What’s the Secret for Creating an AgeTech Ecosystem of 100 Startups and Counting?

A national ecosystem that has come of age 

Many of these startups were born from innovations created or validated at Canadian universities and research hospitals. Winterlight Labs, for example, emerged from pioneering artificial intelligence work at the University of Toronto. The company, founded in 2015, has developed a tablet-based assessment tool that analyzes speech to rapidly and accurately detect cognitive impairment associated with mental illness, dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. 

A well-established national ecosystem, with support by federal and provincial governments, nurtures the AgeTech sector – from research, all the way to helping small and medium-sized companies scale up and find customers. AGE-WELL, as a federally-funded network, brings everyone together – industry, government, community organizations, academia, trainees, older adults and caregivers – to drive the sector and encourage the adoption of Canadian technology in the real world.

Canada is facing the same aging crunch affecting other developed countries. Older seniors make up the fastest growing segment of the population. The number of Canadians aged 85 and over has more than doubled since 2001 and is expected to triple by 2046. 

Rising to geographical challenges     

The Canadian AgeTech landscape is unique because of the challenges presented by the country’s vast geography and fragmented public healthcare system. More than 80 per cent of Canadians live in cities. But its towns and cities are scattered over a massive land mass, with healthcare primarily delivered by the country’s 10 provincial and three territorial governments.

This geography has spurred numerous technologies to help older Canadians age in place, combating remoteness, isolation and weather extremes. The Centre for Technology Adoption for Aging in the North, a unique partnership between the University of Northern British Columbia, Northern Health and AGE-WELL, is working to break down geographic barriers and ensure that older adults and caregivers in northern and rural communities get access to the technology they need.

There has also been a proliferation of products designed to support the health, quality of life and independence of older adults, regardless of where they live. Eager to address problems of access to care in remote Indigenous communities, Curovate offers its subscription-based physiotherapy mobile app at no cost to Indigenous Canadians who may have limited access to rehabilitation following a knee replacement, hip replacement or ACL surgery. AltumView, based in Vancouver, British Columbia, has created a sensor system with a built-in AI chip that can alert caregivers and family members if a person falls or experiences other health changes. Montreal-based VitalTracer has developed a wearable device that provides remote monitoring of vital signs to reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases. 

Canadians aged 65 and older are at once comfortable with new technology, and willing to pay out of pocket for tech solutions that would help them stay at home as they age.

Breaking down silos 

Canada’s unique geography means that the availability of products and services often varies greatly from province to province. Helping to break down these silos is a national ecosystem that fosters cooperation throughout the AgeTech pipeline – from early-stage research, through to helping companies find customers. Take, for example, Tenera Care in the province of Nova Scotia. The company has developed a wearable electronic bracelet that can be used for contact tracing during outbreaks. Tenera launched its product in long-term care homes in its home province and then developed research relationships at the KITE Research Institute-University Health Network in Ontario that will help it advance and validate new features back home and across Canada. 

Like most other developed countries, Canada has an expansive public healthcare system. But it’s also a system with gaps that technology can help fill, particularly for older people. Polling shows that a solid majority of Canadians aged 65 and older are at once comfortable with new technology, and willing to pay out of pocket for tech solutions that would help them stay at home as they age.

Most promising for Canada is that it has a committed network of startups working to address the unique and varied needs of older people.

Michael Chrostowski, PhD, is Senior Manager, Business Development and Industry Relations at AGE-WELL, Canada’s Technology and Aging Network. He is also a neuroscientist by training and former AgeTech entrepreneur.