Profiles

Cool people doing amazing things — and I get to write about them!

New Canadian Grocery Alerts App Brings Savings to the Palm of Your Hand

/ Elliot Chan / Leave a comment

One dollar here, a couple of dollars there, and what was supposed to be an inexpensive trip to the grocery store ends up costing a small fortune.

It is not uncommon to hear about bargains, but taking advantage of them is a chore we have to schedule for. Most of us don’t have time to scour through the stack of flyers or click through online retail catalogues. What ends up happening is that we just show up at the store whenever we can with our little list and wing it.

Last month, Canadian startup Grocery Alerts launched a new app, Coupon Find Canada. The app supplies a database that allows user to search for items with a discount or spontaneously look up deals for stores they are already at.

“We want to keep it simple,” said Steven Zussino, founder of GroceryAlerts.ca. “We want to show all the different categories we have coupons for on the website; beverages, snacks. And then be able to show store coupons, so if you are at Save-On-Foods or Rexall or Bulk Barn or Shoppers Drug Mart, you can just click on the coupon and show it at the counter.”

Although digitized couponing is evolving, it is still suffering from some growing pains. The public still relies heavily on the printed material, because the virtual format is still so darn hard to read.

“I don’t mind reading books or magazines on mobile devices,” said Zussino, “but flyers you need to zoom in a lot, because they are so visual.”

That is why simplicity is the key for Zussino, who stripped back all the glitz and glamour of marketing and just stuck with the essential, which is to save you some money.

Grocery Alerts has been live since 2009 and has accumulated over 22,000 email subscribers and 120,000 readers each month. Providing coupons for stores and manufactures nationwide, Grocery Alert, with its new accessible app Coupon Find Canada are hoping to expand to a wider audience.

“Our audience tends to be mothers with large families,” explains Zussino. “Usually single people and younger people don’t use a lot of coupons. But I think things are changing with all those daily deals websites. It is interesting when people say they don’t use coupons, I always find good examples of things you buy on a daily bases that you can just print off and it is pretty easy to redeem. Four or five bucks doesn’t sound like a lot, but it adds up.”

Coupon Find Canada is currently offered for iOS at the app store and in the coming weeks it will be available at Google Play store and will be compatible with Blackberry and Androids smartphones.

 

Clearpath Robotics: Rugged-Mobile Robots For A Brave New World

/ Elliot Chan / Leave a comment

In 2006, Bill Gates wrote an article entitled A Robot in Every Home; it was a play on a piece written in the 80s called A Computer in Every Home. What was once science fiction and a crazy concept is now a modern day reality. Kitchener-based Clearpath Robotics recognized that like computers and Internet, robots are an industry growing with infinite potential.

The company originated in 2009 at the University of Waterloo, when the Mechatronics Engineering Program was still in its infancy. It was there that the team at Clearpath Robotics discovered their passion for developing field robots and unmanned systems.

“When we weren’t busy cramming for exams, we were building robots in our spare time,” said Matt Rendall, CEO of Clearpath Robotics and 2013 finalist for the Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

From humble beginnings to winning the 2013 Silver Edison Award, Clearpath Robotics develops their innovative robots with the costumers and projects in mind. Understanding that field robotics, automated systems, driverless cars and other advance technology are complicated systems; the team’s goal is always to make things easier, whether it is to work with, to prototype or to develop.

“We build platforms,” said Rendall, “using the 80/20 analogy. It is our job to solve 80% of the problem and we work with our costumers and clients to solve the remaining 20%. All research is unique, that is the nature of research. So the first way we make things easier is that we offer a common starting point. Because that starting point is common, it has been through vigourous testing and it’s off the shelf, so it has a lower cost—it is just a better starting point than doing something from scratch.”

Over the years, Clearpath Robotics’ vision has matured. But simplicity, efficiency and safety are still the three main pedestals for building robots. The team takes that philosophy and applies it to automate the world’s dullest, deadliest and dirtiest jobs. “In outdoor environments there are a lot of opportunities to help make certain things easier, safer and faster,” said Rendall.

One prime example of Clearpath Robotics’ ingenuity is their 2013 Silver Edison Award Finalist, the Kingfisher. With the sleek look of a miniature speedboat, the Kingfisher’s featured applications include bathymetric data collection, shore erosion monitoring, sediment mapping, flow rate measurements, dam inspection, harbour safety and others. The remote water-monitoring robot allows surveyors to work safely on the shore in a task that once required manpower out in the water.

“Environment Canada measures a lot of different things about the country’s water supply,” said Rendall. “Often these are remote locations through fast moving and cold water with opposing hazards, so we built a robot to assist them. We are very pleased with it.”

But like all things technology and fashion, improvements are always being made. Clearpath Robotics’ active researching team is constantly seeking areas of advancement whether it is on the platforms that already exist like the Kingfisher or a prototype still in the early stages of conception.

Earlier this year, Clearpath followed up the Kingfisher by introducing the Grizzly, a robotic utility vehicle with big 26-inch tires that allows it to operate in mining, military and agricultural settings. From navigating tough terrain to spraying dangerous pesticide, the Grizzly does it all unmanned, which will only make life easier for us fragile humans.

Perhaps one day we’ll all have robot butlers like the Jetsons or maybe Skynet will rule over us. Nobody can really be certain what the future holds. But from the way things are looking, robots are going to be more relevant than ever and Clearpath Robotics is leading the charge and hoping to inspire people to take part in the upgrade.

“We are going to start seeing a lot of purpose built robots to solve specific problems,” said Rendall. “So there is going to be a massive industry behind this and we need more people and more entrepreneurs and more companies focusing on it. The barrier for entry is quite high, but there are a lot of opportunities.”

Ottawa’s Powerstick Keeps Your Smartphone, Tablet, and Life Fully Charged

/ Elliot Chan / Leave a comment

Although a double espresso might get you through the latter parts of your day, your smartphone and your tablet are not always as easy to re-energize.

We all dread watching those last few percent on the battery bar tick away as we hastily finish off an email or an important phone call. We have all gone hunting for power outlets and been prisoners to the cord, but now Ottawa-based Powerstick is freeing us from the restrictions of limited battery life.

Since 2011, Powerstick has been innovating the way people recharge their mobile devices. From humble beginnings to award winning products, Powerstick is constantly looking for new ideas from conception to results.

The first generation of the Powerstick was the size of a stick of gum and could charge most mobile devices. It won the CES Award for Best Innovation and is also available as a 2GB, 4GB or 8GB portable hard drive. From there, Powerstick received numerous upgrades and awards. The company took an inventive route and started developing different models, including the Powertrip, a heavy-duty charger that has a wall socket, USB port and a solar PV panel, perfect for situations such as long distance travel and camping. The Powertrip has enough energy to fully charge three smartphones and certain models are able to hold up to 16GB of memory.

Nigel Harris, CEO of Powertrip originally fashioned the portable charger for its practical uses, but he quickly discovered that his product was a terrific tool for branding.

“When a corporation like Google or Ford or an organization like that wants to launch a new product or new service they like to give gifts to promote,” said Harris, “So we brand our product with Google’s name or Ford’s or whoever and they give them out to clients as free gifts. It is wonderful for us.”

Powerstick prefers to steer away from the bottom prices, extended terms and guaranteed sale-through of big box retailers; instead they deal primarily with promotional distributors. But as popularity grows and public demand rises, Powerstick is now offering online sales capability for those who want to purchase products in smaller quantities on their website.

As technology continues to evolve, battery life remains ever more important. Even though innovations have been made, all battery will still inevitably die.

“Every couple of months you’ll read in the newspaper about how so and so somewhere has come up with a brand new technology that will revolutionize battery storage,” Harris told Techvibes. “But it never actually gets brought to market. We are going to be stuck with the same battery technology for practical purposes.”

Whether it is with new companies, new technologies or new geographical areas, Powerstick is in a position of infinite opportunities. They will once again be entering four new products in the CES Awards and will also be attending the PPAI Expo in January with great intention of promoting to distributors worldwide.

“We are in a really cool spot,” said Harris. “We are conceiving and executing on brand new products all the way from concept to the production units inside of five months and it is very very exciting. We are winning awards and we are this little Canadian company.”

Canadian App ‘Get to Know’ Puts Outdoor Adventures in Palm of Your Hand

/ Elliot Chan / Leave a comment

In 1999, famous Canadian wildlife artist Robert Bateman introduced an annual art contest dedicated to getting youth out into nature and experiencing the wonders of the wild.

Six years later, the Get to Know program took what Bateman started and transformed it into a digital format that is more accessible to the public. The new “experiential program” blends the environmental with technological creating a platform that engages and educates the public.

Joining forces with organization such as Parks Canada, US Forest Service, Canadian Wildlife Federation and others, Get to Know has developed a game for iOS and Android that puts the users in scenarios where they have to physically explore and connect with the environment. Targeted for an audience ages nine to 14, Get to Know plays like a scavenger hunt where answering trivia and uncovering clues earns experience points that advances the players in rank and progress them through national parks, zoos and other natural sites.

The first test drive of the app took place in the Calgary Zoo, using QR codes to trigger clues and achievements at various areas. “We are finding that kids enjoy the context of pretending to be spies when seeking for QR codes,” said Andrew Munroe, program coordinator of Get to Know. “Because the storyline of the app is about joining a spy agency, they feel it is little more of a spy-like activity.”

“In national parks you cannot install anything new,” Munroe told Techvibes. “You have to use what is already there. Eventually we like to do away with QR codes altogether, because there is the issue of maintenance and vandalism, and getting permission to install a small post can be a huge undertaking.”

Although QR codes are effective in the game play, Get to Know is hoping to move forward into using Bluetooth low energy beacons that can be buried in the ground and has battery life to last years.

Get to Know is consistently adding new features into their game and expanding to different natural locations. Currently the team is planning to introduce the game to Mount St. Helen’s National Volcanic Monument in Washington in September. Other sites they are aiming to include in the near future are Vancouver, Kelowna, Los Angeles, and even Cumberland, Wisconsin.

“We want to create a value-added proposition for people who are already at the site,” Munroe explained. “With this app we are more focused on bio-diversity so it is really about the species we are profiling. So we plant a code in front of known grove of red cedar in Stanley Park and then we can get people to engage with the red cedar in a way that is other than just looking at it.”

Get to Know is currently a work in progress, but with the strong goal of focusing on app and game development specifically targeted for socially conscious, active living-based clients, the possibility is infinite. Currently Get to Know is working in collaboration with Taking it Global and Heritage Canada to develop an app celebrating the 150 anniversary of Canada, which is coming up in 2017.

“That will be another location-based, educational app that we are pretty excited about,” added Munroe.

Voices.com Links Professional Voice Talents With Exciting Projects

/ Elliot Chan / Leave a comment

Our voice, although it might often just be a reverberation in our throat conveying opinionated nonsense, still makes up a significant part of us. Like our face and body, a tone of voice can say a lot about a person and that’s why it is vital to find the right one for any marketing or artistic projects.

Since 2004, London, Ontario-based Voices.com has been connecting voice talents with exciting projects. The website caters to two groups: professionals looking for jobs as voice actors and those seeking talented voice actors. From advertising agencies to video producers, a quality voice actor can do wonders for the end product. But with a shift in the industry and advancement in technology, both parties are discovering new avenues of finding jobs and talents. Voices.com has been one of the first to pioneer the new way of doing business online.

“It’s vastly superior to the traditional model,” explains David Ciccarelli, founder and CEO of Voices.com. “It is kind of like travel. In my experience, I don’t know anybody who goes into a travel agency anymore. They would rather use Travelocity or Expedia or Hotel Tonight or anything. It is the same kind of business model, but we are recreating it and putting it online.”

SEE ALSO: Voices.com Raises $500,000

Voice acting is a luxurious profession that allows both audition and deliverable to be accessible electronically. Although some actors thrive on stage or in front of a camera, voice actors tend to work exclusively in a postproduction environment. Even though talent agencies still exist representing actors via paper-based formats, Voices.com recognized that in order to keep pace with modern technology, they must embrace the digital format.

“We are here to support the talent,” Ciccarelli told Techvibes. “If they start at Voices.com and graduate on to having an agent in New York or LA, then that is wonderful. But I think they will remember where they started. We operate in a very open and inclusive manner.”

Clients seeking voice talents with Voices.com can easily access the self-service posting that allows them to highlight the talents they are looking for. By stating key details such as language, gender, age range and some artistic direction (cowboy, teacher, accent, etc.), Voices.com will be able to take the gathered information and match it with a thousand of profiles on the website. And then using an algorithm, Voices.com’s software will select the perfect candidates for the job. From there the selected actors can audition for the role.

“Our software are only as good as people filling out the profile,” noted Ciccarelli. “The more information they put in their profile and the more helpful it would be for finding a job for you.”

Voices.com uses a quoting process to charge clients depending on the scope of their project. By allowing the market to dictate the appropriate pricing for the job, both the client and the 100,000 voice actors in the system will get the most effective result for their efforts.

With a new responsive design and mobile app, Voices.com is now expanding to different languages. This new advancement will allow actors and clients in different countries to access the page in their translated tongue.

“We have a hundred different languages represented,” Ciccarelli added. “There are people all around the world who have these credentials and skill sets. It truly is one of those global markets that are built in, it’s just not efficiently run, and so that is our task.”

One App Scholarship Makes the Monotonous Task Of Applying For Scholarships Easier

/ Elliot Chan / Leave a comment

The future for high school graduates is incredibly daunting. Uncertainty lingers at every corner and competition is intimidating and fierce, especially in the world of scholarships.

Every year, Grade 12 students across the country prepare for the next step in their lives. They take their photographs, rent their fancy dresses and suits, and apply for the most prestigious honours. Sadly the grueling process of filling out scholarship applications often leave students feeling demoralized.

Toronto-based startup One App Scholarship is opening a new avenue for students applying for scholarships. Now, one application is all it is going to take to be eligible in multiple scholarships, with a total of 300 scholarships in the program. For a submission fee of $29, winning students will have an opportunity to earn at least $1,000 in scholarship money.

“We are trying to figure out what people’s strengths are,” explains cofounder of One App Scholarship and recent high school graduate Jacob Catalano. “On the application there will be questions like, ‘tell me a time when you are at your best’ or something along those lines, and what that question will do is it will allow the person to really delve in. And they will repeat that process a few times. After that we’ll ask them to reflect of everything they wrote. We are going to be awarding scholarships based on people’s ability to leverage their skills.”

The application process may be easier, but that doesn’t mean One App Scholarship is a free for all. Only the top 100 students who can highlight their most positive attributes will be entered per scholarship with a potential of earning money for post-secondary. “People associate scholarships with competition,” said Catalano, “But we didn’t want to make it daunting with the feeling of ‘I’m not going to win.'”

One App Scholarship is planning to launch on September 5, but the idea of a convenient application process is quickly catching on in high school classrooms all across the country. The monotonous task of applying for scholarships has deterred students from even giving it a chance since the existence of scholarships. It is often not the best student who wins the award, but the students who put in the most time and actually apply.

“It’s really fragmented,” Catalano told Techvibes when describing other type of scholarships. “Each scholarship wants to award a specific individual. They really want to try to identify with that one person when they are creating the criteria for the scholarship. It makes it seem very very exclusive. And not very welcoming to general public.”

Although the prestigious scholarships might never change their process, One App Scholarship is creating opportunity for those without the ability to invest the time. But the theory for this young startup is that if a scholarship wants to award their money to the best student, then it only make sense to get the most amount of people to apply, instead of simply scrapping from the bottom of a barrel.

While One App Scholarship is currently focused on helping Grade 12 students get the most out of their post-secondary experience, they are also aiming to assist university and college students as well in the next step of their lives—finding a job. One App aims to be more than just an application website; they are striving to be a mentor for the next generation of vibrant learners and workers.

Canadian Startup Lazymeal Delivers Quality Meals to Your Door

/ Elliot Chan / Leave a comment

A good meal is worth every penny. A good meal delivered to your door, well, that might just be the jackpot.

Vancouver-based Lazymeal is aiming to improve your odds of enjoying quality food in the comforts of your own home or office. The innovative food ordering website allows normal everyday people the luxury of dinning in without the hassle of cooking.

With deadlines and responsibilities clouding our judgments, determining what we want to eat is an absolute challenge. Yet nourishment is essential. So, Lazymeal does the heavy lifting for us by researching the highest rated restaurants in your area and assisting in the process of selecting dishes and placing order. All we have to do is sit back and wait for the knock on the door or the chime of your novelty doorbell.

“We are not trying to have any kind of restaurant,” Shervin Enayati, a cofounder of Lazymeal, told Techvibes. “We want to maintain a balance between service and quality. Our requirement is that they have to have delivery. Without delivery it is not going to work. We find the best delivery restaurants in town, get their menu digitized for our platforms and from there you can just order.”

Only the best restaurants make it onto the website. Using Yelp and Urbanspoon ratings, the crew at Lazymeal handpicks the top restaurants in different cuisine. Greek, Thai, Japanese, the possibility is vast, yet the process is concise.

The idea for Lazymeal came in 2011 during a rainy day in Vancouver, go figure. When the weather conditions caused phone lines to go out of service and ordering food became almost impossible since most restaurants operate with landlines.

“There has to be a better, more efficient way,” thought Enayati. “We moved from building software for clients to building software for ourselves. We evaluated the market, realized what is missing in the current food ordering market. It was a market space that has already seen traction, it wasn’t one with zero activity, but we realized there was a lot of improvement left to be done in the food ordering experience.”

By incorporating pictures and statistics, Lazymeal offers a sophisticated approach to what was once considered a tedious task. Although food delivery services is not as popular as other metropolitan cities, Lazymeal believes that as the city continues to grow, food delivery will inevitably improve.

“If you go to a bigger city, like New York,” explains Ryan Charmley, lead technologist at Lazymeal, “delivery is so ingrained into daily life of people there. There are bicycle couriers delivering food everywhere and all these little boutique shops offering their own little delivery. It is a very convenient way to access food when you are busy.”

Lazymeal allows us to fit a delicious meal into a hectic schedule, even though delivery food is often accompanied by a slight stigma.

“It’s usually the traditional pizza or Chinese food,” notes Charmley, “there is no real movement. I’m hoping that everything moves in the same way as the food carts that have happened over the past few years. It’s been popularized and ingrained in everyday lifestyle.”

Perhaps this is the beginning of a dinning revolution or maybe it is just an alternative to the hustle and bustle of eating out. Either way, Lazymeal is hungry for change and they are leading the charge.

Vancouver Startup Medeo.ca Offers Virtual House Calls

/ Elliot Chan / Leave a comment

Visiting the doctor is often a hassle. Since the days of house calls, patients are forced to find time in their busy schedule, travel down to the physician’s office and wait in a crowded waiting room. Vancouver-based company Medeo.ca might just be the cure to that great inconvenience. The new online platform offers patients the ability to consult with their doctors through most computers and mobile devices.

British Columbians with valid Medical Services Plan coverage can use their computers, smartphones or tablets to speak face to face with their doctors. The secure video conferencing works the same way as a webcam and accessing the website only takes minutes. Once the user signs up with Medeo they will then speak with a coordinator who will assist them with appointment bookings and preparation, as well as connecting them with their current physician if they offer Medeo-based care.

After using Medeo.ca doctors can prescribe medication, refer a specialist and upload care plan information all from the website. New telehealth solutions have proven beneficial to all patients around the world. In 2012 a study done by the Canadian Institute for Health showed that one in three Canadians have problems when getting to a doctor appointment. Putting off a visit to the doctor can lead to dangerous results, but with Medeo.ca patients can have easier follow-up visits, disease management and access to specialists. All the while freeing up some space in the waiting room.

“Medeo.ca is helping British Columbians enjoy improved access to healthcare,” said Ryan Wilson, CEO of Medeo Corporation. “We have created a unique made-in-BC app that allows patients to connect with doctors throughout British Columbia through secure, online video conferencing.”

Currently Medeo has over 60 physicians taking part on the website. Medeo.ca might be an online service, but it still functions like any other clinic. Physicians are charged an overhead for using the virtual office space on Medeo. The website itself is not proving the health care; they are merely providing a safe, secure and convenient place for health care.

Doctors seeking improvement in health care accessibility founded Medeo. The online option will have many positive outcomes for the Canadian health care. As more and more people adapt this new way of seeing the doctor, emergency-room wait times will drop significantly as only those who need to be there will be there. While a visit to the emergency room can cost MSP anywhere around $700, an online visit will cost $40 at most. Virtual checkups will also greatly benefit those with chronic diseases who would need to see their doctors more frequently than others.

Security is a vital part of any patient and physician relationship, so Medeo makes certain that all confidential health data, patient records and medical information are safe in what they describe to be a “world class, military-grade, bank-level secure data centres.”

“Our information is housed in the same facility as the BC provincial government,” said Wilson.

Even though Medeo only had its launch on Monday June 3, it is already planning to expand to other provinces in Canada.

For now it doesn’t matter whether you live in rural British Columbia or in downtown Vancouver, convenience and efficiently are things we all appreciate. Although none of us want to see the doctor that often, sooner or later we are bound to get sick. A visit should not have to be a grand spectacle, we shouldn’t have to book days off or cancel plans—visiting the doctor should be as simple as chatting online with a friend.

 

Toronto’s Wimoto Seeks Funding for Multi-sensory iOS and Android Device Called Motes

/ Elliot Chan / Leave a comment

In mid-May, Toronto-based startup Wimoto launched a new tiny sensory device that can measure just about anything from climate to light levels. Motes are about the size of five quarters stacked on each other. They have a weatherproof shield and their clever construction allows them to be placed just about anywhere.

The wireless sensor works cohesively with iPhone, iPad, Android, Linux or Raspberry Pi devices to help you stay connected with your world. Rather you are trying to find the perfect soil temperature to grow your garden in or if you want to monitor your new born daughter, Mote just about does it all with a battery life that last about a year and without the need of any Internet connection.

In order to sense and measure certain locations with accuracy, Motes must be extremely durable. Coated in a silicone gasket on the enclosure, a one-way membrane for the humidity sensor and the same electronics coating used on oilrigs, Motes are state of the art tough.

“I originally got the idea due to my interest in gardening,” said Marc Nicholas, Chief Technology Officer and creator of Motes. “But when my son was born, I wanted to monitor the temperature and humidity in his bedroom overnight for health reasons, and I was surprised to find no low-cost, simple iPhone solution existed.”

Data from the Motes can be uploaded through the cloud service simply by accessing the free app or by using the optional mote.cloud bridge for real-time information via Wifi.

Wimoto is currently campaigning for the Motes on Indiegogo. They have doubled their goal of $22,000 and there is still 36 days left on the fixed funding campaign. With $43,000 already in the back pocket, the possibilities are endless, just like the Motes themselves.

There are currently four different breeds of Motes. The Climote was the first, built for its precise measurement in ambient temperature, humidity and light level.

Next came the Growmote, which alerts the user’s iPhone or Android when it is the ideal time to water plants and also send warning about harmful growing conditions such as frost or wind chill.

Then there is the Thermote, which works great for measuring pool temperature, food, animal habitats and anything else, but unlike traditional thermometers, the Thermote does not require probing. Simply point it at the object and you will get its temperature.

After exceeding their original funding, Wimoto was able to introduce the Securimote. An infrared motoion sensor that is able to detect human movement up to a 16-foot radius. An onboard accelerometer will notify users whenever the Securimote moves, perfect for alerting when someone approaches a door or if a toddler climbs out of bed at night.

Wimoto have been developing Motes for many years and now as funding is reaching the next level, they are preparing for pre-production. Indiegogo funding will go to several major task, plastic enclosure moulding, regulatory testing, and electronics assembly and fulfillment.

Prototypes for additional Motes are also in the works, if funding continues to go as well as it has, Wimoto wouldn’t mind adding them to the existing campaign.