SPEAKERS & MENTORS

Meet the 2026 Speakers and Mentors

We’re packing the stage with a powerhouse lineup of experts from every industry. Whether you’re looking to learn from veteran founders, seasoned investors, top-tier CEOs, or strategy specialists, we are bringing the best in the business straight to you. Meet the speakers and mentors set to help you move faster, build smarter, and level up at Startupfest 2026.

Harley Finkelstein

President, Shopify

Misti Cain

Investor, Mighty Capital

Georges St-Pierre

Professional athlete, Georges St-Pierre Enterprises

Johnathan Nightingale

Co-founder, Raw Signal Group

Andres Barreto

Managing Director, Techstars

Melissa Nightingale

Co-founder, Raw Signal Group

Marty Weiner

Founder and CTO, VerifyYou

Laurel Hess

Founder, Hampr

Andrew Lockhead

CEO, Stay22

Christopher Slowe

Senior Technical Fellow, Reddit

Haley Bryant

Partner, Hustle Fund

Rene Caissie

CEO, Medeloop

Sam Colby

Chief Operating Officer, Finalytics, Second Wind & TWENTY6

Becky Wang

Head of Strategy, Metafide

Lianne Vineberg

Founder, T6 Talent Partners

Operating Partner, Maverix Private Equity

Albert Ho

General Partner, No Talking Capital

Shingai Manjengwa

Head of AI Education, Mila – Quebec Artificial Intelligence Institute

Fatima Khamitova

Director, Startups, Vector Institute for AI

Sylvain Perron

CEO, Botpress

Christy Canida

Partner, Alchemist Accelerator

Neil Grunberg

Managing Partner, Storytime Capital

Dr. Theresa Johnson

Head of Product, Roblox Operating System (Enterprise AI)

Tam Danier

Lead Solution Design Architect, Launch @ NTT Data

Ron J. Williams

Founder, ScamHERO // Co-created

Laura Lalonde

Founder & CEO, GridBank

Teija Bean

Head of Product Design, Forum Ventures, AI Studio

Mitch Joel

Founder, ThinkersOne

Harper Reed

CEO, 2389 Research, Inc

Michelle McBane

Managing Director, StandUp Ventures

Eva Lau

General Partner, Two Small Fish Ventures

Catherine Ouellet-Dupuis

General Partner, White Star Capital

Vishar Yaghoubian

CEO / Co-Founder, Toothpod

Shambhavi Mishra

Associate Partner, Antler

Jonathan Lowenhar

Founder & CEO, Enjoy the Work

Tara Akhavan

Partner, Jolt Capital

Rami Sayar

Senior Director of Engineering, Microsoft AI

Claude Théoret

Senior AI Advisor, Innovobot

Erin O'Keefe Graham

Managing Partner, Imaginal

Mark Smith

Partner, BDC Capital

Charlotte Murray

Chief Operating Officer , The Farmers' Truck

Lida Tohidi

CPO & Certified Coach, Pidari

Chris Shipley

Partner, C/R Strategy Partners

Morgan Willis

Principal Cloud Technologist, Amazon Web Services

Robert Spaima

Program Manager - Quantum Lab, BioInnovation Institute

Roberto Cipriani

Startup Advisor | Founder, Paper Education

Melissa Sariffodeen

CEO & Founder, Arcbright

Justin Brasier

Investment Director, Fonds de solidarité FTQ

Amanda Hall

Founder and CEO, Summit Lithium Technologies

Vicky Boudreau

CEO & Co-Founder, Heylist

Karl Théard

Managing Director, Quebec and Atlantic Canada, RBCx

Patricia Riopel

Founding Partner, MAGNUM Capital Partners

Randy Smerik

Entrepreneur, Osunatech

Ian Bergman

CEO, Alchemist Accelerator

Trish Nixon

Venture Partner, Amplify Capital

Carter Li

CEO, SWTCH Energy Inc.

Justin Brasier

Investment Director, Fonds de solidarité FTQ

Kelly Gauthier

President, Rally Assets

Kath Intson

CEO, Sentinel R&D

Gabriel Sundaram

Founder, Attain

Katy Yam

Partner, Real Ventures

Sévrine Labelle

Managing Director, Thrive Lab & Thrive ETA Fund, BDC

Geneviève Bouthillier

Executive Vice-President, BDC Capital

Mona Minhas

Managing Partner, Thrive Venture Fund – BDC Capital

Brittany Conners

Chief Executive Optimist, Optimistic Theory

Matthew Roberts

Managing Director, Fund Banking & Early Stage Banking, RBCx

Mélissa Canseliet

CEO, Mindlock

Christina Moro

Entrepreneur in Residence, Mila Ventures

Anna Jacobson

Partner & Chief AI Enablement Officer, Operator Collective

Douglas Soltys

Editor in Chief, BetaKit

Isaac Souweine

Partner, Venture Scientist Fund

Erica Barbosa Vargas

Director, Private Markets, Eclipx Family Office

Etienne Crevier

Animator, Les Dérangeants

Avery Swartz

Founder & CEO, Camp Tech

Rita Kasparian

Senior Director, BDC Capital

Anita Nowak

Author, Purposeful Empathy, Consultante Anita Nowak

James Povitz

Principal, NAventures, National Bank of Canada

Nectarios Economakis

Partner, Amiral Ventures

Ian Jeffrey

Founder, New Venture

Marc-Andre Roberge

Founder, CEO, Nectar

Sam Hasty

Partner, Active Impact Investments

Joshua Goodfield

Executive Director, VC Platform

Lyne Landry

Founding and Managing Partner, Agetech Capital

Jennifer McDonald

Senior Vice-President, Investments, Cycle Momentum

Marianne Dubois

Head of Discovery, Inovia

Sylvain Carle

Co-Director, CIVIC

Jogral Jean

VP, Relationship Manager, RBCx

Jean-Nicolas Delage

Partner , Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP

Déborah Cherenfant

Entrepreneurship strategist, Cabinet Blindspot

Alistair Croll

Content Chair, Startupfest