By: Fatema Fatakdawala
Backbone magazine (Business, Technology, Lifestyle) hosted a live pitch off event yesterday (May 15, 2012) at the OCE Discovery 12 trade show in the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. The competition which took place in the Gowlings Theatre was the culmination of an innovation contest in which 10 finalists each got 10 minutes to convince a panel of nine expert industry judges that their product represents the best in the Canadian innovation space.
David Kedmey took home the grand prize pack of $85K for his startup company EidoSearch. EidoSearch is a software that acts as a search and discovery tool for financial analysts. Years ago, companies worried about a lack of data and sought ways to gather more of it. Today, this is no longer a problem; the hurdle now is that companies are buried under data, with more coming in by the minute. “The [EidoSearch] idea is to use data in a smart and efficient manner,” Kedmey said.
The nine judges were unanimous in their selection of EidoSearch as the winner, but the decision was still not an easy one. “This was tough,” said Alpha Exchange CEO and primary sponsor Jos Schmitt. “I was honestly amazed by the quality of the pitches.”
The judges selected Halifax’s TitanFile as runner-up. TitanFile uses military grade encryption to send and receive files over a secure connection. TitanFile received $15,000 in total. The top 10 finalists were: EidoSearch, Gazaro, TitanFile, Vote Compass,Zighra, Tunezy, VennGage, Careerify, triMirror and NoteWagon.
Overall, it was a very exciting and inspiring event to be a part of. The RIC Centre is hosting a similar event called Innovator Idol which is coming up on June 13th 2012 at the Mississauga Central Library. Click here for details.
Fatema joins the RIC team as the Communications Officer responsible for marketing, social media, event and web management. She is a graduate student pursuing her final year in the Master of Biotechnology program at the University of Toronto Mississauga.
The RIC blog is designed as a showcase for entrepreneurs and innovation. Our guest bloggers provide a wealth of information based on their personal experiences. Visit RIC Centre for more information on how RIC can accelerate your ideas to market.