UNB News
News and stories from one of Canada’s top universities

UNB to host Techstars Startup weekend

Author: UNB Newsroom

Posted on Feb 4, 2020

Category: UNB Fredericton

The University of New Brunswick, in partnership with the City of Fredericton and Planet Hatch, will be hosting a Techstars Startup Weekend from Feb. 21 - 23, 2020, on UNB's Fredericton campus.

Techstars Startup Weekend is a global grassroots movement of active community leaders and entrepreneurs who are learning the basics of founding startups and launching successful ventures. Startup Weekend organizers and facilitators are from hundreds of cities around the world. From Mongolia to South Africa to Canada to Brazil, people around the globe will come together for 54 hours of workshops. They will pitch ideas, form teams, and start companies to change their lives, as well as those around them.

Led by UNB, Techstars Startup Weekend Fredericton is a collaboration among entrepreneurial ecosystem partners including the City, Planet Hatch, Startup Fredericton, Civic Tech Fredericton and Google Developer Group Cloud Fredericton.

"This is an exciting collaboration between UNB, the City of Fredericton, and Planet Hatch illustrating the strong startup network the city has to offer," says Dr. Dhirendra Shukla, ACOA Chair, J. Herbert Smith Centre, UNB Fredericton. "It's a critical opportunity to pull students, UNB faculty, newcomers, and community members into a 54-hour event."

"The City of Fredericton is pleased to partner with the University of New Brunswick on Fredericton's Startup Weekend 2020," says Mayor Mike O'Brien. "We look to our students - the entrepreneurs of tomorrow – to help develop new and innovative ways of tackling civic issues, improve service delivery, and create a more sustainable future."

"Events like Startup Weekend are important because they bring together ideators and builders,” says Adam Peabody, director of Planet Hatch. “This type of collaboration spurs innovation and facilitates potential startup opportunities, which ultimately help to grow prosperity in our region."

The event will take place in Room 201 of the Kinesiology building, UNB Fredericton, and goes from 5:30 p.m. on Feb. 21 to 9 p.m. on Feb. 23. Early-bird weekend tickets are currently available through Eventbrite.

Media contact: Angie Deveau

Photo credit: Cameron Fitch/UNB