Who funds and backs tech startups in New Brunswick

New Brunswick’s startup support is spread across a handful of provincial bodies, two federal programs and a few hubs that do the day-to-day work with founders. They overlap, and the names change often enough that founders arriving from elsewhere tend to ask the same question first: who does what?

This guide answers that, in the order a founder usually meets them. It is kept current; if something here has changed, tell us at info@technbnews.ca.

The first cheque: NBIF

The New Brunswick Innovation Foundation is the province’s best-known early-stage investor. It invests in New Brunswick startups, usually before or alongside the first private money, and it also funds applied research at the province’s universities and colleges.

For most founders, an NBIF conversation comes early, and often through a hub that already knows the company.

The hubs: Venn Innovation and Planet Hatch

Two organisations do most of the hands-on work with founders:

• Venn Innovation, in Moncton, runs programs, mentoring and space for founders in southeast New Brunswick.
• Planet Hatch, in Fredericton, is the capital region’s incubator, with programs for early-stage companies and a coworking space.

Regional support also exists in Saint John and the north of the province, often through municipal economic development offices.

The accelerator: Propel

Propel runs an accelerator for tech startups across Atlantic Canada. New Brunswick founders take part alongside companies from Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador.

Growing a company: ONB

Opportunities New Brunswick is the province’s economic development agency. It works mostly with established companies: expansions, exports, hiring, and firms deciding whether to locate in the province. Its news releases are one of the more reliable signals of which companies are growing.

Federal support: ACOA and IRAP

Two federal programs sit on top of the provincial ones:

• The Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency funds business growth and innovation projects across the region, usually as repayable or non-repayable contributions.
• The National Research Council’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (IRAP) supports research and development inside companies, with advisors who work directly with technical teams.

From research to company: ResearchNB and Springboard

ResearchNB is the provincial agency that funds research and research talent. Springboard Atlantic connects universities and colleges with industry and helps turn research into licences and spinoffs. Together they cover the path that many deep-tech companies in the province start on.

How to use this map

A practical order for a first-time founder: talk to the nearest hub, ask about NBIF once there is something to show, check IRAP if the work is technical, and bring in ACOA and ONB as the company starts to hire and sell outside the province.