Victory at Invest Ottawa’s AccelerateOTT 2026 secures a share of a $50,000 prize pool and a spot at the Startup World Cup Grand Finale in San Francisco

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – Ottawa, ON – June 18, 2026 — Kavodax has been named the winner of the Startup World Cup Ottawa Regional Competition, earning a $25,000 share of the event’s $50,000 prize pool.

Led by Founder and CEO Gharsa Amin, Kavodax is developing next-generation infrastructure for cross-border payments, decentralized finance, and quantum computation.

The company will now represent Ottawa and Eastern at the Startup World Cup Grand Finale in San Francisco, where founders from around the world will compete for a $1 million USD investment prize.

Following a highly competitive pitch competition featuring some of the National Capital Region’s most promising startups,  Kavodax was selected as Ottawa’s regional champion by a panel of investors and ecosystem leaders, including 2025 Startup World Cup Ottawa Regional Champion Keira Frosst (mDETECT), Pierre Steiner (Innovobot Resonance Ventures), Lance Laking (Graphite Ventures), Katie Leclair (SheBoot), and Jesse Wiebe (Canadian Startup Capital Association).

The competition also awarded a share of the $50,000 prize pool to Celestra Health Systems, who earned $15,000 in prizes and second-place honours, while CardiAxis Medical secured third place and $10,000 of the prize pool.

From Ideas to Action: Startup World Cup Showcases the Next Generation of Founders

The Startup World Cup Ottawa Regional Competition served as the marquee closing event of AccelerateOTT 2026, part of Ottawa Innovation Week, bringing together hundreds of founders, investors, operators, and ecosystem leaders to explore the future of company building in the age of AI.

Highlights included keynote presentations from entrepreneur, author, and technology analyst Alistair Croll, who examined how the economics of company building are evolving in a world of abundant software, and Head of Lifecycle Marketing at Atlassian, Ashley Faus, who challenged attendees to rethink trust, credibility, and human connection in increasingly automated environments.

Attendees also heard from founders and operators actively building and scaling innovative companies, including Vanessa Galarneau, Founder and CEO of Pluvo, and Mike Matta, Co-Founder and CEO of Solink, who shared lessons from growing one of Canada’s leading AI-powered technology companies from Ottawa to global markets.

For Invest Ottawa, hosting the Startup World Cup Ottawa Regional Competition is part of a broader commitment to helping founders access capital, build strategic connections, and accelerate growth from Ottawa to global markets.

About AccelerateOTT

AccelerateOTT is Ottawa’s premier entrepreneurship event, bringing together entrepreneurs, investors, industry leaders, and ecosystem builders for a one-day conference event to explore the ideas, technologies, and strategies shaping the future of company building. Through keynote presentations, founder conversations, investor insights, and networking opportunities, AccelerateOTT equips founders with the connections, knowledge, and inspiration needed to start, scale, and succeed in a rapidly changing world.

About Startup World Cup

Startup World Cup is a global conference and pitch competition organized by Pegasus Tech Ventures that brings together top startups, venture capitalists, entrepreneurs, and technology leaders from around the world. Regional winners advance to the Startup World Cup Grand Finale in San Francisco to compete for a $1 million USD investment prize.

About Invest Ottawa

Invest Ottawa is the lead economic development agency for knowledge-based industries in Canada’s Capital. Through its innovation ecosystem, global networks, venture programs, and entrepreneurship initiatives, Invest Ottawa helps founders and companies start, scale, and succeed.

Media Contact

Randy Gaudreau
Manager, Communications & Public Relations
Invest Ottawa
613.828.6274
[email protected]