Startups to Watch

tl;dr

Discover 11 innovative startups transforming industries—from healthcare and education to sustainability and digital identity. These founders are addressing global challenges with groundbreaking solutions, from AI-powered platforms to sustainable food systems, reshaping the future with a commitment to inclusivity, innovation, and impact.

Featured Startups: Maman Biomedical Inc., AmpHealth, GiveRise, Elle, MD Biotechnologies Inc., Ethical Digital, GEM Food Systems, Scooly, Conquer Experience, Ethnomet, UpRow, One37

Mandy Woodland, Founder @ AmpHealth

At AmpHealth we’re the catalyst to keeping blood sugar in range via behaviour change using AI and decades of clinical psychology research. On a mission tied to U.N. SDG 3.4, to help millions of people prevent and manage type 2 diabetes and other chronic diseases.

 The U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are a call to action. We're in a chronic disease crisis but 80% of premature heart disease, stroke and diabetes can be prevented. AmpHealth is on a mission to make a massive impact on SDG target 3.4.

Latchmi Raghunanan, Founder @ Maman Biomedical Inc.

Maman Biomedical is addressing the invasiveness of the current fertility treatment experience with our proprietary microneedle drug delivery intervention. #NoMoreNeedles.

I'm driven by my own lived experiences to make the current fertility treatment experience less invasive, more accessible, and environmentally responsible.

Janelle von Kleist-Bernard, Founder @ GiveRise

Award-winning GiveRise is bridging the giving gap within the charitable sector by linking it to the ever-growing circular economy. As a peer-to-peer marketplace where every purchase benefits a nonprofit, we strive to promote sustainability while providing local causes with a new revenue stream and engagement from the next generation of donors.

Imagine the impact we could have if a portion of each sale within the second-hand market were to be siphoned back into our local communities and economies. By incorporating giving into the sale of preloved, upcycled and handmade goods, our aim is to close the giving gap so that our nonprofit partners can continue to drive significant progress across countless initiatives. - Janelle von Kleist-Bernard

Jennifer Johnston, Founder @ Elle, MD Biotechnologies Inc.

Elle, MD Biotechnologies is developing a zero-compromise contraceptive solution so women, girls, and people with diverse gender identities can access safe, pain-free, reliable contraception without the use of hormones. Our device is a non-hormonal, user-controlled, vaginal ring that uses the known spermicidal potency of copper to prevent pregnancy.

My name is Jennifer and I'm a family physician working in Nova Scotia.  I started this company after being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2021.  I realized my long-term use of hormonal contraception likely increased my risk of developing the disease.  I'm hoping to shift the contraceptive landscape so my patients, my three daughters, and people everywhere won't have to risk their health or wellbeing to avoid pregnancy.

Katrina German, Founder @ Ethical Digital

At Ethical Digital, we're changing the trajectory of the Internet through digital marketing, training, research and certification. Our founder has just been signed as the latest author for Forbes books.

 If technology is shaping the future, we need all groups of people shaping that future.

Jennifer Look-Hong, Founder @ GEM Food Systems

GEM is committed to being a pioneering force for environmental sustainability by providing convenient, cost-effective food solutions that eliminate single-use plastics and reduce carbon footprints. They achieve this through sustainable, smart, solutions, partnerships with local food purveyors, and intelligent software, with the goal of becoming the industry leader in sustainable food solutions.

My ultimate goal is to provide practical solutions to the world for the major problems we have in the environment and to provide help to disadvantaged people while doing that. I believe that with GEM both ambitions can be fulfilled and we could be a clear industry leader and advocate for the environment and marginalized people. - Jennifer Look-Hong

Kemi Bolatito, Founder @ Scooly

Scooly is an AI-driven platform transforming international education and immigration by integrating admissions, visa services, and a global expert marketplace. Founded in 2023, Scooly ensures transparency and trust by connecting users with verified experts, simplifying processes for over 20 million potential users in a $100 billion market.

At Scooly, we are transforming global immigration through technology, creating a transparent, efficient, and trusted platform that empowers millions to achieve their dreams seamlessly.

Angela Robert, Founder @ Conquer Experience

Conquer Experience has a Surgical Simulation and Assessment Platform for Surgical Nurses called PeriopSim that is 6x faster than job shadowing. This is a paradigm shift from how they train today, which is non-standardized job shadowing for 6-12 months costing the hospital $ 120K USD per nurse. They are profitable with customers including Common Spirit, UC Davis, and some other big-name health systems.

I am very grateful to provide a way that perioperative nurses and surgical technologists can rehearse safely and have an assessment as many times as they need before they go into the Operating Room for the first time to assist a surgeon operate and make a positive impact to the patient's life. We've impacted over 100,000 patients and we're just getting started. - Angela Robert

Garnette Weber, Founder @ Ethnomet

Ethnomet is a leading digital health infrastructure as a service company enabling health centric organizations to deliver health services to end users globally. This is accomplished through EthnoRing (Smartring), remote health monitoring devices, wearable platform as a service, telemedicine and an AI powered integrated digital healthcare platform.

50% of the world's populations do not have access to healthcare and that is about to change. Welcome to the future of healthcare. Internet penetration, AI, wearable technologies and leaders seeking disruptive change make this the ideal time to digitally close the healthcare gap globally. - Garnette Weber

Kelise Williams, Founder & CEO @ UpRow

UpRow is a cutting-edge mobile app designed to simplify settlement for newcomers to Nort America. It connects users to essential resources like housing, career support, and language services, powered by an AI-driven recommendation engine for personalized solutions. UpRow helps immigrants thrive, turning daunting transitions into seamless, empowering journeys.

As an immigrant myself, I know firsthand the challenges of starting over in a new country. UpRow was born from my journey, and I believe 'The Journey Is The Prize.' Every step, every connection, and every win is part of building a better future together. - Kelsie Williams

Fadwa Mohanna, CEO @ One37

One37 provides decentralized digital identity and AI-driven authentication solutions, enabling secure storage and sharing of reusable data like digital IDs, medical records, and KYC. Leveraging wallet-based identities and a transitive trust framework, One37 helps enterprises streamline onboarding, prevent fraud, and enhance user experiences across industries, fostering trust in digital ecosystems.

Identity and security are the foundational elements of trust and democracies. At One37, we empower individuals and businesses with secure, privacy-preserving digital solutions, ensuring that trust remains at the heart of every interaction in an increasingly digital world. - Fadwa Mohanna

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