Business Incubation & Innovation
Good to Grow: Winnipeg’s Business Incubators and Accelerators
In Winnipeg, you will find a network of organizations dedicated to help your business succeed. Locally-focused business incubators and accelerators are ready to help turn innovative ideas into accomplished companies, while our network of innovation centres provide access to world-class resources and networks. Each of these organizations can help your company, from ideation to helping grow your business worldwide and beyond.
North Forge Technology Exchange
North Forge Technology Exchange is an innovation-based economic development agency and a powerhouse community fueling Manitoba's innovation economy. It provides entrepreneurs with award-winning mentors, subject-matter experts and a two-stage startup program that has helped over 60 companies access more than $180 million in financing.
Armed with Canada's largest non-profit fabrication lab, North Forge operates out of 27,000 square feet across Innovation Drive (on the University of Manitoba campus) and Innovation Alley (in the Exchange District in downtown Winnipeg).
Manitoba Technology Accelerator
Established in 2005, Manitoba Technology Accelerator (MTA) provides people and resources to help innovators, entrepreneurs and startup companies build science- and technology-based business opportunities. As a private-sector not-for-profit business incubation organization, it helps companies accelerate to success.
MTA provides business mentoring, coaching, active participation, networking, infrastructure, finance and investment services. The goal of its incubation program is to help member companies enter the market, secure investment or get acquired.
Industrial Technology Centre
The Industrial Technology Centre (ITC) provides a wide range of advanced technical services, which enables participating companies to improve their products and processes. ITC acts as a hub to bring together stakeholders to share technology needs, exchange best practices and identify solutions.
ITC offers services that add real value to all aspects of a company's operations and the product development cycle, from research through to the end user. Further, it keeps industry up to date on relevant technologies through current awareness publications, webinars, seminars and in-depth training opportunities.
From Winnipeg to the World – Innovation Centres
Winnipeg-based innovation centres are always attracting welcome attention. All are world-renowned leaders in their respective fields, making the impossible seem feasible every single day. Take a look below to see how the Richardson Centre for Food Technology and Research and the CISCO Innovation Centre for Collaborative Technologies are distinguishing themselves.
Richardson Centre for Functional Foods and Nutraceuticals
The Richardson Centre for Food Technology and Research is a leading research institute whose mission is to develop alternative and practical uses for crops grown on the Canadian Prairies. The RCFTR is a catalyst for the development of plant-based products, increasing the processing of western Canadian agricultural commodities and the capturing of related economic spin-offs. Researchers at this facility are producing foods today that will translate into improved health and wellness of Canadians tomorrow.
Today, RCFTR continues its research excellence, partnering with stakeholders to produce some of the most innovative foods and nutraceutical products on the market.
CISCO Innovation Centre for Collaborative Technologies
The Cisco Innovation Centre (CIC) is housed at the University of Winnipeg. The CIC's mandate is to explore the collaborative potential of high-speed fibre optic networks.
The backbone of the Centre is the network of immersive telepresence labs, which includes four rooms that connect researchers and academics with counterparts around the world. The telepresence is a fully immersive, multiscreen, high-resolution, audio/video environment for national and international conferencing.
The CIC is also a digital technology research centre, and has become a key participant in the expansion of the digital communication infrastructure and capacity of the university, the City of Winnipeg and the Manitoba government. It plays a leading role within the local broadband economy.