MaRS: Innovate inclusively. Compete fiercely.

MaRS is fuelling the engine of Canadian economic growth and job creation

MaRS: Innovate inclusively. Compete fiercely.

Building a successful company is an ambitious goal. But at MaRS, we aim higher still.

We support the disruptors, innovators and visionaries who have bold solutions to the toughest problems. MaRS is more than North America’s largest urban innovation hub. We are a leader in innovating with impact.

We focus on four specific sectors—cleantech, health, fintech and enterprise software—where the potential is greatest to build global companies that can generate substantial profits, create thousands of jobs and help solve major challenges.

Solving global challenges

The companies we support are building reliable, affordable energy storage systems and smart grids, breaking the last major barriers to electricity systems that run entirely on renewable power. They’re using the vast data-crunching power of algorithms to digitally unravel the human genome and accelerate drug discovery. They’re using artificial intelligence to make the hiring process fairer for all. And they’re redefining business models, creating companies that build social and environmental responsibility into everything they do.

MaRS supports these ventures with a unique innovation model that combines Canadian values and an ambitious global vision. We innovate inclusively, but we compete fiercely.

Creative collisions

The 1,200 Canadian companies that MaRS supports benefit from more than the expert advisory and services provided by our ventures teams. They are part of an innovation community like no other. MaRS is one of the few places on earth where cancer scientists rub shoulders with artificial intelligence researchers, where venture capitalists might sit next to the startups they fund, and some of Canada’s biggest financial institutions and global corporates are just down the hall.

More than a launchpad for startups, MaRS is a bridge between Canada’s leading ventures and global innovators, with 1.5 million square feet of cutting-edge lab space and offices where startups and multinational companies work side-by-side. Our carefully curated mix of corporate partners and tenants includes Facebook, PayPal, Microsoft and Autodesk.

MaRS is a leading centre for artificial intelligence, housing the Vector Institute as well as facilities for Uber’s self-driving car division, a research lab for Samsung, RBC’s Borealis AI and Element AI, a Canadian venture. And our building is also a focus for medical research. The McEwan Centre, BlueRock Therapeutics, CCRM and XOR Labs are applying breakthroughs around stem cells to advance regenerative medicine. Alongside these, MaRS also houses the only JLABS outside the U.S., an incubator where startups can leverage the expertise and resources of healthcare giant Johnson & Johnson.

This carefully curated, collaborative environment has been created at MaRS with one overarching goal: growing Canadian ventures into global powerhouse companies.

Turning startups into scaleups

Operating at scale, with a network of international partners, MaRS is able to connect made-in-Canada ventures to all the components they need to go global. As North America’s largest innovation hub, we are a gateway for talented workers and venture capital investors looking to enter the Canadian market. We can provide soft landings for Canadian companies entering foreign markets and help with building their international profile through marketing and public relations support.

The results speak for themselves. Last year, MaRS-supported ventures generated $1.3 billion in revenues and employed more than 12,800 people in towns and cities across Canada.

As Toronto’s tech star rises, MaRS is well positioned to leverage this momentum. World events have aligned to give Toronto a window of opportunity to leap forward as others stumble and to build a tech ecosystem that can be the engine of Canadian economic growth and job creation.

Expanding the MaRS footprint

MaRS is seizing the moment with a recently announced expansion to a new innovation centre on Toronto’s waterfront, our first permanent outpost beyond our existing building. In Toronto’s tight real estate market, this new hub will provide much-needed affordable office space for ventures.

We aim to extend MaRS’ collaborative model to this new waterfront hub, co-locating startups with corporate partners in a diverse and vibrant innovation community. Ultimately, this will help us support more Canadian companies that will make an impact on the world stage.