Innovation with a difference

The very founding of the University of Waterloo planted the seeds of a deep entrepreneurial culture here. Breaking from tradition, our founders established a university that integrated work-experience with academic and research excellence. This became the foundation for a unique culture of innovation. Today, innovators can access for-credit programs along with support, mentorship, funding and connections in a collaborative environment of more than 45 programs that includes our flagship incubator Velocity

Entrepreneurial researchers and students are drawn to Waterloo because of our distinctive innovation ecosystem. We encourage entrepreneurs by opening pathways from research to commercialization through incubators, corporate partnerships and a unique intellectual property policy that lets creators own what they invent. Our co-op program allows students to move between jobs and the classroom every four months, integrating theory with real-world experience. We actively support student-run programs like Zero, the Student Venture Fund and Hack the North, the largest hackathon in Canada