В Ванкувере запустили масштабный форум BC Founders Day для объединения разрозненного стартап-сообщества

Chris Neumann spent much of his career in the startup mecca of Silicon Valley. So when the BC native moved back to Vancouver in 2021 to join Panache Ventures, he quickly took note of the differences between the two ecosystems. “[Vancouver is] one of the only ecosystems that doesn’t have a nexus for startup activity.” “Vancouver’s a very unique startup ecosystem in that it is the most fragmented ecosystem that I know of in the whole world,” Neumann told BetaKit. “It’s one of the only ecosystems that doesn’t have a nexus for startup activity.” But he’s been working at changing that. Neumann started BC Founders Day—an annual event that focuses on bringing Vancouver’s startup community together—after a conversation with Version One founding partner Boris Wertz. Now in its third year, the event was conceived during a conversation on how to reinvigorate the BC startup landscape in the wake of COVID-19. “We were noticing how this dynamic became worse post-COVID-19, and we were like, ‘hey, maybe we can do something about it?’” Neumann said. “I pinged a bunch of notable founders in Vancouver … and said if I put something together … would you guys give up half a day, and we’ll do some mentoring and panels?” The answer was overwhelmingly supportive, according to Neumann, with more than 400 people registering for the event on the first day. Mentors and mentees Neumann designed Founders Day as an event that would ensure collisions between early-career entrepreneurs and established professionals in the startup sector. The event builds on a mentor-mentee relationship where nearly 100 established founders, identified by Hawaiian lei necklaces, indicate to new founders they’re available for mentorship. RELATED: Panache’s Chris Neumann on FounderFuel’s return and “shitty” VC behaviour That portion of the event, which runs in the morning and features panel discussions alongside networking, is for founders only. It’s a rule the organizers rigorously enforce by vetting attendees to ensure the right collisions happen. It’s not all so exclusive, though. Afternoon programming is open to the wider tech ecosystem. Scaling up Since its inception, the conference has grown. Its second year saw attendance jump from around 500 to more than 750. Organizers hope 2026’s attendance will follow a similar trajectory. This year also marks the first time the conference is being held at South Flats, an outdoor venue near Vancouver’s Emily Carr University, rather than the Vancouver Convention Centre. This year’s theme is “what does exceptional look like?” It features seminars from some of BC’s biggest business success stories, including a conversation with Jack Newton of Clio and panel discussions with founders from Koho, Moment Energy, and Soma Energy, as well as VCs from throughout the BC and US ecosystems. There’s also a debate closing out the event on a topic particularly salient to entrepreneurs from the Lower Mainland: to build in BC, or make the move south of the border? For Neumann, the last three years have been evidence the conference is on the right track. “It’s starting to get there. We’ve had a ton of feedback from people telling us this is a great event to make connections, that they’ve received investment here, [and] that they’ve hired here,” he said. “It’s a good reminder that there is a lot of stuff that’s going on in the Vancouver ecosystem … as founders, you can feel a bit isolated, and it’s a nice reminder that there’s a ton of people doing awesome stuff in this city and province.” Tickets to BC Founders Day are available here. BetaKit readers can use the code MOST_AMBITIOUS for 20 percent off the price of any ticket. CORRECTION (08/13/2026): A previous version of this story suggested Boris Wertz was involved in launching BC Founders Day. Chris Neumann launched the event after a conversation with Wertz, but Wertz was not directly involved. The story has been updated to reflect those facts. Feature image courtesy Chris Neumann.