Waterloo founders are transforming how firmware is built and tested, with support from Velocity and the University of Waterloo's entrepreneurial ecosystem
As artificial intelligence (AI) learns to write code, it still struggles to test firmware without access to physical hardware. For University of Waterloo founders Seungmin Hong (BASc ’26) and Ahnaf Shahriar (BASc in progress), that challenge represented an opportunity.
That insight became Simantic, a startup developing simulation technology that allows engineers and AI systems to build, test and validate firmware in virtual environments long before physical hardware exists.
Hong launched Simantic in September 2025 as a solo venture aimed at modernizing hardware development workflows. The company gained momentum when Shahriar joined as a co-founder in early 2026. The two computer engineering students had known each other for years through Waterloo's engineering community and shared experience working in the hardware sector.
Their company was shaped by co-op experiences at Tesla, Neuralink and other hardware-focused organizations. Through those work terms, they repeatedly encountered the same bottleneck: engineers often spent weeks or months waiting for physical hardware before they could fully test firmware and embedded systems.
Those experiences exposed a challenge affecting teams across industries, from automotive and robotics to consumer electronics and semiconductor development.
The company's name reflects its mission. Hong came up with "Simantic" by combining "simulation" and "semantic," reflecting his belief that hardware simulation tools must evolve alongside AI-driven engineering.
While AI can increasingly help design hardware and write firmware, testing often remains dependent on costly and time-consuming physical devices. Simantic changes that by enabling testing in realistic virtual environments before hardware is manufactured.
"Today, AI can already help write hardware and firmware code, but testing remains largely manual and dependent on physical devices," Hong says. "We're building the infrastructure that lets engineers and AI validate those systems in simulation before hardware is ever manufactured."
Less than a year after launching, Simantic has earned spots in both the Velocity incubator and Y Combinator, rapidly raising its profile within the startup ecosystem. The company joined Velocity's startup program in 2026 and was recently accepted into Y Combinator's Fall 2026 cohort.
Velocity played an important role in the company's early growth. Before joining the incubator, Hong participated in Velocity's Cornerstone program, where he gathered direct customer insights, refined the company's direction and was recognized as one of the program's top students.
More recently, the founders travelled to San Francisco to meet customers, design partners, investors and fellow entrepreneurs. Acceptance into Y Combinator marked a significant milestone, providing access to one of the world's most influential startup networks and increasing interest from both customers and investors.
Hong and Shahriar credit Waterloo's co-op program, technical talent and startup community for helping them move from idea to venture-backed startup in less than a year. They also point to communities such as Velocity, Akatos and Builders' Club for connecting them with mentors, founders and investors.
Having raised approximately $600,000 USD to date, Simantic is focused on expanding its platform, supporting customers and accelerating product development.
The company is positioning itself at the intersection of AI and hardware engineering, helping modernize an industry that has traditionally lagged behind software in development speed and automation. As demand grows for AI-enabled engineering tools, Simantic is working to help hardware teams test earlier, move faster and bring products to market with greater confidence.
The company's journey from a co-op inspired venture to a fast-growing startup illustrates a shift in engineering, where advances in AI are creating new opportunities to rethink how complex hardware systems are designed, tested and brought to market.
