Nexstream 2.0 Finalists
2021 Competition
marine robotics
OPEN OCEAN ROBOTICS
Open Ocean Robotics is a marine robotics and software company providing autonomous data collection and analytics as a subscription and service. Using uncrewed solar-powered boats, they deliver real-time data analytics necessary to monitor, protect and operate on our ocean. These autonomous boats stay on the ocean for months at a time continuously monitoring the environment for risks to marine life and maritime security. This provides a critical solution for safeguarding marine protected areas (MPAs), protecting marine mammals and securing waters from crime including illegal fishing, smuggling, human trafficking and threats to critical infrastructure. As a leader in marine robotics and data analytics with proprietary technology in autonomous vessel design, machine learning, and software development, as well as proprietary datasets of ocean conditions, sounds and images, Open Ocean Robotics is able to provide an unparalleled level of ocean insights.
Julie Angus
PANIC ATTACK & ANXIETY RELIEF RIGHT IN YOUR POCKET
ROOTD
Anxiety has become the most common mental-health diagnosis among students, and Rootd blends an immediately accessible method for managing anxiety and panic attacks as they happen, with a uniquely engaging design.
“Rootd was inspired by the lack of resources that combine effective exercises and accessibility with modern engaging design, and by the need to reduce the stigma felt by those who suffer from anxiety and panic attacks.” said Ania Wysocka, Rootd’s Founder & Designer.
Managing the recovery from these conditions shouldn’t be something that feels embarrassing, but sadly that is often the case. Rootd’s approachable and fun design aims to help people feel comfortable having the app open on their screen any time or place they feel the need.
Discrimination and inaccessibility of resources cause over half of those affected by anxiety to never seek treatment. The Rootd app aims to help to break down these barriers by being available on the device most people already have on them at all times, and by encouraging users to make their healing a habit through gamification and engaging design.
Ania Wysocka
CRYPTOCURENCY MINING SYSTEMS
MINTGREEN
MintGreen is a Canadian cleantech company specializing in heat recovery from cryptocurrency mining. They make proprietary digital boilers that run on clean energy, and produce a dual revenue stream of Bitcoin and zero carbon heat.
MintGreen is disrupting the cryptomining industry by partnering with district energy utilities, designing products to meet the year-round heating needs of businesses and communities, and negotiating long term offtake agreements to heat them sustainably. Selling heat subsidizes power costs and allows MintGreen to mine at a targeted price of ZERO - beyond the 99th percentile of global cryptomining competitiveness.
Each 1 MW MintGreen digital boiler supplants natural gas heating and prevents 34,000 tonnes of carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere over a contract term.
North Vancouver is set to be the world’s first city to be heated by Bitcoin. MintGreen has a signed term sheet with Lonsdale Energy Corporation and is raising $4M USD to fulfill their obligations for the delivery of a 1-2 MW zero emissions digital boiler system.
Jenn Zee & Colin Sullivan
SMART GARDEN
AVA TECHNOLOGIES
Valerie and Chase met while working in the food industry. Chase was a chef, and Val was working in food sales and marketing. Dissatisfied by the amount of waste and food miles that goes into traditional grocery shopping, they both wanted to grow even just a small portion of fresh food indoors. However, living in a small Vancouver apartment with windows that didn’t face the sun meant limited growing options.
Unified by an appetite for change and thirst for innovation, Chase and Valerie created AVA Byte together to use technology to help their plants thrive. Today, AVA Technologies Inc. is an energetic team of diverse, bold, and hopeful foodies who are passionate about helping millions of people get growing too!
Valerie Song & Chase Ando
auxiliary spaces
AUX BOX
aux box was born in 2018 when two builders noticed an opportunity to create auxiliary spaces that could be added to a residential setting without the need for a permit. We’ve since grown into a thriving and diversely skilled team that’s committed to disrupting the modular home industry by providing an assortment of beautiful, prefabricated spaces that have been installed in a variety of settings —from laneway spaces in metropolitan cities to the remote corners of the North American wilderness.
Landon Sheck & Morgan Seeber
TREATING ASTHMA DIFFERENTLY
AAZEINTX
AazeinTx has discovered a rapid-acting oral treatment that shows strong potential in stopping acute asthma attacks. The research behind AazeinTx is published in world-leading scientific journals. AazeinTx is currently raising funds for phase II clinical trials.
Gordon Anderson
CONNECTING TO CLINICAL TRIALS MADE EASY
HEAL MARY
Heal Mary is an application designed to connect patients, caregivers and doctors with clinical trials data from all over the world for the best possible health outcome.
Heal Mary started when our founding team rallied behind the cancer cause after our founder (Cassandra) had witnessed her sister’s journey through their early stage breast cancer diagnosis. Cassandra's mom was already a Stage IV cancer survivor.
The team knew there had to be a better way to find out about clinical trials and more importantly, to enrol into Clinical Trials. The team had already found success after winning Scotiabank's Financial Hackathon in 2016 and united, they came together to work on building the concept and user experience for an application that would help sort through clinical trials from all over the world.
After a year of research and interviews with patients, caregivers and doctors to better understand their needs, the team was able to create and release this MVP. But, this is only the beginning of what Heal Mary will do to ease the burden of clinical trials recruitment.
Cassandra Hui
the winners of Nexstream 2.0
Congratulations to all participants, program collaborators, finalists and winners of our inaugural round of challenges!
Wild Card Challenge WINNER
Julie Angus OF OPEN OCEAN ROBOTICS
Julie and Colin Angus are inspiring and exceptional as individuals and co-founders. Years of experience circumnavigating the globe in small vessels has positioned them to uniquely appreciate the importance of our oceans and the incredible demands we face when trying to study them.
We are proud to announce Open Ocean Robotics as winners of the Wildcard Challenge. Not only have they developed and matured an incredible technology, they have also built a business plan, team and product development strategy that will have significant impact on our oceans and our economy right here in BC.
Food Security Challenge WINNER
The team of AVA TECHNOLOGIES
Valerie and Chase are passionate founders! They have developed a product and go-to-market strategy that will encourage people to learn about growing and to enjoy the process of growing food in confined spaces.
Their product is beautifully designed and includes software that optimizes plant growth and food production by carefully monitoring and controlling water, light and other environmental variables. Congratulations on all of your incredible achievements!
Sustainable Resources Challenge WINNER
Ania Wysocka OF ROOTD
Ania is an exceptional founder. With a tiny team, she has developed an application that has had monumental impact on many people’s lives and has already reached over 750,000 downloads. The reviews of her application by customers are glowing. Recently, researches have commended her on the approach and validated its effectiveness through academic study.
We are proud of what Ania has achieved on her own and are absolutely thrilled to name her co-winner of the Health & Preparedness Challenge, as well as winner of the RBC Royal Bank Community Service Award, worth an additional $10,000.
Co-Winners of Health & Preparedness Challenge WINNER
THE TEAM of AAZEIN TX
We were blown away by the depth and sophistication of the team at AazeinTx. Not only do they have an incredible IP portfolio and plan to bring their drug through clinical trials, they also have unparalleled passion to solve the problem of Asthma and several other disease through the application of their experimental drug.
We are thrilled for your participation in the NexStream 2.0 Challenges and congratulations on co-winning the Health & Preparedness Challenge!
Sustainable Resources Challenge WINNER
THE TEAM OF MINTGREEN
Jenn and Colin have opened many people’s eyes to new ways of recycling the energy involved in bitcoin mining. Their passion and technology has resulted in several pilots right here in the Campbell River area and upcoming large scale deployments for district heating.
We are excited to see the many ways in which your technologies will applied not only to cryptocurrency mining, but also to other energy intensive computing processes. Many congratulations from our team to yours!
Reflections on NeXstream 2.0
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Relationship building is a key part of our economic development team’s work here at the City of Campbell River. We wholeheartedly believe that when people collaborate, big things can happen—big things for business and industry, and big things for our community.
Collaboration led to the creation of the NexStream Tech Competition, which came about through a unique partnership between the City and the Campbell River Area Angel Group. This award-winning initiative reflects our shared goals of supporting Campbell River’s growing innovation ecosystem and fuelling the search for innovative, sustainable solutions to industry challenges.
We are also tremendously grateful for the ongoing support of the competition’s Sponsors and Partners.
It’s a privilege to introduce innovators from around the world to Campbell River through the NexStream Tech Competition. They are working to solve industry challenges that coastal and rural communities like ours face.
Campbell River has a proud history in forestry, mining, fishing, aquaculture and tourism—all of which continue to be contributors to the local economy. There’s a supportive network for innovation in these industries, and for further developing the supply chain and producing value-added products. Our community offers a dynamic and forward-thinking environment that’s exemplified in projects like the NexStream Tech Competition.
Campbell River is a natural choice for companies that are seeking a highly accessible location, abundant natural resources, and first-class transportation and communications networks. Embracing innovation and technology amidst a changing economy, the City has invested in the CRadvantage municipal broadband network to support emerging opportunities in the technology and creative industries sectors. We’ve also teamed up with several other coastal communities here on Vancouver Island to launch the TechIsland initiative.
– Economic Development Officer, Rose Klukas
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Every day, innovations big and small are helping to keep us moving forward, from brilliant ideas and improved methods, new technologies and new uses for old technologies we continue to evolve at a rapid pace. Here at the City of Campbell River, we want to be at the forefront and leaders in the advancement of innovation.
The NexSteam Tech Competition invites innovators to find novel solutions for industry-related challenges, using technology. These challenges are inspired by Campbell River and our coastal region, but are globally relevant. More than 60 teams from around the world applied to participate this year, bringing an array of experiences, expertise and insights to the competition. We’re proud to have a competition of this calibre in Campbell River. No other community the size of Campbell River hosts a tech-based competition with as much as $300,000 in total funding and services, and the opportunity for further investment from the Campbell River Area Angel Group.
The investment opportunities that are available, teamed up with the CRadvantage municipal broadband network, municipal airport and easy access to ferries, make Campbell River an ideal location for innovators in the tech industry who are looking for a community that offers a low cost of living and limitless recreation and wildlife opportunities, along with the services and amenities of a larger metropolitan area.
Currently, Campbell River is home to a number of start-ups and established tech companies in manufacturing, forestry, aquaculture and software industries. We’re pleased to welcome others to this growing community through the NexStream Tech Competition and the opportunities it presents.
– Mayor Andy Adams
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The second edition of the NexStream Tech Challenges launched in fall of 2020 with 62 Challengers entering the competition across four categories: Health & Emergency Preparedness, Sustainable Resource Management, Food Security, and Wildcard, a jump from about 40 submissions the previous competition year. 40 teams progressed into Phase 02 Ideation, with 18 being shortlisted into Phase 03 for Rapid Prototyping. In total, seven finalists completed the competition and we are thrilled with everyone’s participation in the program. We are grateful for all of the support and interest from our community and the province of British Columbia!
Although V2.0 of the NexStream program has come to a close, several of our challengers will continue to collaborate with CRAAG and businesses in the Campbell River Area to further develop their ideas. We also expect several of the V2.0 participants to re-enter the NexStream 3.0 competition, which will begin late in 2021 - stay tuned!
We’re delighted with the outcomes of this second generation of prizes. We have enjoyed collaborating with the City of Campbell River and especially with Rose Klukas and her team in Economic Development. We have deepened our partnership with Spring Activator, who continue to support business development for our NexStream participants and who will continue to collaborate with us in building an ecosystem that is supportive of economic resilience and growth in our community. We believe the prize winners across all categories exemplify the spirit and intentions of the NexStream Challenges. We expect a total investment of over $2 million in 8 companies, between the NexStream 1.0 and 2.0 Tech Challenges!
Scroll down to meet our seven exceptional finalists. We commend them all for their perseverance and growth throughout the competition and look forward to continued work together.
– CRAAG Founding Partners - Dana, David, Andreas, Chris, and Rick
FROM OUR PARTNERS
SPRING ACTIVATOR
“The NexStream 2.0 Challenge is a visionary program that is helping to transform the innovation economy in Campbell River by supporting both local and national startups to grow and succeed. The partnership between the City of Campbell River and CRAAG is showing how collaboration can create lasting positive change in a community and its economy.”
— Keith Ippel - CEO, Spring Activator
FORESIGHT
“Foresight supports the ideation, commercialization and adoption of problem, data, and market driven cleantech solutions. Industry challenges including the NexStream Tech Competition are a great example of accelerating innovation from within a community to address urgent climate needs, and we are proud to support this progressive, valuable initiative.”
— Jeanette Jackson, CEO at Foresight