Massive Tech Companies Grow From a Robust Pipeline of Start-ups: Janet Bannister, Managing Partner at Real Ventures

“I use the analogy that you can’t grow a tree without planting a seed. And similarly, there’s no way you can build massive tech companies in Canada without supporting a robust pipeline of young, promising start-ups. Fostering of these early-stage tech companies must be done in Canada by Canadians.”
“We need to keep investing in seed and pre-seed ecosystems. I sometimes get concerned when I hear a narrative that says that we should shift our priority from early-stage to later-stage companies. I have heard people said, ‘Hey, we solved that early-stage problem. So now let’s focus on scaling companies.’ I would consider that as the equivalent of investing a lot in early education, seeing that you’re producing great graduates and then saying, ‘I guess we don’t need to worry about continuing to educate the next generation of primary school kids.’”
“Going forward, it’s extremely important that the government continue investing directly into accelerators, seed-stage funds and incentivizing angels via tax incentives. The government can have a huge catalyzing impact and their dollars can have a multiplying impact. But it’s not just about putting incentives and dollars in the hands of early-stage investors—the government enables people who have skin in the game in terms of the outcome of those companies to not only pick the winners, but also to add value beyond their dollars.”

—Janet Bannister