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

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

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 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.

Virtual Gurus is a Canadian freelancer marketplace connecting businesses with virtual assistants in the North American region. The platform’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. In&nbsp;<a href="https://betakit.com/calgarys-virtual-gurus-launches-virtual-assistant-app-for-slack/">February 2021</a>, the company launched askBetty, a virtual assistant app for Slack users. Following this, the company launched VG On Demand in&nbsp;<a href="https://thevirtualgurus.com/blog/vg-ondemand">October 2023</a>, a solution to aid enterprises meet short-term deadlines.&nbsp;&nbsp;

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

Online Freelancing Platforms

Virtual Gurus Announces Tech Innovator Elliot Schneier as New Chief Operating Officer to Lead Next-Gen Growth Initiatives

Mastercard

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.

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

Virtual Gurus is a Canadian freelancer marketplace connecting businesses with virtual assistants in the North American region. The platform’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. In&nbsp;<a href="https://betakit.com/calgarys-virtual-gurus-launches-virtual-assistant-app-for-slack/">February 2021</a>, the company launched askBetty, a virtual assistant app for Slack users. Following this, the company launched VG On Demand in&nbsp;<a href="https://thevirtualgurus.com/blog/vg-ondemand">October 2023</a>, a solution to aid enterprises meet short-term deadlines.&nbsp;&nbsp;The company offers two pricing models: a subscription based on support hours needed or a pay-as-you-go option. VG On Demand is priced at USD 38 per hour, with discounts for bulk hours: USD 37 per hour for five hours and USD 36 per hour for eight hours.Key customers and partnershipsNotable clients included Telus, Ideo and AltaML. As of October 2024, the platform had over 800 virtual assistants, with over 500,000 hours of work provided.

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. Platform pricing starts at USD 2.3 cents per word.Key customers and partnershipsAs of October 2024, the platform served over 80,000 clients, including eBay, Otto and RVshare. The company also had 100,000+ registered freelancers on the platform as of October 2024.

Textbroker

Procurement Freelancers provides freelancers for procurement functions such as sourcing/category management, quality control and assurance, and advisory. Its algorithm calculates the relevance between experts' skills and client briefs by scoring criteria like skills, experience, and language. It prioritizes search criteria based on user preferences to deliver the most accurate match.The platform is free to use for freelancers, while clients purchase subscriptions to hire and manage freelancers at no added cost.In March 2019, the company acquired Dragon Sourcing, a procurement and sourcing service provider.Key competitors: None under coverage. (The platform connects enterprises with procurement-based freelancers)

Procurement Freelancers

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.Kolabtree also provides concierge services for writing, with fees ranging from USD 2,000 to USD 4,000, depending on the timeline. Similarly, its concierge services for statistical analysis are priced between USD 250 and USD 625, also based on the timeline.The company generates revenue via a 20% service fee charged to the freelancers based on the total project invoice.Key customers and partnershipsAs of October 2024, Kolabtree served over 3,200 businesses including notable enterprises such as NASA, Volkswagen and Moderna. Further, the platform had over 20,000 scientists and experts as of October 2024.Key competitors:&nbsp;None under coverage. (Kolabtree offers a freelancing platform connecting enterprises with scientists).

kolabtree

Codersera is a freelance marketplace for enterprises to find software engineers. 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. Additionally, freelancers provide SaaS platform development, testing and QA services and migration away from legacy systems.Key customers and partnershipsAs of October 2024, the platform had over 20,000 vetted freelancers and 100+ clients on its platform.

Codersera Inc

Upwork is an online labor marketplace that assists in engaging freelancers and businesses in discovering direct labor arrangements for both short and long-term projects. Upwork’s roots date back to 1998 and 2003 when online talent marketplaces Elance and oDesk were founded. In December 2013, Elance and oDesk announced its merger with a combined freelancer base of over 8 million (5 million from oDesk and 3 million from Elance). Subsequent to the merger, Elance-oDesk continued to report losses and required a bailout package of USD 30 million from Benchmark Capital in November 2014. The company was rebranded as Upwork in May 2015.&nbsp;Unlike Fiverr, Upwork encourages freelancers to develop a profile focused on specific expertise, helping them build a niche reputation. Fiverr, on the other hand, allows freelancers to offer a wide range of services through individual gigs, enabling them to market multiple skill sets simultaneously. In&nbsp;<a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/16664">February 2023</a> Upwork expanded its offerings to include full-time hiring for businesses with features such as finding, vetting, hiring, onboarding, and paying professionals for full-time work arrangements.&nbsp; Additionally, in&nbsp;<a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/24502">December 2023</a>, Upwork launched Chat Pro, a GPT-4-powered app in beta, to enhance work efficiency. In&nbsp;<a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/35568">October 2024</a>, Upwork introduced&nbsp; Uma, an AI assistant, the Business Plus plan for Expert-Vetted talent, Featured Jobs, and Boosted Profiles. At the time, the company also announced a 21% workforce&nbsp;<a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/35569">reduction</a> aiming to save USD 60 million annually.Upwork also offers several solutions to streamline hiring: Talent Scout, connecting clients with pre-vetted freelancers; the Work Marketplace and Project Catalog for easy hiring; and the Virtual Talent Bench, which helps businesses build and maintain a network of freelancers for ongoing collaboration.The company generates revenue via a 10% project fee charged from clients, and freelancer subscriptions priced at USD 20 per month.In&nbsp;<a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/10/03/upwork-ceo-on-ipo-day-we-do-not-incentivize-for-less-pay-for-freelancers.html">October 2018</a>, Upwork listed on the NASDAQ to raise approximately USD 187 million. In FY2023, Upwork generated USD 689 million in revenue (up 11% YoY). The company guided FY2024 revenue between USD 760 million to USD 780 million, representing 11.7% YoY growth at the midpoint. Diluted earnings per share (EPS) stood at USD 0.13 in FY2023, compared to a loss per share of USD 0.69 in FY2022.Key customers and partnerships&nbsp;The company recorded 868,000 active clients as of August 2024, with notable clients including Microsoft, Airbnb and NASDAQ, among others.In&nbsp;<a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/33129">August 2024,</a> Upwork partnered with Beeline to&nbsp;integrate its talent pool into Beeline’s vendor management system (VMS), offering access to over 10,000 professionals across 125+ categories. Previously, in&nbsp;<a href="https://investors.upwork.com/news-releases/news-release-details/upwork-partners-catch-expand-freelancers-access-benefits">January 2022</a>, the company partnered with Catch to offer freelancers access to personal payroll and healthcare benefits.&nbsp;

Upwork

Platforms that provide expertise in specialized areas such as law and scientific research.

Platforms that provide expertise in writing, translation, and editing.

Platforms that provide marketing expertise across email, SEO, and social media marketing functions.

Platforms that offer expertise related to web, mobile and software development with freelance developers fluent across major programming languages.

Platforms that focus on offering expertise in design and creative functions such as photography, video editing, and animation.

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

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Virtual Gurus has named Elliot Schneier as its new chief operating officer. Schneier, previously with Startups.com and Zirtual, brings a strategic leadership background to the company. He is expected to develop the company's platform by integrating machine learning with human insight. In his new role, Schneier will lead an expansion of services, introducing virtual receptionists and improving the virtual assistant services. The company will continue to focus on its social mission under his guidance.

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Virtual Gurus

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