CMC Microsystems helps launch 250 Canadian tech start-ups over 25-years

CMC Microsystems, Canada’s hardware technology facilitator, recently completed a report on their work over a 25-year span which indicated that the organization has supported the creation of 250 Canadian technology start-ups. In the last five years alone, CMC has helped create 74 companies. All but one are still in business, at 95% survival over 5 years this is far better than the typical success rate for start-ups over the same period which is approximately 45%, according to Statistics Canada.

Virtual Incubator Environment (VIE) for Startups

Gordon Harling, President and CEO of CMC, commented on the report saying CMC’s model of creating and helping technology start-ups is unique. “Our focus is providing individuals and teams with the infrastructure and the tools to design, fabricate, and test their hardware products. Proving the validity of the hardware product is the cornerstone of start-up success and has tremendous impact on business viability.”

The report also indicates that 50% of the 250 start ups are still active and operating in Canada. The other 50% includes companies that are still active but may have been acquired or merged, their underlying technology is still providing revenue and jobs for Canadians.

Providing tools and technology

“CMC was essential in providing tools and technology access for us to prove the Ultra-WideBand technology now commercialized by SPARK Microsystems. Being able to show that our physical hardware could provide orders of magnitude improved performance in low power, low latency, high data rate, and acute positioning connectivity made it much easier to attract customers and investors” said Fares Mubarak, CEO of SPARK Microsystems, a fabless semiconductor company based in Montreal, QC.

There are 20 universities in six provinces represented in the report where teams of researchers supported by CMC and who self-declared their start-up was crucially enabled by CMC services. CMC’s focus is on creating a vibrant advanced technology manufacturing ecosystem in Canada with hardware design and manufacturing on highly targeted products that can be manufactured here and marketed to the world.

Geared for entrepreneurs and start-ups

To serve our growing community of entrepreneurs and start-ups, CMC launched the VIE Program – the Virtual Incubator Environment. Designed for start-ups, the VIE program provides access to state-of-the-art tools for design and simulation at extremely competitive rates – perfectly aligned with CMC’s mission of lowering barriers to technology adoption. VIE has proven crucial for entrepreneurs and start-ups access to the most powerful tools on the market to drive innovation.

To learn more about the VIE program, visit https://www.cmc.ca/vie/