Tag: ac grad

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AC Grad Kik hits 200 million users

Kik just passed 200 million registered users, but CEO and co-founder Ted Livingston played down that milestone, telling TechCrunch in an interview that it “doesn’t really matter all that much.”

Livingston also dismissed monthly active user counts, a metric that is increasingly presented by companies, as “meaningless”. He joked that Kik doesn’t release its own MAU number because it “hasn’t had time to juice the numbers.”

Livingston welcomes a more quantified approach along the thinking of Twitter and Medium founder Ev Williams, who recently lamented the tech industry’s obsession with measuring “a mile wide, and an inch deep.”
“For a chat app that depends on frequent, meaningful conversation among peers, engagement is the golden goose,” he said.

To read the full article, click here.

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AC Grad I Think Security encourages Canadian entrepreneurs to seek opportunities in Asia

Every so often, you hear someone talking about Asia as the promised land, a place of immense opportunities. It’s the place you have to be to make it big. While I believe entrepreneurs can be successful anywhere, Asia does have a few important elements that can be great catalysts for Canadian tech companies looking to accelerate their growth.

Early in 2014, we started the commercialization efforts for our financial product LOQ and focused on New York City as main market. NYC has a high concentration of banking institutions and is relatively close to Waterloo. Along the way, we started gaining traction and attention from Asia. In August, our company was selected to the FinTech Innovation Lab Asia Pacific, a 12-week mentorship program for young companies in the financial tech space, and therefore I got to spend a significant amount of time in Hong Kong over the last few months to expand the business out east.

This experience was eye opening and convinced me that Asia is indeed a place of great opportunities; opportunities that Canadian tech companies are well suited to capitalize on.

To find out more about the opportunities in Asia, click here.

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AC Grad Deep Trekker teams up with Planet Ocean

Deep Trekker announces they will be attending the Subsea Expo with their newest United Kingdom dealer; Planet Ocean Ltd. Deep Trekker will be bringing along their premiere product the DTG2 remotely operated vehicle (ROV) and a 200 gallon demonstration tank. The Show, which runs from February 11th – 13th, showcases the latest innovations in the offshore market, making it the perfect venue for Deep Trekker to introduce their unique and robust micro ROV system to oil & gas professionals.

ROV ResellersPlanet Ocean Ltd is centrally located in the United Kingdom with extensive experience working with scientific and marine surveying equipment. It is through partners such as Planet Ocean that Deep Trekker will continue being a driving force in the ROV market. Planet Ocean MD Terry Sloane commented “We have been waiting for the right ROV to come along to enhance our other offerings, and Deep Trekker fits the bill exactly. It should be of huge interest to our existing customers in the science, aquaculture, moorings inspection, military, search and rescue, and ports and harbours sectors. It is fantastic value for such a powerful ROV and makes this technology affordable to many new potential users. We look forward to doing customer demonstrations, this really has to be seen!”

To read the full press release, click here.

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AC Grad Clearpath Robotics explores dangerous mines with novel sensor fusion technology

Clearpath Robotics research team uses Husky UGV to run autonomous sensor data in Chile’s mines; goal to remove humans from dangerous environments.

The University of Chile’s Department of Electrical Engineering and the Advanced Mining Technology Center are using the Husky unmanned ground vehicle to solve registration problems with complex sensor data in the mines. By doing so, accurate and reliable sensing and automation will exist to enable improved safety and efficiency for tele-operated and autonomous mining activities. The teams’ overall mission is to minimize manpower in Chile’s dangerous mining environments.

“Our project develops existing technologies so that terrain surface profile and mine mapping information can be extracted from noisy sensor data,” explains Dr. Martin Adams, Professor at the University of Chile. “Our Husky-based sensing system will contribute significantly to the success and efficiency in which future mining operations take place.”

The project, Autonomous Rock Surface Modelling and Mapping in Mines, was designed to collect motion characteristics from Husky and noise characteristics from radar (Acumine 2D scanning millimeter wave radar), laser (3D Riegle scanning laser range finder) and vision-based sensors to model open pit and underground mines. A millimeter wave radar was used to penetrate dust, Speed-Up Robust Feature (SURF) detection was analyzed to determine the applicability of information extraction from mapping and surface profiling in mines. Sensors were integrated using the Robot Operating System (ROS).

To learn more, click here.

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AC Grad Monstercat revolutionizes independent electronic music scene

Monstercat is proving that independent labels have the ability to reshape the music industry.

Founded in 2011 by University of Waterloo students and entrepreneurs Mike Darlington and Ari Paunonen, originally as a medium for Darlington and his friends to share and promote their music, Monstercat has rapidly evolved into a thriving electronic dance music record label and technology company, helping independent electronic artists build and promote their brands, while using today’s social media channels such as YouTube, Spotify, iTunes, and SoundCloud to give fans access to the artists and their music.

Monstercat has traditionally signed artists for single releases only, rather than to exclusive deals, allowing artists the freedom to explore releasing tracks on other record labels. Over its four year history, the company has adhered to an aggressive music release schedule, releasing three tracks a week, and a compilation album, typically after every 30 song releases.

Popular artists that have launched from the Monstercat platform include Krewella, an American electronic dance group from Chicago, Illinois, Pegboard Nerds, Vicetone and Project 46. In June 2014, the label reached one million record sales in the US market, and announced its first tour in July 2014, with 20 concert dates and venues selected through a vote by 22,000 fans.

To read the full press release, click here.

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AC Grad Deep Trekker announces new product unveiling

Deep Trekker will debut its new product line at the New Orleans’ Underwater Intervention 2015, which runs from February 10-12.

Along with its 200 gallon water tank and flagship product the DTG2 ROV, the Deep Trekker team will unveil its new product line along with all of the details at UI 2015. The product is based on the designs of the DTG2 remotely operated vehicle system featuring a patented pitching system and 360 degree window, Deep Trekker said. Along with onboard batteries and a handheld video controller, the Deep Trekker products can be deployed in less than a minute with a one- or two-person team.

To read the full article, click here.

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AC Grad Kik Mobile holding a Hackathon event in partnership with University of Waterloo

Partnering with the University of Waterloo, Kik will be holding a “Hackathon” event in which students would have the chance to prove their hacking and development skills. Working individually or in groups of up to 4, participants will have the opportunity to bring to life any creative idea in regard to web design or a mobile web app. During the event they will have the chance to work with the Kik Messenger development team.

While the prizes for the Kik Hackathon have not been officially revealed, UWaterloo students will be presenting their talent in front of a panel of judges, which includes the CEO of the company, Ted, as well as Associate Director of Velocity for Kik Wes Worsfold among others.

The Kik Hackathon will take place between the 30th of January and the 1st of February in the SLC of the University of Waterloo.

Look here for more details.

 

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AC Grad BigRoad announces availability of DashLink

BigRoad, a company well-known among drivers for their computer-assisted logging software for smartphones and tablets, will announce the official availability of its DashLink product. The ELD creates driver logs compliant with existing United States and Canadian regulations. The company pitches it to both fleets and owner-operators as an easy and low-cost upgrade that will satisfy the upcoming ELD mandate.

“We wanted to give the industry the easiest and most flexible way to get started with engine-connected electronic logs,” says Terry Frey, BigRoad co-founder and COO. “Unlike existing embedded on-board recorders (EOBRs), we created DashLink so it can be installed in seconds for a very low cost. And it requires no contract to get started.”

DashLink is fully compliant with U.S. AOBRD (CFR 395.15) and Canadian Electronic Recording Device (SOR-2005 313) regulations. It works in conjunction with the BigRoad mobile app to record driving time automatically, ensuring logs are easily and accurately created. The DashLink device is plugged into the truck’s diagnostic port (or otherwise connected to the vehicle’s engine), and the BigRoad app is then used to configure the vehicle for use in engine-connected mode.

To read the full article, click here.

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AC Grad Eventastic revs up its startup engine for 2015

Eventastic, a Waterloo startup revolutionizing online ticketing, is building on its local success and expanding to national and international markets in 2015.

Since its soft launch in 2013, Eventastic has graduated from the Accelerator Centre, relocated into its own local office, and the site has hosted almost 10,000 events from small parties to large conferences on unique venues, such as the Queen Mary in Long Beach California.

“We intend on doubling in the coming 12 months through our devote users and a unique B2B SaaS Model,” says Eventastic’s Founder and President Randall Bird. “By reaching the global level, Eventastic will cement itself as one of the world’s leading online ticketing websites – with our headquarters in Waterloo. One way to ensure this success was by hiring a Chief Executive Officer that has the credentials to make Eventastic bigger and better than ever.”

To read the full press release, click here.