York Region’s new investment aims to attract global tech firms and create new jobs in the region

itworldcanada.com
Jan. 26, 2022
Pragya Sehgal

Regional Municipality of York today announced a five-year, $1.5 million investment in ventureLAB’s Hardware Catalyst Initiative -- a Canadian lab and incubator for hardware and semiconductor companies.

“York Region is home to one of Canada’s largest tech hubs and we know supporting the growth of innovative companies is key to strengthening York Region’s economic vitality,” said York Region chairman and chief executive officer Wayne Emmerson. “Our investment into the Hardware Catalyst Initiative will help ventureLAB expand its capabilities, attract top talent and jobs and continue to demonstrate that York Region is a global destination of choice for entrepreneurs and investors.”

The region says the investment leverages the Government of Canada’s investment of $9.7 million through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario) and aims to build a globally competitive cluster for hardware and semiconductor research, innovation, design, and manufacturing centred in York Region. It will also create approximately 145 new jobs in the region over five years.

With this investment, York Region joins ventureLAB’s global network of over 35 industry leaders, including Siemens, Silicon Catalyst, TSMC, Arm, and many more. Together with eight founding partners including AMD, Synopsys, and others, and leveraging FedDev Ontario’s initial investment, Hardware Catalyst Initiative partners have committed over $50 million in resources, equipment, expertise, and mentorship for the participating companies, enabling them to commercialize their products and scale their companies.

“ventureLAB has gained strong momentum as Canada’s Hardware Hub through the success of the Hardware Catalyst Initiative,” said Melissa Chee, president and chief executive officer, ventureLAB. “We look forward to continuing to work with York Region to build a globally competitive semiconductor ecosystem that bridges research and commercialization, builds a strong domestic talent pool of highly qualified professionals, and creates a connected, sustainable, resilient ecosystem for tech firms who choose the Region to build, grow, and scale.”