The BetaKit Podcast Channel

“We’re going to find in the next year or two that the amount of leakage actually goes up quite a bit because I think the focus on AI is just moving really, really fast. But I don’t see the same energy going into the security aspects.”

Forget vibe coding and Nvidia chips: if you want to understand how AI is changing tech, look at how it is being applied to a heavily regulated industry in need of digital transformation. PolicyMe sibling co-founders Laura McKay (COO) and Jeff McKay (CTO) join to share how the insurtech startup...

“ That's also quite daunting as an investor to be able to put money into something that is perfect for now, but will it last three to five years? Will it even last three to six months?”

Ripple Ventures managing partner and podcaster Matt Cohen joins to discuss the insane revenue numbers generated by the new cohort of AI startups, and how VCs are navigating the froth by updating their evaluation criteria (and hoping the growth continues). Grab your calculator and let’s dig in.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by The BetaKit Innovation Leaders program: designed...

“A win for AXL is that, ten years from now, instead of nine of the top ten biggest and most successful companies in the world being on the West Coast of the United States, half of them are in Toronto.”

Dr. Daniel Wigdor has a lofty goal: help launch 50 AI companies in the next five years *and* keep them in Canada. Is it enough to stop our country’s AI brain drain? The entrepreneur, computer science professor, and former Meta and Microsoft employee joins to discuss his new venture studio AXL, and why Canada is so bad at com...

“How is this thing—running in a data centre with Nvidia GPUs—understanding what I’m saying with such nuance and such depth?”

Former DarwinAI CEO Sheldon Fernandez spends a lot of time in dialogue with Solace, his friend and ChatGPT-4o instance. What value does this AI strategist, engineer, and philosopher get from talking to a chatbot every day? How does he navigate the technology’s sycophantic tendencies, which have already caused people real harm? Most importantly, how might this technology impact future generations who won’t remember growing up without it?

Let's dig in.

Th...

“ This isn't just about doing something cool because space is the next frontier. This is a key domain for economics, for national security, sovereignty, job creation, and everything.”

A company trying to achieve Canada’s first commercial rocket launch. Three startups solving for the future of humanity. One founder sending messages to his future self. This special episode contains select highlights from BetaKit Town Hall: Most Ambitious, featuring speakers from NordSpace, Deep Sky, Xatoms, MycoFutures, and Verto Health.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by Invest Northern Ireland—the gateway to international growth.

International Tech compa...

“History never stops. It’s a living reality.”

In celebration of Startupfest’s 15th anniversary, founder Phil Telio joins to discuss the origins of the international tech festival, its connection to Québec and the broader Canadian tech ecosystem, and how community evolves with each generation. Ambition, government support of tech, and the state of the Québec ecosystem also came up before the grandma judges kicked us out of their booth. Recorded live at Startupfest.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by KDD 2025, the world’s leading conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining. Connect with top res...

“The talent here is incredible, right? When we started faculty, I walk in the class and there's Jimmy Ba. Every time you guys train a neural network, you're using his algorithm.”

Sanja Fidler (Nvidia VP of AI research) and Raquel Urtasun (Waabi founder and CEO) sit down with Ada CEO Mike Murchison for a discussion about the frontier of AI and the role Canada might play in bringing it to the physical world. Recorded live at Homecoming during Toronto Tech Week.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by KDD 2025, the world’s leading conference on Knowledge Discov...

“The current government is really plugged into what’s needed.”

One step closer to quantum data centres with the launch of his company’s advanced photonics packaging facility, Xanadu founder and CEO Christian Weedbrook joins to discuss the renewed federal interest in quantum technology, how it relates to Canadian sovereignty, and where the money to fund it should come from.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by KDD 2025, the world’s leading conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining. Connect with top researchers, industry pioneers, and innovators driving real-world impact.

At KDD 2025, you’ll explore cutt...

“ It's kind of that 'Valley or bust' mentality which breaks the ecosystem and really hurts Canada.”

Harley Finkelstein (Shopify), Mike Katchen (Wealthsimple), and Aidan Gomez (Cohere) hold a candid conversation about 'Ambition made in Canada' during Toronto Tech Week. Recorded live at Homecoming.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by Invest Northern Ireland—the gateway to international growth.

International Tech companies are discovering countless advantages in Northern Ireland. That’s why it’s the #2 international investment location for US Cybersecurity firms, as well as Europe’s leading location for new Software development projects. Global Tech giants li...

“ The company fascinates me… because they have such interesting concepts internally. One of them being ‘treat the company as a future adversary,’ which I have never seen anywhere in my career."

Bluesky's head of trust and safety is a Canadian working out of Dublin. In town to speak at the BetaKit Town Hall for Toronto Tech Week, Aaron Rodericks first joined The BetaKit Podcast to discuss his journey from government to social media, lessons learned from working at Twitter, and how Bluesky might one day help you find joy online.

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“I want to put ambition in people’s hands. You say it doesn’t exist—you’re going to hold it, you’re going to flip through it, you’re going to see it.”

BetaKit CEO Siri Agrell joins to discuss today’s launch of BetaKit’s Most Ambitious: our first-ever print issue, telling stories of bold ambition in Canadian tech.

Consider this your Most Ambitious director’s commentary companion, with highlights of some of our favourite stories from the inaugural issue, alongside a behind-the-scenes peek at how it was made. We also answer the most important questio...

“ Subversiveness is a way of changing the system. And I think what we're seeing right now is that all systems are changing.”

Entrepreneur and Startupfest founding partner Alistair Croll has co-authored a new book, Just Evil Enough: The Subversive Marketing Handbook. If you’re wondering why your company is so bad with its go-to-market execution, or which rules need to be bent (or broken) to win in the attention economy, this book might shoot to the top of your summer reading list.

Originally aired: Feb 02, 2025

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by The BetaKit Newslett...

“ That's what we wanna change, right? For future companies, more Canadian investors on the cap table so that we can see those benefits come back through investment, through mentorship.” 

Jill Earthy, CEO of InBC Investment Corp—a provincial Crown corporation with $500 million of direct and indirect capital to deploy—joins to discuss the state of Canadian venture, the role of organizations like hers in BC’s growing tech ecosystem, and InBC’s future fundraising plans. Recorded live at Web Summit Vancouver.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by Motion: the control center for creative strategists.

Motion helps...

“Be a customer of Canadian startups. This is the thing that every company needs. Nobody died from having too many customers.” 

The CEO of the Alberta Machine Intelligence Institute, Cam Linke, joins to discuss the next phase of the Pan-Canadian AI Strategy and how Amii stands apart from other national AI institutes, Vector and Mila. Recorded live from the Upper Bound AI conference.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by Motion: the platform helping marketing teams turn ad performance data into creative strategy.

Motion makes it easy to analyze what’s working across your campaig...

“ Companies have spent a lot of time and money creating really great user experience for humans. And now there's kind of this race to create a really good experience for AI agents.”

Erik Reppel, head of engineering for the Coinbase Developer Platform, joins to explain why the x402 open payment standard he helped create might plug one of the oldest holes in the internet, and how the protocol could revolutionize commerce—with the help of cryptocurrency and AI.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by OVHcloud, the global cloud provider trusted by innovators worldwide.

OVHcloud...

“ I think every ecosystem is different, but we can learn a lot from Silicon Valley, and we can merge what we have here.”

Faire co-founder and Chief Architect Marcelo Cortes explains his journey from Brazil to Canada, how working in Kitchener-Waterloo connected him to Silicon Valley, and the process of applying the lessons learned there to his company. We also discuss how Faire's wholesale marketplace for retailers is navigating the trade war, its use of AI, and how it convinced former Uber CTO Thuan Pham to join the company.

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“Bad actors are weaponizing AI faster than governments and enterprises are using AI to combat it.”

New data shows that more than half of all internet traffic comes from bots, and a third of those bots have malicious intent. Koat.ai co-founder Connor Ross joins to discuss the impact of the disinformation and defamation campaigns these bots run, how governments and enterprises are unprepared for this AI-driven explosion, and why the social networks are doing nothing to stop it.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by OVHcloud, the global cloud provider trusted by innovators worldwide.

OV...

“I feel like doing this is one of the greatest gifts of my life. Working with these people energizes me.”

Joe Canavan, principal at Canavan Capital, is Canada’s 2025 Angel of the Year. Recorded live at the NACO Summit in Ottawa, Canavan discusses his passion and enthusiasm for investing in tech after a career in finance, and what Canada should do to bolster its productivity and economic sovereignty.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by OVHcloud, the global cloud provider trusted by innovators worldwide.

OVHcloud offers transparent, sovereign cloud solutions designed to help you build...

“I think for any entrepreneur that’s navigated the last five years, I don’t know if there was a worse time to be building a company.”

Clutch found a new gear for its business after a post-pandemic lull … just in time for tariffs to hit. Dan Park (CEO) and Stephen Seibel (COO) join to discuss how the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated online car retail, how the end of cheap capital pumped their brakes, and how Clutch regained traction after a savvy market expansion. What has this journey taught them about how to prepare for whatever tariffs will do to the...

“ Toronto Tech Week belongs to everyone. Toronto Tech Week is by definition a platform, and it succeeds or fails by the virtue of all the hosts and all of the ecosystem in Toronto wanting to participate.”

Filling the summer event gap that Collision left in the city, Toronto Tech Week plans to host 10,000 people attending over 100 events this June. How did the ‘community-driven platform’ come to be? How will it be different than other tech events? Toronto Tech Week founding partners and co-organizers Ameet Shah (Golden Ventures), Satish Kanwar (Good Future), and Mell Truong (Sage Consulting) join to tell th...

“ At the end of the day, I really wanted a Pebble. It didn't exist. No one was building anything remotely like it. So I, without really knowing what I was doing, decided to go and make it.”

Almost 10 years after Pebble’s demise, Eric Migicovsky is back building smartwatches. The Canadian behind some of the largest Kickstarter projects of all time explains why he’s relaunching the device he originally made for himself, the incredible luck that has allowed him to do so, and the lessons he’s learned along the way.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented...

“ It's worth it. Because this deserves to live. We've gotten it far enough that this deserves to actually come to fruition. I don't think there is another company in the world today that actually is closer to this sci-fi dream.”

Revisiting BetaKit’s January interview with SRTX founder Katherine Homuth about her company’s ambitious goal to modernize Western textile manufacturing in light of recent news that she will step down as CEO contingent on a deal to secure new financing.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by Float. Float helps Canadian companies manage spend, automate expenses...

“ By the time these companies are ready for B and C [rounds], their cap tables are super clean, too. So it doesn't really make sense that we're not putting money into them.”

In a time of global uncertainty, a new report by the Canadian Food Innovation Network (CFIN) shows that Canada lags other countries in foodtech funding, relying too much on public funding. CEO Dana McCauley joins to discuss the report, how CFIN’s 6,500 members are navigating tariffs, and why it's important that Canada invests in the tech that feeds us.

The BetaKit Podcast is presente...

”Apple won't use user data to develop and train AI. And Apple lives in a world where AI is going to be table stakes in any software or hardware moving forward.”

Call it counter-programming. A tech palate cleanse for all the election and trade war talk. This week, Rob and Doug tackle the latest AI developments: vibe coding, Cohere’s (temporary?) LLM pole position, AI data centres from Telus (powered by Nvidia), and Apple’s delayed intelligence.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by The Cyber Challenge, powered by Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst and CCTX—your pathway to new sal...

 ”One of the things that I think we've got to critically think about in our country for the future is that we've got to begin using those dollars effectively, like the $4 billion in SR&ED.”

CCI’s Ben Bergen joins to discuss items innovators hope will be on the agenda in the forthcoming federal election before ranking what programs (VCCI, SR&ED, etc.) and policies (AI regulation, open banking, etc.) the next government in power might adopt, drop, or move forward.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by The Cyber Challenge, powered by Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst and CCTX...

“I don’t know what Canadian DOGE is. You know what I know? That everyone is projecting both their hopes and fears onto this thing.”

Ex-Shopify VP Daniel Debow joins to discuss his Build Canada initiative, what it’s attempting to achieve, what it isn’t, and his frustration regarding ongoing associations with ‘Canadian DOGE’.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by The Cyber Challenge, powered by Rogers Cybersecure Catalyst and CCTX—your pathway to new sales, industry connections, and non-dilutive funding. If you're ready to scale, refine, and lead cybersecurity innovation, apply today at www.thecyberchalleng...

“It feels like my inclusion was optional, and that is a scary message to be told. ‘We were doing you a favour by letting you in the room.’”

AccessNow founder and CEO Maayan Ziv has been working in the accessibility space for over a decade—long enough to know that progress is slow and takes a fight. With DEIA currently being blamed for “everything from bad business decisions to plane crashes,” Ziv joins to explain why she feels the fight is “slipping through our fingers.”

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by CIX SUMMIT, powered by Elevate. CIX is Ca...

“Once you’ve cornered that beaver, look out. We are a vicious beast.”

Rob and Douglas review the latest dispatches in Canada’s impending trade war with the United States, specifically how Canadian tech is responding. Did someone poke the beaver and unleash Canada’s quiet patriotism? A 3-2 overtime hockey win points to yes.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by the University of Toronto Entrepreneurship Week, returning March 3-7 in downtown Toronto. Don’t miss AI pioneer Geoffrey Hinton, 2024 Nobel laureate, live as he shares insights for startups.

View the schedule and register for...

“ You're going to see Coveo starting to invest quite aggressively actually to be a market taker. We're not a disrupted company. We're a market taker in AI.”

Coveo's current CEO and future executive chair, Louis Têtu, joins to discuss the applied AI company's earnings performance and where the market is heading in the face of customer fatigue and DeepSeek disruption.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by Float, Canada's complete business finance platform, combining modern financial services and software to help businesses spend, save, and grow. Support Canadian business and switch today at floatfinancial.com.

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“Part of the magic of the games industry here is that it’s not one thing.”

Canada must diversify its economy. Why not start with gaming? Entertainment Software Association of Canada (ESAC) president and CEO, Paul Fogolin, joins to discuss video games’ $5.1 billion contribution to Canada’s economy and the results of his organization’s latest study on the Canadian gaming industry.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by Float, Canada's complete business finance platform, combining modern financial services and software to help businesses spend, save, and grow. Support Canadian business and switch today at floatfinancial.com.

“ Subversiveness is a way of changing the system. And I think what we're seeing right now is that all systems are changing.”

Entrepreneur and Startupfest founding partner Alistair Croll has co-authored a new book, Just Evil Enough: The Subversive Marketing Handbook. Why are Canadian companies so bad with their go-to-market execution and is now really the time to be preaching subversion and disagreeableness? Let’s dig in.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by The BetaKit Newsletter. Your inbox deserves better, and so do you. Stay informed on all things Canadian tech by signing up for The BetaKi...

“This is worth the pain of attempting to figure out how to do it. But attempting to figure out how to do it required us to basically rethink everything about that traditional outsourcing model.”

SRTX founder and CEO Katherine Homuth explains how attempting to solve one problem with tights led her company to attempt solving for all problems related to modern North American textile manufacturing.

The BetaKit Podcast is brought to you by the BetaKit Innovation Leaders program. Innovation Leaders are driving Canada’s innovation economy forward. By partnering with BetaKit, you can help support the jo...

 ”It does make me increasingly nervous that one of them really wants to move to Mars and the other one has a legit bunker. Like, what are they preparing for?”

Social media expert Amber Mac joins to discuss why two of the world’s richest men, collectively responsible for over 3 billion monthly users, are so quick to blame everyone else for the problems their platforms cause.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by The BetaKit Newsletter. Your inbox deserves better, and so do you. Stay informed on all things Canadian tech by signing up for The BetaKit Ne...

“ I'm sure if there's one takeaway here is that we can all trust Enron to solve the world's energy problems.” 

“With a mere human-sized egg.”

A cleantech crisis? The end of VCCI? The rise of centaurs? FinTech IPOs? Quantum leaps? BetaKit reporters Madison McLauchlan and Josh Scott join to review 2024’s biggest tech questions before offering a fresh set for 2025.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by The BetaKit Newsletter. Your inbox deserves better, and so do you. Stay informed on all things Canadian tech by signing up for The BetaKit Newsletter today.

“Part of my prediction for 2025 is embracing or acknowledging that chaos reigns.”

AI agents. Political shenanigans. A Canadian tech acquisition that will shock you. And a Big Tech breakup that you might expect. After choosing chalk last year, The BetaKit Podcast adds some spice to its 2025 tech predictions. Let’s dig in!

Have a different take on 2025? Let us know: podcast@betakit.com.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by ‘Devious Web,’ a Shelley Grandy mystery novel available in digital or paperback formats.

A successful Canadian entrepreneur is offered millions from Silicon Valley for...

“We are about to see a bunch of people who are powerful, successful, and feel like they know the best way to do things bring this approach into government.”

The BetaKit Podcast reviews the biggest tech stories of 2024 before doling out annual letter grades for Shopify, Wealthsimple, Cohere, and many more. A podcast so good we had to record it twice. Have a different take on 2024? Let us know: podcast@betakit.com.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by ‘Devious Web,’ a Shelley Grandy mystery novel available in digital or paperback formats.

A successful Canadian...

“SaaS was around, ‘How do you automate business processes in order to empower humans?’ AI is about, ‘How can a machine do the process so that you need less [human] involvement?’”

David Appel (Sage Intacct), Bryan Watson (Venbridge), April Hicke (Toast), and Stephanie Lipp (MycoFutures) talk AI, the changing role of the CFO, leadership and hiring, cleantech tax credits, and how to make leather from mushrooms (seriously). Recorded live at SAAS NORTH.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by Uber Canada. Uber's driving positive change for riders, drivers, and communities across Toronto. Learn more about how Uber is movi...

“Browsers aren't a business. Browsers don't make money. These are loss leaders for other connected experiences because no one wants to pay for the window to the web."

The DOJ wants to take Chrome away from Google. Arc wants to build a better browser for everyone. Rob Kenedi wants to decelerate tech with his new show, which is not (yet) a browser. Let’s dig in.

The BetaKit Podcast is brought to you by Cloudways, the managed hosting platform built for speed and scalability. Take advantage of Cloudways Black Friday Cyber Monday offer: 40% off for 4 mont...

“I’m using failure with intent today, because I don’t want to be ashamed of saying ‘failure.’"

Marie Chevrier Schwartz, founder and former CEO of Sampler, explains how her company lost product-market fit after a decade in business. Recorded live on the BetaKit Keynote Stage at SAAS NORTH 2024.

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by The BetaKit Quiz. Think you're up to date on the world of Canadian tech? Test your knowledge with The BetaKit Quiz, proudly sponsored by GoDaddy.

“Canada is hitting above its weight. It doesn’t always feel like that.”

Inovia Capital CEO Chris Arsenault joins to share data and a long-term perspective on the state of the Canadian software industry in 2024, recorded live on the BetaKit Keynote State at SAAS NORTH. Check out Inovia’s report and read along with the podcast!

The BetaKit Podcast is presented by The BetaKit Quiz, proudly sponsored by GoDaddy. Visit GoDaddy to search for your perfect .CA domain and access a special offer.