Talent

Nobody wants to think about the next pandemic. But we need to be prepared, and a critical step in prevention is early detection and intervention.

That’s why GoodLabs Studio, a company with strong ties to the University of Waterloo, is advancing the power of machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) to alert health-care authorities with real-time, data-driven insights for decision-making to prevent a future pandemic.

Named fastest growing tech company in Canada on Deloitte’s 2021 Technology Fast 50, Snapcommerce was co-founded by University of Waterloo alumni Henry Shi (BCS ’14) and Hussein Fazal (BMath ’05). The company has more than 20 million users, $1 billion in sales, and grew by more than 32,000 per cent between 2017 and 2021.

How can we create a fun, immersive viewing experience for NHL fans using 5G technology? That was the question 50 University of Waterloo students were looking to answer during a week-long hackathon hosted by Sportsnet and Rogers.

Inspired by archival photos published with the October 2021 story, A brief history of Black experience at Waterloo, 1960s -1990s, Dr. Christopher Stuart Taylor, associate vice-president Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-racism, had an idea. He wanted the images of Black faculty and students from our university’s past to be seen in large format in spaces around campus. Running with the idea, staff from the Library and Arts worked to surface more archival photos of Black faculty, students, and staff along with their histories.

Diversity in STEM is expanding with help from one of Canada’s largest financial institutions.

With a contribution of $1.04 million to the University of Waterloo, Scotiabank is providing support for talented researchers and students, including scholarships for students who are underrepresented in STEM fields. The investment is part of ScotiaRISE, the bank’s 10-year, $500 million initiative to promote economic resilience among disadvantaged groups.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, Professor Mark Servos has been working tirelessly to contribute towards our understanding of COVID-19, leading wastewater testing efforts locally and across Canada. His research has recently been highlighted in the media as wastewater surveillance becomes a significant tool in our community’s efforts to track the spread of COVID-19, and his efforts are being recognized with a Minister of Colleges and Universities' Awards of Excellence.

Jeremy Hartmann 
PhD, Cheriton School of Computer Science 
> Founder, MTION.tv 
> Researcher in human computer interaction 

Jeremy Hartmann successfully defended his dissertation in December 2021 and launched an entrepreneurial venture that took his academic research to the next level.