Techopia Live: What’s happening with venture capital? | Episode 269

Ottawa Business Journal

These are uncertain days for technology executives looking to secure venture capital. The sky-high valuations from the pandemic have tumbled and macroeconomic factors, ranging from high interest rates to runaway inflation, have cooled public and private investment markets. This dramatic change in venture capital is captured in a recent report from BDC Capital. The report indicates the number of VC-backed deals in 2023 dropped by 13 per cent, when compared to the previous year. Worse yet, when measured in dollars, venture capital is down 34 per cent compared to 2022. But it’s not all bad news in Canada’s tech sector. Many companies are pursuing deep tech ventures, including everything from artificial intelligence to quantum computing. This deep tech has big potential. In this episode of Techopia Live, Ottawa Business Journal publisher Michael Curran speaks with Sumita Banerjee and Thomas Park of BDC to explore venture capital trends and what BDC is doing to foster deep tech ventures.