Adventure Capital is a venture capital firm that invests in mobile, information technology, and media sectors. It is an active angel investor whose investments are a combination of personal capital and energy. The firm envisions building a stable of businesses that have the ambition and pedigree to become global leaders.

Adventure Capital

They’re Indigenous and we invest in Indigenous social enterprise. Their purpose is to facilitate the flow of capital through impact investing, and to support the ongoing revitalization of the Indigenous economy in Canada.As an Indigenous intermediary, they honor the Seven Sacred Teachings and they operate from the perspective of the Indigenous world view. They follow traditional Indigenous protocols, they work for the well being of people and the planet, and they acknowledge their responsibility to the next seven generations.

Raven Indigenous Capital Partners

The51 is a Financial Feminist platform that aims to build mutual wealth and social/environmental impact. By uniting Canada’s untapped female wealth, The51 is creating a new critical mass of female investors, making Canada the center for female-powered capital. With 30% of Alberta’s tech start-ups founded or co-founded by women, The51’s home province is well on its way to achieving this goal; however, with female-founded startups only receiving 3% of venture capital available worldwide, The51’s vision spans globally.

The 51 Ventures

As Canada's regional economic development agency for Western Canada, Western Economic Diversification Canada (WD) strives to maintain Western Canada’s competitive position by investing in projects and activities that help improve productivity and competitiveness through the development, adoption and commercialization of new technologies and business processes. WD also supports higher value-added production and access to international markets.  Abundant natural resources, thriving technology and services sectors, and low business costs make Western Canada an attractive place to do business. Its geographic proximity to Asian markets, access to inland and sea ports, and excellent transportation services to locations throughout North America have created increased efficiencies in exporting products to international markets.  Western Canada is a significant contributor to the overall Canadian economy. In 2014, Western Canada accounted for 38% of Canada’s real gross domestic product (GDP) by industry and 42% of Canada’s exported goods.1 Western Canada’s export activity is closely linked to the largest economy in the world, the United States, and increasingly to the large and growing economies of the Asia-Pacific. The United States is Western Canada’s closest trading partner accounting for roughly 77% of goods exported from Western Canada in 2014. In the same year, exports to the Asia-Pacific region accounted for roughly 15% of Western Canada’s total exports; a 24% increase over the past 5 years.2  Economic growth in Western Canada is anchored by the natural resources sector, with resource-based goods accounting for approximately 68% of total exported products in 2014. This focus has been a benefit to the economy by providing the foundation for the creation of industry clusters in sectors such as mining, forestry, oil and gas and agriculture.

Western Economic Diversification Canada

Accelerate Fund represents a partnership of organizations brought together to share their collective expertise and capital to help Alberta technology entrepreneurs increase their investment dollars, and ultimately their companies to new heights. Launched with a $10 million investment from Alberta Enterprise, the Accelerate Fund provides additional financing options to early stage technology companies. The fund is managed by AVAC Ltd. which will review applications; perform due diligence; rule on investment decisions; and provide ongoing support to portfolio companies. An extensive advisory network called the Accelerate Fund Industry Committee has been designed to serve as a “hands-on” resource to the fund and its portfolio companies. Accelerate Fund was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

Accelerate Fund

The $100-million TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good is one of Canada’s largest corporate impact funds, powering the boldest, bravest ideas by for-profit startups that are dedicated to driving social innovation and building tech for good. In support of the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the Fund invests in the next generation of entrepreneurs who are addressing the biggest challenges in health, education, agriculture and the environment – connecting them with the resources and capital they need to grow and thrive. The TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good showcases TELUS’ long-standing commitment to leverage its world leading technology to create meaningful change and make the world a better place.

TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good

The Houssian Foundation leverages philanthropic giving, impact investing, and movement-building to promote environmental protection, gender justice, and resilient communities.

The Houssian Foundation

Virtual Gurus

Virtual Gurus is a talent marketplace that leverages proprietary technology to match organizations with highly skilled Canadian and American virtual assistants. Our remote team of skilled virtual assistants does it all, from bookkeeping and marketing to data entry and administrative support. Whether your organization needs a dedicated assistant, special project support or help with occasional tasks, we’re your people.

<div><p>Virtual Gurus is a Canadian freelancer marketplace connecting businesses with virtual assistants in the North American region. The platform&rsquo;s freelancers offer services such as bookkeeping, website development, marketing, data entry, and writing. Notably, the platform offers freelance opportunities to single, stay-at-home mothers, those with disabilities, and other underrepresented communities. As of April 2021, the platform had over 18,000 freelancers.</p></div>

The on-demand economy has finally reached white collar work.

Online Freelancing Platforms

<div>
  <p>
    Virtual Gurus is a Canadian freelancer marketplace connecting businesses with virtual assistants in the North American region. The platform&rsquo;s freelancers offer services such as bookkeeping, website development, marketing, data entry, and writing. Notably, the platform offers freelance opportunities to single, stay-at-home mothers, those with disabilities, and other underrepresented communities. As of April 2021, the platform had over 18,000 freelancers.
  </p>
  <p>
    In February 2021, the company launched askBetty, a virtual assistant app for Slack users. It is planning to introduce the application to Microsoft Teams, Facebook Messenger, Whatsapp, and Telegram in the near future.
  </p>
  <p>
    In 
    <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/23236">
      November 2023,
    </a>
     Virtual Gurus partnered with Mastercard to offer benefits to small business owners. The partnership provides a 20% discount for the first three months of a Virtual Gurus subscription for World Elite Mastercard for Business cardholders.
  </p>
  <p>
    <b>Funding and financials</b>
  </p>
  <p>
    In its most recent funding round (
    <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/9137">
      <u>March 2022</u>
    </a>
    ), raised CAD 8.4 million (approx. USD 6.6 million) in Series A and non-dilutive funding led by TELUS Pollinator Fund for Good. The fresh funds will be used to introduce machine learning technologies to improve the quality, connections, and income capacity of its virtual assistants and expand its technology platform. Part of the new funds will also be used to expand further in the US market, which as of March 2022 represents 38% of its revenue. 
  </p>
</div>


<div>
  <p>
    Tempo is a UK-based platform connecting businesses to local freelancers. The company is currently based in London and Manchester.
  </p>
  <p>
    The company claims it can significantly lower hiring lead time and cut recruitment costs by 65%. As of February 2022, the platform has worked with 2,500+ clients in sectors such as financial services, software, and e-commerce. The platform has a pool of 80,000 candidates up for permanent and temporary roles.
  </p>
  <p>
    The platform’s most recent funding came in June 2020 when it raised its Series A extension worth USD 6.4 million led by industry incumbent  The Adecco Group. The fresh capital will be used to fuel its expansion across the UK and boost hiring from 35 to 50 team members in 2020.
  </p>
</div>


Tempo

<div>
  <p>
    Textbroker is a platform for creative writing freelancers to connect with businesses. Textbroker freelancers work on projects such as social media posts, news stories, and blog posts. The platform provides content in over 35 languages, while connecting businesses with freelancers in the target country.
  </p>
  <p>
    As of October 2020, the platform served over 80,000 clients and has processed over 10 million orders. The platform's pricing starts at USD 1.5 cents per word and serves clients including Ebay and Staples.
  </p>
</div>


Textbroker

<div>
  <p>
    Procurement Freelancers provides freelancers for procurement functions such as sourcing/category management, quality control and assurance, and advisory.
  </p>
  <p>
    The platform is free to use for freelancers, while clients purchase subscriptions to hire and manage freelancers at no added cost.
  </p>
  <p>
    In March 2019, the company acquired Dragon Sourcing, a procurement and sourcing service provider.
  </p>
</div>


Procurement Freelancers

<div>
  <p>
    Kolabtree  is a UK-based  freelancer marketplace connecting businesses and scientists. The platform provides businesses with skills such as data analysis, product development, scientific consulting, desk research, and other science related services within 24 hours of receiving business requests.
  </p>
  <p>
    As of September 2020, the platform had a pool of over 15,000 freelancers (across 170+ countries) qualified in over 2,000 scientific disciplines. In addition, the company has worked with over 3,500 businesses over the past three years and has 8,000 active users. 
  </p>
</div>


kolabtree

<div>
  <p>
    Codersera is a freelance marketplace for businesses seeking developers. The company claims to provide the top 1% of developers through its five tier vetting process. The platform’s freelancers cover a spectrum of developer and data science technologies such as iOS, Android, Python, and Java.
  </p>
</div>


Codersera Inc

Solutions use AI/Ml for to match freelancers with clients and to vet freelancers

Some solutions introduced by players in this hub are using a B2B SaaS model

Platforms that offer expertise across multiple verticals such as design and creative, web, mobile and software development, finance, and marketing.

Virtual Gurus

Online Freelancing Platforms

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Recent Updates

Monthly News Summary (October 2023)

Virtual Gurus raises CAD 8.4 million in Series A funding

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