Canada

Calgary

#41-50

Emerging Ecosystem

#26-30

North America ECOSYSTEM
Members: Platform Calgary / Calgary Innovation Coalition / Calgary Economic Development

Top 10

North America Ecosystem in Affordable Talent

Top 30

North America Ecosystem in Funding Momentum

Top 30

North America Ecosystem in Funding Runway
Calgary isn’t trying to be the next Silicon Valley. We are building something unique: a deeply collaborative ecosystem where talent, capital, and hard-earned lessons are shared to solve real-world problems. That combination of humility, grit, and ‘we’re in this together’ ambition is why I chose to join Headversity and scale another company here.
Kelly Schmitt
Kelly Schmitt
CEO, Headversity

Highlights

Situated at the foothills of the Canadian Rockies, Calgary is Canada’s fourth-largest city. Its economy thrives on strong Fintech, Cleantech, and Agtech sectors, with robust public sector backing driving catalytic expansion.

The ecosystem is anchored by Calgary’s Innovation Strategy, a roadmap for Calgary to become the innovation capital of Canada. The strategy is driven through sector-specific nodes connected together through central ecosystem players like Platform Calgary.

Local funding has played a key role in the growth of Calgary’s ecosystem. Since 2025, the Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund (OCIF) has invested millions across agriculture, energy, defense, and transportation and logistics to advance the strategy, including in the ETC Foundation, Xpand Commercialization Hub, AgSphere, and the Alberta Logistics Centre of Excellence.

Beyond funding, Calgary offers its startups a wide range of support, including Platform Calgary’s founder-focused hub and mentorship, Calgary Innovation Coalition’s alignment of innovation assets, and Calgary Economic Development’s efforts to attract investment, talent, and global opportunities for scaling companies. 

Platform Calgary's 2025 Impact Report confirmed $323.9 million in investment secured by member companies, pushing cumulative capital raised past $1 billion since 2018, with 1,563 founders supported, up 36% year-over-year. It projects a further 20% increase in founder participation for 2026.

Local startup activity continues to diversify, with emerging companies in AI, Health, Agtech, and Defense gaining traction. In 2026, Calgary Fintech leader Neo Financial raised $68.5 million to launch a credit securitization program, backed by a syndicate of 100+ Canadian investors. AI-powered market research startup Cashew and digital health company Mikata are among ventures gaining international visibility following product innovation and competition wins in 2025. In March 2026, Calgary's CropMind Inc. was selected for Google's 2026 Startups Accelerator Canada cohort, one of only 14 AI-driven startups chosen nationally. 

Ecosystem by the Numbers

ECOSYSTEM VALUE

A measure of economic impact, calculated as the value of exits and startup valuations from H2 2023–2025. Ecosystem Value includes all active unicorns.
(H2 2023 - 2025)
$7 BN
GLOBAL AVG. $25 BN
REGIONAL AVG. $57 BN

ECOSYSTEM VALUE GROWTH

Growth is calculated based on the Ecosystem Value from H2 2018–2020 vs. H2 2023–2025.
(H2 2018 - 2020 VS. H2 2023 - 2025)
115%
GLOBAL GROWTH 149%
REGIONAL GROWTH 195%

AI-Native Ecosystem Value

A measure of economic impact, calculated as the value of exits and startup valuations from H2 2023–2025 for AI-Native. Ecosystem Value includes all active unicorns.
(H2 2023 - 2025)
$108 M
GLOBAL AVG. $4.4 BN
REGIONAL AVG. $12 BN

AI-Native Ecosystem Value Growth

Growth is calculated based on the AI-Native Ecosystem Value from H2 2021–2023 vs. H2 2023–2025.
(H2 2021 - 23 VS. H2 2023 - 25)
34%
GLOBAL GROWTH 161%
REGIONAL GROWTH 222%

EARLY-STAGE FUNDING GROWTH

Early-Stage Funding Growth is based on number of Seed and Series A rounds raised between 2022-2023 vs. 2024-2025 and calculated on a scale of 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest).
(2022-23 vs. 2024-25)
7
Scale of 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest)

AI-Native Early Stage Funding Growth

AI-Native Early-Stage Funding (ESF) Count Growth Tier evaluates the growth in the number of Early-Stage Funding rounds between 2022–23 and 2024–25. Ecosystems are scored on a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 represents the lowest growth and 10 represents the highest.
(2022-23 vs. 2024-25)
3
Scale of 1 (lowest) to 10 (highest)

TOTAL VC FUNDING

The Total VC funding (Seed, Series A, Series B+) in tech startups in 2021–2025.
(2021 - 2025)
$3.4 BN
GLOBAL AVG. $5 BN
REGIONAL AVG. $10 BN

TOTAL EARLY–STAGE FUNDING

The total Seed and Series A funding in tech startups in H2 2023–2025.
(H2 2023 - 2025)
$444 M
GLOBAL AVG. $554 M
REGIONAL AVG. $1 BN

EXIT AMOUNT

The total value of exits from the ecosystem.
(2021 - 2025)
$2.7 BN
GLOBAL AVG. $7.6 BN
REGIONAL AVG. $13.4 BN

EXIT COUNT (#)

The number of exits from the ecosystem.
(2021 - 2025)
151
28
2021
25
2022
26
2023
37
2024
35
2025
GLOBAL AVG. 103
REGIONAL AVG. 155

TIME TO EXIT

The average age at the time of exit in the ecosystem in 2021–2025.
(2021 - 2025)
11.9 YEARS
GLOBAL AVG. 11.1 years
REGIONAL AVG. 11.9 YEARS

NUMBER OF UNICORNS 

The number of startups that meet our definition and have been valued at more than $1 billion and have not exited.
(ACTIVE UNICORNS)
2
GLOBAL AVG. 11
REGIONAL AVG. 18

MEDIAN SEED ROUND

The median of seed rounds in tech startups in the ecosystem in H2 2023–2025.
(H2 2023 - 2025)
$1 M
GLOBAL AVG. $1 M
REGIONAL AVG. $1.1 M

Median Series A Round

The median of Series A rounds in tech startups in the ecosystem in H2 2023–2025.
(H2 2023 – 2025)
$4.5 M
GLOBAL AVG. $6.2 M
REGIONAL AVG. $7.6 M

Top Funded Startups

Top startups identified based on funding amount from July 2023 to December 2025.
(H2 2023-2025)
1: Neo Financial
2: Eavor
3: BPN Finance
4: ZayZoon

SOFT. ENGINEER SALARY

Average software engineer salary informed by data from Glassdoor, Salary.com, and PayScale, as well as local sources when available.
(2025)
$71 K
GLOBAL AVG. $54 K
REGIONAL AVG. $101 K

Sub-Sector Strengths

Cleantech
Cleantech

Sustained momentum in Calgary’s Cleantech sector is driven by infrastructure development, funding expansion, and industry collaboration. Calgary-based Eavor, a leader in geothermal energy, secured $89 million in later-stage funding, ranking among Canada’s largest VC deals in 2025. In June 2025, hydrogen pilot projects linked to Alberta’s Hydrogen Roadmap advanced clean fuel applications for heavy transport. Last year, OCIF and partners invested in a project valued at over $10 million into the ETC Foundation, reinforcing Calgary as a leader in energy innovation.

Fintech
Fintech

Calgary’s Fintech sector advances through growing integration with AI and enterprise digital transformation. This momentum is further supported by Calgary’s expanding digital infrastructure and cross-industry collaboration, which are enabling startups to pilot financial technologies across sectors such as Energy and Logistics. Global IT services firm HCLTech opened a new Calgary office in November 2025, strengthening enterprise partnerships and accelerating the adoption of cloud-based financial solutions within the ecosystem. Regulatory technology startup Verano.AI was named a startup to watch in 2026 for its AI-driven compliance solutions tailored to financial institutions.

Agtech & New Food
Agtech & New Food

Calgary’s Agtech & New Food sector is supported by coordinated platform development, public funding, and research-driven commercialization. In December 2025, OCIF invested $2.75 million in AgSphere, an initiative supporting startups in scaling agriculture and food innovation solutions. In late 2025, vertical farming company GoodLeaf invested an additional $52 million to expand its operations, including in Calgary.  The University of Calgary showcased Agri-food innovation projects during Innovation Week in November 2025, strengthening the pipeline of research-backed ventures entering the market.

Selected Startup Organizations

Startup Genome Members

MEMBER
Platform Calgary

Platform Calgary serves as the front door to Calgary’s innovation ecosystem, connecting entrepreneurs with the resources, programs, and networks they need to build and grow successful ventures. It convenes the city’s tech community at the 55,000 square foot Platform Innovation Centre in downtown Calgary to support founders at every stage, from early ideation to scaling globally, through mentorship, flexible workspace, funding connections, and tailored advisory services. By streamlining access to ecosystem partners and fostering collaboration across startups, investors, industry, academia, and government, Platform Calgary enhances coordination and strengthens the region’s innovation capacity, helping accelerate the development and growth of high-potential technology companies.

MEMBER
Calgary Innovation Coalition

Calgary Innovation Coalition (CIC) is a collaborative network of organizations that support innovation-driven entrepreneurs and startups, across the Calgary region. It brings together key ecosystem players under a shared vision, offering a unified voice on the priorities shaping Calgary’s innovation economy. Through active coordination, advocacy, and strategic alignment, CIC improves collaboration across Alberta’s innovation landscape and reduces fragmentation among support organizations. CIC contributes to building a more connected, efficient, and globally-competitive startup ecosystem that can scale innovation and attract investment.

MEMBER
Calgary Economic Development

Calgary Economic Development works closely with business, government, and community partners to position Calgary as a leading destination for companies, capital, and talent. It drives economic growth by attracting global companies, supporting the expansion of key sectors, and strengthening the local workforce through talent development initiatives. The organization plays a central role in promoting Calgary internationally, highlighting its competitive advantages and quality of life. CED administers the Opportunity Calgary Investment Fund, which makes strategic investments to boost innovation and grow and diversify Calgary’s economy.

Explore more ecosystems

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If you are interested in working with us to drive global attention to your ecosystem, please get in touch with Marina Krizman, Director of Business Development.

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