Our entrepreneur-coaches include the founders of Kik, Kobo, D-Wave and Moon Express. When working with CDL program participants to set objectives, CDL coaches draw upon their own experiences in designing products, building teams, growing revenues, and raising capital.
Objective-setting in eight-week increments by coaches who are experienced entrepreneurs and investors.
Workshops with expert faculty from the Rotman School of Management and hands-on support from MBA students with state-of-the-art training
Legal and accounting expert counsel from Canada’s most established firms such as Osler and KPMG
Capital: Companies that consistently achieve their objectives often attract investment from coaches, which usually triggers further investment from institutional and private investors.
Barney Pell, Founder, Moon Express
Shivon Zilis, Partner at Bloomberg Beta
The program is designed for early-stage, science-based technology companies, though we consider all applicants based on their potential to scale and the viability of their product. Companies that focus on machine learning or artificial intelligence can apply to our specialized machine learning (ML) stream, which runs in parallel with the general program.
“The breadth and depth of insight that we were given access to was phenomenal.”
– Karl Martin Founder, Nymi
I am already associated with a different incubator or accelerator. Can I still apply?
Yes, many of our ventures are also associated with other programs. Due to the unique nature of our objectives-based mentoring, the CDL program is complementary to other programs.
Do you take equity or charge fees?
No, the CDL does not charge fees or take equity from participating companies. We require that founders accepted into the program commit to engaging with the CDL community and paying forward the effort we put into helping them succeed by assisting the next generation of CDL entrepreneurs.
When does the program begin?
Site specific start times are as follows: Toronto (October), Vancouver (November), Halifax (November), Montreal (November), and Calgary (November).
How many ventures are admitted?
Each CDL location admits a different number of ventures every cohort. A total of 100 ventures will be admitted in Toronto across all three streams (25 Prime, 50 AI, and 25 Quantum). While a total of 25 ventures will be admitted at each of the CDL locations in Vancouver, Halifax, Montreal, and Calgary.
Is my venture at the right stage to apply?
Most ventures accepted to the program have developed a working prototype of their product/service or are close to doing so. Most have not raised a full seed round, although some have raised a pre-seed round. We encourage founders who are not sure if they are at the right stage to contact us for more information.
