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Toronto Tech Boom

Major Toronto tech conference Collision cancelled because of coronavirus fears

The massive Toronto technology conference Collision has been cancelled for 2020, joining the ranks of other gatherings and conventions worldwide facing cancellation over fears of spreading the new coronavirus.

The conference was scheduled for June. More than 25,000 people attended last year in Toronto after it relocated from New Orleans. Its organizer, Connected Intelligence Ltd., which operates under the name Web Summit, says the conference will continue to take place virtually through its dedicated app, with both speaker presentations and networking opportunities.

www.theglobeandmail.com

Major Toronto tech conference Collision cancelled because of coronavirus fears

Its organizer, Connected Intelligence Ltd., says the conference will continue to take place virtually through its dedicated app, with both speaker presentations and networking opportunities
www.theglobeandmail.com www.theglobeandmail.com
 
OneEleven announces it is permanently ceasing operations

By Meagan Simpson
Canadian Startup News April 22, 2020

Toronto-based incubator OneEleven announced on Wednesday that it has permanently ceased operations due to economic impacts caused by the current COVID-19 pandemic.

In a letter to its community, the incubator noted that because of its model, OneEleven had absorbed some of the risks currently faced by the many startups that it houses in its downtown Toronto location.

“That model also involved OneEleven absorbing some of that risk: the risk of failure. The risk of graduations or closures or layoffs among our companies and what that would mean to our bottom line, in relation to the flexible, short-term memberships we provide,” the statement read.

Launched in 2013, OneEleven occupies a 125,000 square foot space in downtown Toronto that houses over 50 startups, including Blue J Legal, Zoom.ai, Hockeystick, and more. Its alumni include Wealthsimple, Borrowell, Tulip Retail, Koho, and Maple, among others. Along with providing office space of varying sizes, OneEleven also offers programming for member and non-member companies.

betakit.com

OneEleven announces it is permanently ceasing operations | BetaKit

Toronto-based incubator OneEleven announced it has permanently ceased operations due to economic impacts caused by the current COVID-19 pandemic.
betakit.com betakit.com
 
Definitely -- G&M had an article on this today: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/bus...rge-skilled-immigrants-to-come-here-as-trump/

Canadian tech executives are urging skilled workers to seek jobs here after U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Monday temporarily blocking some employment-related visas, including Silicon Valley’s preferred visa for hiring high-skilled immigrants.

The H-1B visa allows skilled workers with “highly specialized knowledge,” such as engineers and scientists, to work in the United States for three years, with the possibility of a three-year extension. It is a key factor in the success of the U.S. tech sector, particularly in Silicon Valley, where Big Tech giants compete for the world’s best talent.

While the heads of Apple Inc., Google parent Alphabet Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Tesla Inc. all criticized Mr. Trump’s order, their Canadian counterparts pointed out how happy they’d be to hire skilled workers that the U.S. would turn away. Canada has long upheld its openness to immigration as a key strength. For the domestic tech sector, the moment could create a competitive advantage in the economic recovery from COVID-19.
Click to expand...
 
Don't forget that Sprint and T-Mobile merged in the United States (and T-Mobile is the combined brand), which means that there are only three major cellular carriers in the United States (excluding the discount brands of said carriers): AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile.

Good thing the Toronto area still has four major cellular carriers (excluding the discount brands of said carriers): Bell, Rogers, Telus, and Freedom.
 
Johnny Au said:
Good thing the Toronto area still has four major cellular carriers (excluding the discount brands of said carriers): Bell, Rogers, Telus, and Freedom.
Click to expand...

The Bell & Telus infrastructure and spectrum sharing agreement makes them effectively 1 carrier. Call center and marketing aren't enough overhead to noticeably impact pricing.

If we want pricing reduced, we need to have a Russian style spectrum auction. In their auctions, the spectrum is free and they bid on service they will provide with the one bidding the best service which is an equation derived from proposed pricing, coverage, speed, deployment timeline, etc. is given the spectrum.
 
16 innovative Canadian startups hiring this July

June 29, 2020

marsdd.com

16 innovative Canadian startups hiring this July - MaRS Discovery District

Typically, job openings are scarce in summer, but with Canadian businesses beginning to re-open after COVID-19 restrictions, many companies are ready to grow their teams. Entrepreneurs working on cutting-edge technology need bright talent to help bring their ideas to life. … Read More
marsdd.com marsdd.com
 
AlbertC said:
Toronto tech talent earns top four ranking in North America: report

Jul 15 2020

dailyhive.com

Toronto tech talent earns top four ranking in North America: report | Venture

It's no secret that Toronto is a leader in technology, and once again the city has been recognized as one of the top hubs for tech on the continent.
dailyhive.com dailyhive.com
Click to expand...

While we actually slipped from 3rd to 4th; we did so while being out-gained.

Given the U.S. actions on VISAs and international students; and looking at those scores, it would not surprise me to Toronto at #2 if not next year then in 2022.

(The differences in rank are tiny between #2 and #4); unlikely we will pass the Bay Area; certainly not anytime soon.
 
renx.ca

Toronto slips, smaller cities rise in CBRE Tech Talent rankings | RENX - Real Estate News Exchange

Toronto and Montreal lost ground and Vancouver held its position, but the real Canadian winners in CBRE’s 2020 Scoring Tech Talent Report were Ottawa, Waterloo Region and Calgary. Toronto slipped a spot in the North American rankings of cities which
renx.ca renx.ca

Toronto
The city’s tech sector has been booming for several years, adding 66,900 new jobs since 2014, leaving it second on the continent only to San Francisco. About a quarter of a million people are involved in tech-related fields, the study says.

Toronto is also turning out high volumes of tech grads, with 24,083 degrees earned by students in the city’s institutions during the past five years.

While the city is an expensive place to live by Canadian standards, it still ranks third overall behind Montreal and Vancouver as a cheap location for a business to operate in a North American context.

----

Also some other insight on other Canadian markets like Waterloo in the link.
 
Shopify: The Canadian tech champion taking on Amazon

24 July 2020

Lockdowns have been a bonanza for Shopify, as companies have scrambled to sell products online. According to internal figures, new stores created on the Shopify platform grew 62% between 13 March and 24 April this year, compared to the prior six weeks.

It has become Canada's most valuable public company, with sales of of $1.58bn (£1.24bn) last year, up 47% on the previous year.

"What's interesting about this company is that not many people know about it but it's been around since 2004," says Dan Wang, associate professor of management at Columbia University in New York.

"They saw the trend of selling directly to small businesses before most, at a time when Amazon and other big players were taking centre stage."

He points to big moves Shopify has made recently that will further elevate its position in online commerce. In particular, a deal with US giant Walmart, under which some of Shopify's small business sellers will appear on Walmart's online marketplace.

The goal is to bring 1,200 Shopify merchants to the marketplace this year.

"If you just take our US-based stores and aggregate them and pretend for a moment these stores are one single retailer, we are the largest online retailer after Amazon," says Harley Finkelstein, Shopify's chief operating officer.

www.bbc.com

Shopify: The Canadian tech champion taking on Amazon

Canada's Shopify provides websites for other firms looking to sell online and it is expanding rapidly.
www.bbc.com
 
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