Government of Canada supports Electric Vehicle and clean technology that will lead to economic growth and job creation in the Ottawa region
News release
FedDev Ontario invests over $4 million for BluWave-ai Inc. and Tehama Inc. to create over 85 jobs, scale innovative cloud-based platforms and help Canadian businesses adapt to a digital and energy-efficient future
November 17, 2022 – Kanata, Ontario
Investing in businesses leads to good paying jobs and a growing economy while driving community development. The Government of Canada recognizes the vital importance of small- and medium-sized businesses, which is why we continue to make strategic investments to ensure their long-term economic and job growth.
Today, the Honourable Filomena Tassi, Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario), announced an investment of $4.4 million to support two Ottawa-based tech companies: BluWave-ai Inc. and Tehama Inc. This combined investment will create over 85 jobs, as well as leverage $12.6 million in private sector support to the region. Investments like these provide opportunities for Canadians to reach their full potential and drive community development.
Just a month ago, Prime Minister Trudeau and Premier Doug Ford announced a massive expansion of Nokia’s Kanata campus. This shows continued growth for the Ottawa tech region and investments like these ensure that good Canadian companies can scale up and their success will attract new talent.
BluWave-ai Inc. is a Kanata-based clean technology company that uses AI to help utility companies add renewable energy sources to its electricity grid. This $1.7-million repayable contribution will help BluWave-ai build and commercialize software products to manage Electric Vehicle (EV) fleet operations while reducing energy consumption and carbon-emitting vehicles.
Tehama Inc. is an Ottawa-based software company that offers accessible, easy and secure cloud-based remote workplace Desktop-as-a-Service (DaaS) solutions for SMEs and large enterprises, anywhere in the world. This $2.7-million repayable contribution will help the company integrate new technologies into its cybersecure platform to support global expansion efforts of its Carrier for Work™ solution.
By investing in these transformative technologies, the Government of Canada is supporting workers and businesses as we move towards smarter and more reliable technologies for Canadians.
Quotes
“Businesses are the heart of our communities across the country. That is why FedDev Ontario is investing in tech firms like Tehama Inc. and BluWave-ai Inc. that are creating the tools needed by our businesses to adapt to a new digital and energy-efficient future. Helping companies innovate so that they can increase their competitiveness and create high-quality jobs will continue to be a priority for our government. Investments like these ensure that tech hubs like Ottawa continue to attract new investments and contribute to a growing economy.”
– The Honourable Filomena Tassi, Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario
“Tech companies like BluWave-ai and Tehama Inc. are what build Ottawa’s growing history of tech research and innovation, and ensure that we keep pushing the boundaries to benefit our regional economy and Canadians. Today’s announcement will help home-grown technologies, while supporting the creation of over 85 high-quality jobs across the Ottawa region.”
– Jenna Sudds, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth and Member of Parliament for Kanata–Carleton
“For the past five years, BluWave-ai has been building one of the world's premier companies on the intersection of renewable energy, transport electrification, decarbonization, data and artificial intelligence. With this investment from FedDev Ontario, building off our successful patent protected electricity grid optimization software product, our company will be able to deploy its EV Fleet Orchestrator AI product with fleet operators in Canadian, U.S., European, and Indian markets. We are excited for the next five years of innovation in Canada!”
– Devashish Paul, CEO and founder, BluWave-ai Inc.
“This $2.7-million repayable contribution from FedDev Ontario will help us press on through these tumultuous times, supporting enterprises as they adopt tools that enable the secure exchange of work over the internet. As the demand for work-from-home solutions is forecast to increase, this funding could not have come at a better time.”
– Paul Vallée, Founder and CEO, Tehama Inc.
Quick facts
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Canada’s capital is one of the most diverse tech hubs in North America, home to 1,700 tech companies and more than 70,000 tech workers.
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In 2022, CBRE’s Scoring Tech Talent report ranked Ottawa as one of the top 15 tech hub cities in North America.
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Established in 2017, BluWave-ai helps municipalities, utility providers and commercial clients to integrate renewable energy sources. In 2021, BluWave-ai was a Deloitte Fast 50 Technology winner in the Companies to Watch category. For the third consecutive year, BluWave-ai made the top one hundred global cleantech companies for the Start-Up Energy Transition Awards. This year the award was for the BluWave-ai EV Fleet Orchestrator that optimizes how energy is used in electric fleets.
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Founded in 2019 as a spin-off from Ottawa-based Pythian, Tehama was created out of a need to improve the software available to connect a remote workforce and protect company information from threat of security breach. In February, Tehama was recognized as one the National Capital Region's Top Employers of 2022.
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Since 2015, the Government of Canada, through FedDev Ontario, has invested over $200 million in more than 190 projects in Ottawa region, estimated to create near 8,000 jobs and maintain over 7,000 jobs.
Associated links
Contacts
Edward Hutchinson
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister responsible for the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario
edward.hutchinson@feddevontario.gc.ca
FedDev Ontario Media Relations
fdo.mediarel-relmedias.fdo@feddevontario.gc.ca
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