Canada is home to some of the best innovators in the world. From one of the first smartphones to award-winning traffic management systems to a tiny camera for the high-resolution imaging of blood vessels, the technologies and solutions created here have improved lives and communities worldwide.
Bringing innovations to market requires a variety of supports, including equipment, expertise and policy. The University of Waterloo delivers these resources and more to ensure the next generation of entrepreneurial talent can thrive.
Ranked the number one school for entrepreneurs in Canada, Waterloo has created an innovation ecosystem grounded in decades of collaboration with industry. Together, University students, faculty, alumni and staff have founded more than 1,000 ventures, spurring economic growth across the country.
"Waterloo should know that it's offering a different tier of talent," said Tobias Lütke, CEO and co-founder of Shopify, in a recent fireside chat with Vivek Goel, president and vice-chancellor of the University. "Be proud of that accomplishment."
Shopify participates in the University's world-leading co-op program, hiring 40 per cent of its interns from Waterloo. During the chat, Lütke added that the University's co-op students stand out to executives in Silicon Valley as well as Canadian employers.
Photography by Samuel Chan
While Shopify benefits from the caliber of Waterloo's students, the University also benefits from the partnership. Shopify is a world-class company, building products for entrepreneurs and globally recognized brands, driving $1.1 trillion in commerce globally. Co-op students work alongside top talent, on cutting-edge technology, setting them up for success after graduation.
Co-op plays a critical role in Waterloo's innovation ecosystem. With more than 8,000 employers hiring students from across the University, the program gives next-generation talent early insight into industry challenges. Applying their knowledge from the classroom, students develop technologies and solutions for broad-scale industry impact. That ability to connect ideas, said Lütke, is vital to a successful career.
"The number of times I've solved a challenge with something random I learned two weeks before is stunning to me," he said. "People who bring fluid intelligence to a job have a strong leg up."
More than 45 programs at Waterloo help students build their innovation mindset, including Velocity, the Conrad School of Entrepreneurship and Business and the GreenHouse Social Impact Incubator. The University's creator-owns intellectual property policy grants students and researchers full ownership of their work a unique offering that attracts innovators and industry partners to our ecosystem. These investments have generated strong returns: in 2019, an economic impact study by Deloitte found that, in just over a decade, Waterloo's entrepreneurship programs had created more than 7,500 jobs and revenues of over $2.3 billion.
"To build a world-class company, you need to find other people who are willing to go on a long-term journey with you," Lütke said. His company, recognized as one of the world's most innovative places to work, is bringing students on board to help him do that. "You will do extremely difficult things, but that's what makes it so compelling. In Canada, we have the talent and work ethic to build and thrive."
