-Based Capital Markets Infrastructure in Europe

Lithuanian fintech Axiology secured a €5 million seed round, bringing its total funding to €7 million, to expand a regulated, DLT‑based trading and settlement platform under the EU’s DLT Pilot Regime. The company holds a rare Distributed Ledger Technology Trading and Settlement...

By ArcticStartup

Podcast•Feb 4, 2026•42 min

Finnish Startup Optivian Raises $2 Million Pre-Seed to Turn AI Into a Sales Execution Workforce

Finnish startup Optivian secured $2 million in a pre‑seed round led by Failup Ventures and AI veteran Tero Ojanperä. The company is building an agentic AI platform that autonomously handles execution‑heavy B2B sales tasks, from business‑case creation to next‑best‑action recommendations. Early...

By ArcticStartup

Product Democracy Doesn't Work - Blagoja Golubovski (VP Product, Usercentrics)

In this episode, Blagoja Golubovski argues that product leadership should not be treated as a democracy, emphasizing that consensus often stalls progress. He explains the distinction between gathering input and owning decisions, outlining how clear trade‑offs, accountability, and explicit decision‑making...

By The Product Experience (Mind the Product)

By SmartCompany » StartupSmart (AU)

Real Estate Startup Agentsy Closes $700,000 Pre-Seed Raise

Australian proptech startup Agentsy announced the close of a $700,000 pre‑seed round led by Empress Capital. The funding coincides with the launch of its AI‑driven platform from closed beta to a nationwide commercial release for residential real‑estate agencies. Agentsy’s software...

US-Based Welding Tech Company ESAB to Buy Eddyfi for $1.45 Billion USD

US welding equipment maker ESAB announced a $1.45 billion acquisition of Quebec‑based non‑destructive testing specialist Eddyfi. The deal, valued slightly above Lightspeed Commerce’s market cap, will be funded through cash, debt and a $318 million equity commitment. Eddyfi, which generated roughly $270 million...

Neo Financial Secures $68.5 Million in Equity as It Adopts Big-Bank Funding Playbook

Neo Financial announced a CAD 68.5 million equity round led by Canadian institutional investors such as AIMCo and Northleaf. The funding coincides with the launch of a securitization program that will bundle its credit assets to generate liquidity, a practice common among...

Blog•Feb 3, 2026

Groupthink When Hiring - All Things Product Podcast with Teresa Torres & Petra Wille

The All Things Product podcast episode with Teresa Torres and Petra Wille examines why modern hiring processes are failing. They highlight how AI‑driven application overload, endless interview loops, and groupthink among stakeholders sabotage good hiring decisions. The hosts propose treating...

By Product Talk

This U of T-Led Program Is Helping Canada Find Its Place in the Global EV Market

The Electric Vehicle Innovation Ontario (EVIO) program launched in December with a $2.5 million federal grant to embed 37 graduate researchers in 20 Ontario EV and mobility firms over three years. Led by the University of Toronto and seven partner universities,...

New FET Micro-Qualifications in Artificial Intelligence to Address Critical Skills Gaps Launched by Minister Lawless

Minister James Lawless launched a new suite of Further Education and Training (FET) micro‑qualifications in Artificial Intelligence, developed with Microsoft Ireland under SOLAS’s Skills to Advance initiative. The programmes deliver 50‑hour, subsidised courses covering machine learning basics, ethical AI, data...

Carbon Upcycling Names New CEO

Markus Kritzler has been promoted from chief revenue officer to chief executive officer of Carbon Upcycling, the Calgary‑based firm that converts industrial byproducts and CO₂ into supplementary cementitious materials. Kritzler joins the role after a brief but impactful tenure that...

A16z Speedrun-Backed OpenSesame Opens New Doors with Rebrand to General Magic

Toronto‑based OpenSesame, an a16z Speedrun alum, has rebranded as General Magic to specialize in agentic AI texting agents for insurers. The startup secured a large, undisclosed insurance client and claims its platform can reduce call volumes by 30% and save...

Are We Witnessing the Shift From Employers to Organisers?

Corporate leaders are increasingly turning to “organiser” firms that house communities of freelance C‑suite talent, replacing traditional employer models. Global VUCA conditions and senior executives’ desire for purpose and flexibility are fueling the shift toward fractional leadership. These organiser firms...

The Startup Bringing a Piece of America’s FinTech Stack to Canada

Slate, a Vancouver‑based fintech startup, has emerged from stealth to provide embedded lending infrastructure for Canadian SaaS platforms. Leveraging real‑time transactional data from payroll, POS and e‑commerce tools, Slate handles underwriting, compliance and capital provision through low‑code, API or full‑white‑label...

Blog•Feb 2, 2026

Let's Read Continuous Discovery Habits Together (February 2026)

ProductTalk is celebrating the five‑year anniversary of Continuous Discovery Habits with a monthly book‑club reading guide. This February guide focuses on Chapter 3, teaching teams to prioritize outcomes over outputs and to differentiate business from product outcomes. The post supplies short...

By Product Talk

Ali Asaria’s Transformer Lab Launches Worldwide

Transformer Lab, the AI research platform created by Canadian veterans Ali Asaria and Tony Salomone, announced its worldwide launch alongside a successful pre‑seed round. Investors such as Hawktail, Ripple Ventures and Garage Capital participated, providing the capital needed to scale...

Polish Nomagic Secures Series B Extension to Scale Physical AI for Warehousing

Polish robotics firm Nomagic announced an €8.51 million ($10 million) Series B extension led by Cogito Capital Partners. The capital will fund accelerated expansion into the United States and further development of its visual‑language‑action (VLA) models. Nomagic’s physical AI robots, already deployed with...

2025 - The Year of Quantum

Quantum computing is moving from theoretical research to commercial opportunity, with startups already delivering products in cybersecurity, networking, middleware, and sensing. Andy Leaver of Notion Capital argues that waiting for fault‑tolerant, cryptography‑breaking machines is unnecessary; viable markets exist today. He...

The Negative Split

The report "The Negative Split" draws a marathon pacing analogy to illustrate the founder’s journey, emphasizing that early excitement gives way to a demanding second half. It argues that sustained mental and physical health, supported by data‑driven strategies and peer...

Venture Capital & the World It Lives In

General Partner Jos White of Notion Capital released his first annual market update, translating a recurring presentation into a full article. He highlights that the S&P 500 recorded 35 new highs in 2025 and rose 17% year‑to‑date, while the ACWI All‑World...

ESG Report

ESG has moved from a niche concern to a mainstream priority for investors worldwide. Over 5,300 investment organisations, managing roughly $128 trillion in assets, have signed the UN Principles for Responsible Investment. This surge reflects ESG’s evolution from a risk‑mitigation checkbox...

“Meditate and Stay Calm”: Hopper, Lightspeed CEOs on How to Survive as a Founder

At North Star in Montréal, Hopper CEO Frederic Lalonde and Lightspeed founder Dax Dasilva shared hard‑won lessons from building billion‑dollar businesses. They emphasized self‑care, especially meditation and yoga, as a leadership prerequisite and warned that founders must delegate to avoid...

Norwegian AI Startup Watchdog Raises $600K to Catch Costly Invoice Errors

Oslo‑based AI startup Watchdog announced a $600,000 seed round led by venture studio Askeladden & Co and angel investors from OpenAI, Encube and Riff. The funding will accelerate development of its AI‑powered invoice verification tool that automatically cross‑checks invoices against...

By ArcticStartup

Blog•Feb 2, 2026

Succeeding with the Product Operating Model

Roman Pichler’s latest podcast episode breaks down how companies can successfully adopt a product operating model, drawing on fifteen years of hands‑on experience. He outlines the structural changes needed to shift to a product‑led way of working and highlights practical...

By Roman Pichler Blog

Arlene Dickinson and Amber Mac Sever Ties with Gander Social

Arlene Dickinson and Amber Mac announced they are no longer advisors to Gander Social just one day before the company’s crowdfunding campaign was set to close. Both posted on LinkedIn, while Gander’s CEO Ben Waldman said neither had finalized an...

Canada and Alberta Announce 27 New Projects to Expand High-Speed Internet Access

Canada and Alberta unveiled 27 new broadband projects aimed at delivering high‑speed internet to 83,600 homes across 759 communities, including 3,488 Indigenous households. The initiative is funded with $373.6 million, split among the provincial government, the federal government, and private service...

For This Flying Robot Company, Student Internships Trump Senior Engineers

Avestec Technologies, a Canadian maker of flying inspection robots, has shifted its talent strategy from senior hires to student interns. Partnering with the ICTC’s Work Integrated Learning (WIL) Digital program, the firm brings on three to four interns each semester,...

Canada’s Cybersecurity Startups Have No Room for Error

Metropolitan Technologies, a Toronto‑based cybersecurity startup, has built an operational‑technology platform that secures critical‑infrastructure assets such as mines, energy grids, water treatment plants, and transportation networks. The company graduated from Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst’s eight‑month Cyber Challenge, receiving $20,000 in non‑dilutive...

New ARC Hub Launched to Accelerate Research-to-Impact Pathway

Technological University Dublin launched the Research Ireland ARC Hub for ICT, a €32.21 million national initiative designed to fast‑track ICT and artificial intelligence research into commercial products. Co‑funded by the Irish government and the EU’s ERDF programme, the Hub offers targeted...

News•Jan 29, 2026

How IBM Became an AI Darling

IBM has reinvented itself once again, emerging as a leading AI player after decades of strategic pivots. The company moved from mainframe hardware to IT services in the 1990s and off‑loaded its PC business to Lenovo in 2005, freeing capital...

News•Jan 29, 2026

Don’t Be Fooled. AI Bosses Are Regular Capitalists

A court fight between Elon Musk and OpenAI has pulled back the corporate curtain on the AI sector’s capitalist roots. Musk alleges OpenAI abandoned its original non‑profit charter and demanded a massive payout, citing its lucrative partnership with Microsoft as...

News•Jan 29, 2026

How Afranga Brings EU-Regulated Private Credit to Retail Investors Across 27 Countries

The European Crowdfunding Service Provider (ECSP) regulation, effective since 2021, gave fintech platforms a passport to operate across all 27 EU member states, opening private‑credit markets to retail investors. Sofia‑based Afranga, relaunched under an ECSP licence in 2025, has already...

News•Jan 28, 2026

Silicon Valley Wades Into a Trade Spat with South Korea

Coupang, South Korea’s e‑commerce powerhouse with $35 bn in sales, suffered a massive data breach that has escalated into a diplomatic dispute. U.S. officials, backed by allies in the Trump administration, are pressing for tighter security controls on the firm’s handling...

News•Jan 28, 2026

NovaUCD and CeADAR Open Applications for 2026 AI Ecosystem Accelerator Programme

NovaUCD and CeADAR have opened applications for the 2026 AI Ecosystem Accelerator, a six‑month programme aimed at Irish AI‑first start‑ups that have market validation and are seeking to close a funding round in 2026. The accelerator, now in its third...

Podcast•Jan 28, 2026•22 min

Give It a Name

In this episode, Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson discuss how and when they choose product names, sharing stories behind names like Fizzy and Omarchy and noting that no name can satisfy every criterion. They explain the practical influence of...

By REWORK (37signals)

Podcast•Jan 28, 2026•34 min

How to Use Premortems to Predict Failure - Anu Jagga-Narang (AT&T)

In this episode Lily Smith and Randy Silver sit down with AT&T product evangelist Anu Jagga‑Narang to demystify premortems, a forward‑looking technique that imagines a product’s failure to surface hidden risks. Anu walks through the step‑by‑step process—framing failure, voting on...

By The Product Experience (Mind the Product)

News•Jan 27, 2026

How Porn Stars Can Survive in the Age of AI

The AVN Adult Entertainment Expo highlighted a turning point for the porn industry as artificial intelligence reshapes content creation. Performers face mounting threats from AI‑generated deepfakes that can siphon revenue and damage reputations. In response, stars are adopting subscription services,...

News•Jan 27, 2026

Croatian InsiderCX Secures Seed Round to Expand Its AI-Powered Patient Experience Platform

Croatian healthtech startup InsiderCX closed a €1.5 million seed round led by GapMinder, with participation from Silicon Gardens Fund. The company’s AI‑powered platform harvests patient feedback via mobile channels, delivering up to ten times more actionable insights than traditional surveys. Revenue...

By A Smart Bear (Longform)

Blog•Jan 25, 2026

A Compass Is Not a Map

The article uses a compass‑vs‑map metaphor to argue that startup advice points north but does not dictate the right path. It critiques Lean Startup, survivor bias, and the illusion that any framework guarantees success. By highlighting the variability of outcomes...

News•Jan 24, 2026

Top Funding Rounds Raised by Greek Startups in 2025

Greek startups raised more than €732 million in 2025, a 35 % jump from the previous year, with over 90 companies securing capital from 143 investors worldwide. The surge reflects Greece’s growing ecosystem maturity and heightened international visibility. Spotawheel led the pack...

News•Jan 24, 2026

FinovateEurope 2026 to Gather 1,000+ Fintech and Banking Decision-Makers in London

FinovateEurope 2026 will convene on 10–11 February at London’s InterContinental O2, drawing more than 1,000 fintech and banking decision‑makers, including over 600 senior executives. The two‑day agenda features more than 100 speakers such as Citi’s Victor Alexiev and Raiffeisen’s Vanja...