The regional competition kicks off at AccelerateOTT on June 11. Here’s who’s pitching.

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The competition starts local, but the stakes are global.

On June 11, ten founders from Eastern Ontario, including seven from the Ottawa region, will walk onto the stage at Lansdowne Park to compete at the Startup World Cup Ottawa Regional Competition, pitching for a share of $50,000 in grant funding and a shot at the Grand Finale in San Francisco, where $1 million USD is on the line.

This is more than innovation in theory; this is innovation in action. These are founders who are building right now, solving real problems, and competing to take their work to the world.

And you should be in the room – to cheer them on, get inspired by what they are building, and to network and connect with the people who make this ecosystem move.

• Secure your spot here.

Meet the 2026 Startup World Cup Ottawa Regional Competition Finalists

Ten companies. Ten founders who made it through to pitch their companies live on stage.

Here’s a bit about what they’re building.

• BioThera Solutions — Industrializing next-generation exosome nanotechnology for dermocosmetic and regenerative medicine applications.
• CanVeer Biopharma — Developing a first-in-class therapeutic for bronchopulmonary dysplasia, a severe respiratory condition affecting newborns.
• CardiAxis Medical — Developing innovative cardiac imaging and treatment planning technologies for non-invasive cardiac care.
• Celestra Health Systems — Advancing neurological gait measurement technologies for healthcare applications.
• Constant Health — Building an AI-first chronic disease and weight management platform powered by behavioural therapy and nutrition care.
• Kavodax — Developing next-generation infrastructure for cross-border payments, decentralized finance, and quantum computation.
• Peepal Research — Building self-healing intelligence systems for complex multi-vendor networks.
• SamSearch — An AI-powered government contracting platform helping businesses discover, pursue, and win public sector opportunities faster.
• Stratotegic — Developing autonomous high-altitude balloon systems for persistent, low-cost monitoring and surveillance applications.
• Taskd — Developing deterministic AI systems designed to support rule-based enterprise decision-making.

Before the Pitches Begin

The Startup World Cup Ottawa Regional Competition takes place as part of AccelerateOTT 2026, Ottawa’s flagship entrepreneurship summit and a centrepiece of Ottawa Innovation Week.

This year’s theme, Built for the Age of AI, sets the tone for the entire day: a gathering of founders, investors, operators, and builders who are not waiting to see where things land. They are building for what comes next, right now.

The day starts early, and the program is worth showing up for from the beginning.

• Alistair Croll, bestselling author and one of the sharpest thinkers in tech, opens the day by challenging the assumptions founders have been building on for decades.
• Mike Matta, Co-Founder and CEO of Solink, sits down with Globe and Mail technology reporter Sean Silcoff to share what it actually takes to scale a global AI company from right here in Ottawa.
• Ashley Faus from Atlassian makes the case that in a world flooded with AI-generated content, the founders who win are the ones who build genuine trust.

And so much more. Check out the full program for AccelerateOTT 2026

The Panel Deciding Who Advances

Judging the pitches is a panel that has seen what innovation, excellence and momentum looks like from every angle.

Keira Frosst, Co-Founder and CSO of mDETECT, is a Startup World Cup Canada finalist who knows exactly what it feels like to stand on that stage. Pierre Steiner of Innovobot Resonance Ventures brings an early-stage investment lens.

Lance Laking, Managing Director and General Partner at Graphite Ventures, brings serious venture capital experience, while Katie LeClair, Executive Director of SheBoot, brings a sharp focus on founder diversity and what it takes to build an ecosystem that actually works for everyone.

What the Winner Takes Home

Thanks to support from the Government of Canada through FedDev Ontario, the top three companies will share $50,000 in non-dilutive grant funding.

First place advances to the Startup World Cup Grand Finale in San Francisco on November 6, 2026, competing against regional champions from more than 60 countries for a $1 million USD investment prize.

See What This Looks Like

If you have never been in the room for one of these competitions, watch the highlights from last year and get a feel for the energy.

Come Be Part of It All

AccelerateOTT 2026 runs all day on June 11 at the Horticultural Building at Lansdowne Park, as part of Ottawa Innovation Week. The day wraps with Accelerate After Hours at Crust and Crate’s Lansdowne location, where the conversations that started on stage keep going.

Come to cheer on the pitchers. Come to meet the founders, investors, and builders who make this ecosystem move. Come because you are building something yourself and you want to be around people who get it.

• Tickets are available now at accelerateott.ca.