Alberta’s first University startup investment fund continues to grow with 36 investments and five funds
Calgary, AB – Innovate Calgary is pleased to announce the appointment of two directors to the UCeed Startup Investment Fund. Alberta’s first university investment fund supporting research and innovation-focused startup companies, UCeed is managed by Innovate Calgary on behalf of the University of Calgary.
An integral part of the University of Calgary’s mandate to be the most entrepreneurial university in Canada, the UCeed Startup Investment Fund and its donors are pioneers in the field of venture philanthropy. Launched in 2020, UCeed has grown to five funds, a portfolio of 36 investments and has $18M of AUM (Assets Under Management).
UCeed is a group of philanthropically powered, commercially minded, pre-seed/seed-stage investment funds with a mandate to help the most promising early-stage companies bridge the gap between innovation and commercialization.
Dr. Jehangir Appoo joins as Director, UCeed Health Fund and the UCeed Child Health & Wellness Fund. Vincent Chahley joins as Director of the recently launched UCeed Energy Fund. Both Mr. Chahley and Dr. Appoo have served as members of the UCeed Investment Advisory Group and bring valuable leadership to the Fund.
“We are excited that these two experienced community leaders see the positive impact that UCeed is having and have joined our team for the next phase of UCeed’s development.”
John Wilson, President and CEO, Innovate Calgary
Vincent Chahley, Director, UCeed Energy Fund
Vincent is an active member in the Calgary startup community. He is a mentor in the Creative Destruction Lab working with all three CDL Rockies streams of Energy, Ag and Prime and participated in the Health and Wellness and Risk Streams at CDL Wisconsin last year and has been an Angel Investor in several CDL companies. He was instrumental in founding the UCeed Haskayne Student Fund and serves on the Investment Advisory Group. Vincent is Chairman of Phyto Organix, a Calgary based Ag and Food startup company. In his prior career, Vincent was an energy industry investment banker working with RBC Capital Markets (co-head of their Calgary Office) Tristone Capital (a founding partner and head of Investment Banking), FirstEnergy and Burns Fry where he started his career in Toronto. He has served on numerous boards of Calgary based private and public oil and gas companies.
Jehangir Appoo, Director, UCeed Health and UCeed Child Health & Wellness Funds
Jehangir is in a second career at the intersection of Finance, Medicine, & Impact. In 2020, he founded AioT Health, Artificial Intelligence of Things Healthcare, a syndicate Venture Capital fund focusing on early-stage companies applying AI technology to reimagine the boundaries of healthcare. His work as an Associate at CDL sites in Calgary, Vancouver, Toronto, Montreal, and Oxford, allows Jehangir to mentor early-stage companies globally. Locally, Jehangir has served on the UCeed Health IAG and been an Expert Advisor at the Life Science Innovation Hub. In addition to being immersed in the startup ecosystem, Jehangir contributes to pushing forward academic frontiers with an adjunct Associate Professorship at the University of Calgary where he leads international trials in cardiac science and serves on editorial boards. Whilst in clinical practice at the University of Calgary, he helped establish the Artificial Heart Program, performed southern Alberta’s first artificial heart device implant, and founded a multidisciplinary Thoracic Aortic Program focused on open, hybrid and endovascular interventions.
UCeed portfolio companies receive investment and business development support during the critical transitional stage of the startup journey. Investees utilize UCeed funds to accelerate key business and technology/product development milestones, preparing and positioning themselves for follow-on investment.
The UCeed portfolio currently includes five funds: Health, Child Health, Social Impact, Energy, and the Haskayne Student Fund.
UCeed funds are supported by a generous community of donors and strategic partners including the Alberta Children’s Hospital Foundation, River Fund at the Calgary Foundation, United Way of Calgary and area, Government of Alberta’s Creative Partnerships, Don Archibald, Cannonball Sport and Education Foundation, TD Ready Commitment program, Tamaratt Fund at Calgary Foundation and the Global Research Initiative.
For media inquiries contact:
Megan Geyer
Head, Marketing & Communications
Innovate Calgary
403.270.2431
mgeyer@innovatecalgary.com
About Innovate Calgary
Innovate Calgary was founded in 1986 to support the University of Calgary’s innovation community. Our team of experts offers intellectual property and business incubator services to researchers, entrepreneurs, and businesses within the advanced technology sector. Innovate Calgary supports commercialization by providing business and technical advice, workshops, assessments for commercial potential, access to sector resources and networking events, licensing and intellectual property protection, impact measurement discovery, company creation/incubation programs, and office and lab space.
About UCeed
Managed by Innovate Calgary, UCeed is a group of philanthropically powered pre-seed/seed-stage investment funds with a mandate to help the most promising early-stage companies bridge the gap between innovation and commercialization. UCeed portfolio companies receive investment and business development support during the critical transitional stage of the startup journey. Investees utilize UCeed funds to accelerate key business and technology/product development milestones, preparing and positioning themselves for follow-on investment.