FAQ – All About Our New Mandate

Why change our mandate?

On May 15, 2024, the Quebec government announced a $7 million funding over three years to Startup Montréal as part of the Québec strategy to support research and investment in innovation 2022-2027 (SQRI2). This funding will support the implementation of services aimed at promoting the expansion and commercial success of high-growth potential tech startups by offering them visibility and opportunities both locally and internationally.

What will Startup Montréal become after this transition to a new mandate?

The new service offering we are developing will be unveiled at Startupfest. In general, we will remain an organization that supports entrepreneurs, but we will focus on high-growth potential tech startups across Quebec. Our ambition is to establish ourselves as a catalyst and essential pillar in the expansion and commercial success of startups, offering them visibility and opportunities both locally and internationally.

What will be the new mission of Startup Montréal?

In its new role, Startup Montréal, as a catalyst for Quebec’s tech entrepreneurial ecosystem and with the support of its partners, aims to propel high-growth potential tech startups internationally. Its ambition is to position the province as a global reference for generating innovative tech companies.

Will any of Startup Montréal’s programs be transferred to other organizations? Will the programs, services, and resources offered by Startup Montréal change under this new mandate?

Thanks to the funding received from Ministère de l’Économie, de l’Innovation et de l’Énergie (MEIE), Startup Montréal will develop services and resources in collaboration with several partners that startups will benefit from for their international growth. This strategic direction means we will review our operations to ensure they best serve this mission. As part of this realignment, we are working to revise our entire service offering, which means some of our current activities will be transferred to partners to avoid any gaps in this ecosystem.
We have already begun transferring some ecosystem mobilization files to the Mouvement des accélérateurs d’innovation du Québec (MAIN), which had already assumed this role at the provincial level. The Rendez-vous des partenaires de l’écosystème as well as our email and LinkedIn newsletters have been transferred to them.

Will Startup Montréal be responsible for the Ax-C hub? What is the relationship between Startup Montréal and the Ax-C hub?

The École de technologie supérieure (ÉTS) is responsible for developing the Ax-C hub. However, our missions are closely linked, both stemming from the Québec strategy to support research and investment in innovation 2022-2027 (SQRI2) and aiming, among other goals, to support innovative tech entrepreneurship and stimulate investment and commercialization of innovations. The Ax-C hub, being a central element of Quebec’s entrepreneurial ecosystem where we will also establish our offices upon opening in Spring 2025, is essential for some of our activities, though they will not be limited to this space.

I am a startup and want to benefit from your services and resources related to international commercialization. How do I proceed?

The selection process and criteria will be defined over the summer. To achieve our mission, we will prioritize technology companies with high growth potential, including (but not limited to) the following:
– Have an engineering or science-based product, process or technological solution.
– Adopt responsible and sustainable practices.
– A scalable business model.
The startups we support as part of our new functions will be selected by referral only, starting in the fall of 2024. Register to our newsletter and follow us on LinkedIn to keep up to date with all the latest news.

How does your new mandate fit in with the realities of regional entrepreneurship?

Regional accelerators and incubators play a key role in our decision, as they will be essential partners in the deployment of our new mission. Our new mission is to help innovative technology companies bring their products to market locally and internationally. We’ll be working with regional accelerators and incubators to prepare these companies to access our services, thus intervening at another stage in their growth. Our services will therefore be complementary.
We’ll also be organizing an annual Quebec Startup Tour in 10 regions, aimed at facilitating the adoption of emerging technologies across Quebec by connecting manufacturing companies with local startups, fostering growth on both sides. Our first Tour will begin in the fall of 2024.

Will you be focusing on specific sectors in your selection criteria? If so, which ones?

We’ll be concentrating our efforts on the industrial sectors and vectors that are most strategic for Quebec. Our goal is to increase the traction of our initiatives and maximize the international sales of our startups. Rather than promoting Quebec as a whole, we aim to put our region on the map for certain flagship sectors where the impact of making our mark will be exponential. These priority sectors will be determined in collaboration with all stakeholders, ensuring that the ecosystem is mobilized along the entire innovation chain, to make these sectors world-renowned Quebec success stories.

How will you integrate diversity, equity and inclusion into your selection process?

Our job is to support startups whose potential has already been confirmed, and this will be established long after the creation phase. We don’t have any specific quotas, as our evaluation process is designed to be unbiased and based on methodical evaluation grids. However, we do work upstream with the ecosystem to ensure that the world of Quebec startups is diverse and inclusive. We are committed to promoting diversity, equity and inclusion, ensuring that women and minorities are well represented in the Quebec startup ecosystem, right from the ideation stage.