Shift by Alberta Innovates – Détails, épisodes et analyse

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Can interdisciplinary research transform Alberta's innovation landscape? Join us as we uncover the inspiring journey of Dr. Mike Mahon, interim CEO at Alberta Innovates. With a career spanning from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to leading roles at the University of Manitoba and the University of Alberta, Dr. Mahon shares his insights into fostering collaboration across diverse sectors like health, energy, environment, and agriculture. Learn how his vision aims to integrate these areas to build a more innovative and resilient Alberta.

We dive deep into the power of teamwork and interdisciplinary collaboration, highlighting an extraordinary example from the University of Lethbridge where a cell biologist and a physicist collaborated to make groundbreaking advancements in cancer research. Alberta Innovates stands at the forefront of these efforts, acting as a connector between researchers and startups. Mike explains how sustained support, along with Alberta's pioneering spirit, is crucial for maintaining leadership in science and innovation. Our conversation also touches on the vital role inventors play in driving forward-thinking solutions and partnerships throughout the province.

Supporting Alberta's entrepreneurial ecosystem is no small feat, and in this episode, we address the challenges entrepreneurs and researchers face in turning innovative ideas into viable businesses. 

Listen in as we also explore innovative uses of bitumen, advancements in hydrogen energy, and transformative healthcare innovations, underscoring the importance of ethical frameworks and breaking down silos for greater collaboration. Wrapping up with a lively chat, we celebrate the spirit of teamwork and continuous improvement essential for driving Alberta’s innovation forward.

Shift by Alberta Innovates focuses on the people, businesses and organizations that are contributing to Alberta's strong tech ecosystem.

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Iran Karimian is the Head of Accelerator & Startup Ecosystem at Google Canada. In her role, she brings the best of Google's people, programs, products and technology through Google for Startups Accelerator programs.

I had a chance to sit down with Iran during a break at Inventures 2024 to discuss the Google program and what it means for participating companies.

Listen for more and heads up: applications are now open for the fifth Google for Startups Accelerator Canada cohort until July 31st. This cohort will kick off in early October 2024.

Join the following Alberta companies who've participated in past cohorts:

Clavis Studio   
IrisCX 
Livestock Water Recycling 
OpenHouse.AI 
Virtuo   
Monark 
Nimble Science
Fillip
Helcim
OraQ 

Welcome to Shift!

Shift by Alberta Innovates focuses on the people, businesses and organizations that are contributing to Alberta's strong tech ecosystem.

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I had a chance to sit down with Ian Beacraft, an engaging, energetic and creative visual presenter, while at Inventures recently. Ian had flown in from Chicago and was providing one of the keynotes the day we got to chat.

Ian is very well versed in artificial intelligence. He understands the nuances, the concerns and the opportunities. He was willing to go down any rabbit hole I wanted to explore and I feel it made for a great conversation.

Don't take my word for it, though. Dive in for yourself!

Welcome to Shift.

Bio
Ian Beacraft, CEO and Chief Futurist, Signal and Cipher 

Considered one of the top voices in emerging technologies, Ian Beacraft is a trusted advisor to the world's most innovative companies. The founder and chief futurist of Signal and Cipher, Ian leads a strategic foresight agency that guides companies through the rapidly changing technology landscape and finds meaningful routes to innovation that impact the bottom line, inspire cultural change, and create new products and services. 

Previously responsible for P&Ls and innovation departments at the largest agencies in the world, Ian is known for making bleeding-edge technology understandable and monetizable. Brands he has advised over the last decade include Samsung, Intel, Coca-Cola, Google, Microsoft, Nike, and dozens more.

Ian has pioneered a digitally immersive presentation style that brings artificial intelligence and extended reality to life so audiences can understand the future of technology in actionable ways. Ian is also the co-owner of a production studio designing virtual worlds and the first person ever to host a news segment as a synthetic human, streaming to over 100 million devices around the world.

A classically trained musician, Ian understands the magnitude of AI's coming impact on human creativity. As a strategist and speaker, he strives to educate stakeholders on the real-world implications of emerging technologies so they can make informed decisions that positively shape our world and advance humanity. In a rapidly evolving world that some consider dystopian, Ian remains a steadfast optimist and offers what everyone needs now: hope.

Taken from Ian's LinkedIn profile.

Shift by Alberta Innovates focuses on the people, businesses and organizations that are contributing to Alberta's strong tech ecosystem.

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I met Ryan Greir from Whispering Cedars Ranch while I was at the Olds College of Agriculture and Technology AgSmart event in early August.

Ryan and his wife Janna are first generation Alberta farmers originally from British Columbia. I walked impressed with how these two are embracing and engaging a lifestyle that's not for everyone but one that everyone depends on.

On their farm, Whispering Cedars Ranch, they strive to raise Alberta lamb and provide the industry with healthy and proven purebred replacement breeding stock.  As entrepreneurs they're constantly looking for ways to diversify their income as they continue to grow sustainable farming in the province.

Sit back and settle in as Ryan sheds light on his experience and the joy he and his family derive from farming in Alberta.    

Additional links mentioned in our interview:

• Campaign for Wool
• OneCup AI
• Capital Power
• Alberta Lamb Producers

Shift by Alberta Innovates focuses on the people, businesses and organizations that are contributing to Alberta's strong tech ecosystem.

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Welcome to episode one of our KDays Innovation Zone retrospective! 

Alberta Innovates had the opportunity to participate as in-kind sponsors for the Innovation Zone led by Explore Edmonton. This was a great opportunity to meet and feature some Edmonton-based entrepreneurs, businesses and students on the Shift podcast. 

Other KDays Innovation Zone interviews include:

• Krishna Panchal from the University of Alberta's Future Creators, 
• Kathy Janzen and Ken Schmidt from Wilson Analytical, and 
• Joe Callahan from Correct AI.

This third episode is my discussion with Jean Bruce Koua from Elev Homes. Born from the shared struggles of three university students - Jean Bruce, and his partners Kevin Mpunga and Kwasi Boateng - Elev started as a side project but quickly turned into a mission.

These three weren't just sympathetic observers of the student housing struggle - they were in the thick of it themselves. Their drive to find a solution came from firsthand experience; they knew that by fixing this issue for others, they'd be fixing it for their own lives too.   

Bio
Dubbed the "Master of Making Things Happen," Jean Bruce Koua is one of Elev's founders. His first 'student home' in Canada was a budget hotel room.

Jean Bruce believes challenges are the greatest form of learning opportunities, and once overcome, can help efficiently address other sets of obstacles. As the co-founder of Elev, he is able to provide tools to help students facing challenges navigating the off campus housing market, an experience he endured as an International student studying in Canada.

Having worked in both the public sector with the Federal Government of Canada, and the private sector with the Alberta Investment Management Corporation, he is able to provide strategic input in the growth of Elev. Being able to merge his economics and problem solving skills allow him to make informed and calculated decisions that are key to the success of the startup.

Jean Bruce Koua believes that learning from one another is very important and looks forward to connecting with great minded people in the community! (LinkedIn profile)

Shift by Alberta Innovates focuses on the people, businesses and organizations that are contributing to Alberta's strong tech ecosystem.

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Welcome to episode two of our KDays Innovation Zone retrospective! 

Alberta Innovates had the opportunity to participate as in-kind sponsors for the Innovation Zone led by Explore Edmonton. This was a great opportunity to meet and feature some Edmonton-based entrepreneurs, businesses and students on the Shift podcast. 

This second episode is my discussion with Kathy Janzen and Ken Schmidt from Wilson Analytical Services. We dive into the work they're doing in the area of spectroscopy.  

Other KDays Innovation Zone interviews include:

• Jean Bruce Koua from Elev Homes,
• Krishna Panchal from the University of Alberta's Future Creators, and 
• Joe Callahan from Correct AI.

Bios

Ken Schmidt, President and founder

Ken is an Alberta based Professional Chemist and entrepreneur. He completed his PhD in Inorganic Chemistry at the University of Calgary in 1990. Over the last 25 years, he has worked with universities and the mining and energy industries to solve industry specific problems in sulfur chemistry, catalysis, ceramics, chemical vapour deposition (CVD) coatings and spectroscopy. His expertise is in industrial analytical chemistry, process laboratories for industry, instrument design, manufacturing, sales and technical support.

He has been involved in several high tech start-ups, including Wilson Analytical (which he co-founded in 2003). He is also President of Canadian Tool, a Montreal firm specializing in machining and manufacturing. Ken's key role at Wilson is technical development and customer relations.

Kathy Janzen, Vice President and founder 

Kathy is a professional Chemist with twenty-five years of experience with the RCMP as a forensic scientist, followed by two years as one of the principles of the analytical services side of Wilson Analytical. She was also involved in several high tech start-ups, and worked with entrepreneurs at the Northern Alberta Business Incubator (NABI).

Kathy served 10 years as the Executive Director of the Association of the Chemical Profession of Alberta (ACPA) and was also the former council chair of the Federation of Canada’s Professional Chemists. Kathy's main role with Wilson is financial and strategic planning, sales, and human resources. Together, Ken and Kathy make all company business decisions.

Shift by Alberta Innovates focuses on the people, businesses and organizations that are contributing to Alberta's strong tech ecosystem.

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I met Nick Kazakoff onsite at Inventures  2023. His company OneTwoSix Design had generously offered the use of one of their Loop Phone Booths for me to feature to interview guests for the podcast while we were in Calgary for the event.

My Inventures 2023 guests included the following: 

• Nick, who you'll hear from today
• Damien Hocking from Madala Software, 
• Lorna Baird and Joy Agnew from Olds College of Agriculture and Technology,
•  Dr. Ben Schultz from Maverick Large Animal Veterinary Service, 
• Ian Hagreaves from ATB, and, 
• coming soon, Ian Beacraft from Chicago-based Signal & Cipher.

OneTwoSix Design

Founded by Industrial Designers Nick Kazakoff and Brendan Gallagher, Onetwosix is an award winning design agency and team of artists, researchers, designers and builders working to give form to ideas.

Based in Western Canada, they regularly work with clients across Canada and the USA. From businesses in Edmonton, Calgary, Vancouver, and San Francisco to Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, and New York - they turn great ideas into beautiful and functional products that can be manufactured efficiently and cost effectively. 

Shift by Alberta Innovates focuses on the people, businesses and organizations that are contributing to Alberta's strong tech ecosystem.

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At Edmonton's recent KDays event, Alberta Innovates had the opportunity to participate as in-kind sponsors for the Innovation Zone led by Explore Edmonton. This was a great opportunity to meet and feature some Edmonton-based entrepreneurs, businesses and students on the Shift podcast. 

This is the third episode and it features my brief chat with Krishna Panchal from the University of Alberta's Future Creators. 

KDays Innovation Zone interviews also include:

• Jean Bruce Koua from Elev Homes,
• Ken Schmidt and Kathy Janzen from Wilson Analytical, and 
• Joe Callahan from Correct AI.

Future Creators

Future Creators is a University of Alberta Engineering student group and nonprofit organization that inspires future engineers and technology innovators by providing youth with the mentors, knowledge, and resources to bring their own technology projects to life.

They partner with schools to provide a weekly afterschool program to students in grades 7-12.

Shift by Alberta Innovates focuses on the people, businesses and organizations that are contributing to Alberta's strong tech ecosystem.

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I met and interviewed my guest at Inventures 2023 in Calgary this past May. He had a wee break in his schedule and was kind enough to join me onsite to discuss the work he and his company are doing optimize oil production on Alberta well sites.

It's fascinating to learn that his company's technology helps the onsite production engineers understand and adjust variables related to each well in real time. Evidence to this point has shown that sites using the technology are up to ten percent more productive. Over the course of many wells and many sites this number adds up to become quite impressive.

Pour yourself a cup of your favourite wake-up elixir and settle in to learn more about this made-in-Alberta oil & gas optimization tool.

Welcome to Shift.   

Bio

Dr. Damien Hocking - Chief Technology Officer for Madala Software

Damien has a diverse career in solving complex problems through technical software development.  He is an expert in hydraulics, heat transfer, thermodynamics, and both steady state and transient simulation.  He has held key technology roles at Hyprotech, Aspentech, KBC, and Computer Modeling Group. Additionally, he's worked for MEG Energy and HTRI.  

In addition to Madala Software Inc, Dr. Hocking founded Corelium Inc. which provides a scalable simulation platform.  He's the co-author of six patents in the heavy oil industry and holds a Bachelor in Engineering and PhD in Chemical Engineering both from the University of Adelaide.

Shift by Alberta Innovates focuses on the people, businesses and organizations that are contributing to Alberta's strong tech ecosystem.

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Artificial intelligence has taken the public imagination by storm and things are moving quickly.

At Inventures 2023 in Calgary we had Ian Beacraft and Timnit Gebru dedicate their keynotes to it, and a panel featuring representatives from Microsoft, Enmax and the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute discussing it from an industry perspective.

Today, we're featuring my discussion with Ian Hargreaves from ATB.

Ian and I dive in and build off a previous discussion he had on Tyler Chisolm's podcast Collision YYC (I encourage you to give it a listen) to further explore the implications, considerations and what keeps him up at night as far as artificial intelligence goes. Again, things have been moving fast and we'll talk about some of the changes that have occurred between his and Tyler's interview and his and mine.

One of Ian's big messages is that it's critical for us, ALL of US, to stay on top of AI developments and specifically business exploring the use of AI to understand the role and implications of the incoming federal Act C-27. 

Bio

Ian Hargreaves, Fellow, Artificial Intelligence at ATB

As Fellow of Artificial Intelligence at ATB, Ian is responsible for taking AI out of the lab. This means creating secure, scalable and transparent platforms that deliver on core AI capabilities like computer vision or personalization. His mission is to weave a thread of AI through all digital experiences at ATB - whether it’s tools used by ATB team members, or experiences that directly benefit customers. By rethinking how teams build, support and deliver AI capabilities, Ian and his team believe that they can truly reimagine banking by surrounding all Albertans with a network of intelligent services designed to grow their wealth, however they define it.

After an academic career using neuroimaging and predictive models to understand how people make decisions, Ian graduated from the University of Calgary with a PhD in Brain and Cognitive Sciences. Ian has developed both highly valuable intellectual property and also the foundations of a data science practice within business operations. Ian has managed numerous proofs of concept, and in scaling those quickly learned that the impact of AI is ultimately limited by trust: trust in the algorithm, trust in the team that designed it, and trust in the overall strategy. Ian has co-authored one patent and has 20 academic publications.

Shift by Alberta Innovates focuses on the people, businesses and organizations that are contributing to Alberta's strong tech ecosystem.