Carleton University Innovation Hub Winter Showcase

Join the Carleton University Innovation Hub for an update on new business ventures and ideas being launched and scaled by incubated student founders and aspiring entrepreneurs in the Carleton community. Ten founders will pitch their business ventures and six student teams participating in Business and Science courses designed to foster new business venture creation or community engagement will present their projects as well.

This year, more than 100 full time students and recent alumni participated in one or more of the Hub’s programs designed to help student founders design, launch and grow new ventures. Some of those entrepreneurs will be in the audience so be sure to chat with them as they support their colleagues and classmates.

Get Involved

The Innovation Hub provides budding entrepreneurs and student-founders the tools and resources they need to spark innovation and create new ventures. Located on the ground floor of the Nicol Building, the Hub is an open space for students to become inspired, make connections with like-minded peers, and advance their entrepreneurial ideas. Students from all faculties on campus are invited to join any of the Innovation Hub’s hybrid programs at a time that fits their schedules. In addition to developing their entrepreneurial skills and business ideas, participants will receive access to a host of resources and connections within the entrepreneurship ecosystem in Ottawa.

Our incubator programs support students at one of three levels. Students can (1) learn about entrepreneurship through the online Nest program or through Business courses as they prepare to join a formal program in the Hub, (2) join the Hatch or Changemaker streams and prepare to start a new registered or incorporated venture, or launch and grow a new or existing business or company through coaching and connecting with advisors from Ottawa’s entrepreneurship ecosystem.

In the last few months, the Hub hosted product launches for the ThirdSpace app and EdTech Startup EdMission, and celebrated Hatch Program Alumnus Alberto Aguilar and his team at Plantaform while hearing more about their journey to getting a deal on Dragon’s Den, and their recent expansion into the US and UAE markets. We also celebrated as Launch program alumnus and Computer Science Grad Kashyap Achar moved to San Francisco as co-founder of Bezel, a Y-Combinator backed startup building AI phone agents for financial institutions. There is lots more in the pipeline.

The Hub’s reach extends beyond the university, engaging high school students, alumni, community entrepreneurs, and international students, supporting an expansive network of innovators. Special emphasis is placed on inclusivity, aiming to support entrepreneurs from various backgrounds and ensure the construction and maintenance of a culturally diverse entrepreneurial ecosystem. The team recruits mentors, volunteers and advisors with different professional specialties, ethnic backgrounds and entrepreneurial interests in an attempt to ensure that all founders, including those from marginalized communities, are able to feel at home and supported while working on their businesses.