Contact the Problem Lab
Mathematics and Computer Building, room 2057
University of Waterloo
519-888-4567, Ext. 36421
To be a successful entrepreneur, it is essential that you find an important problem to solve, and thoroughly understand its scope, scale, and history. That’s why the Problem Lab hosts the Quantum Valley Investments® Problem Pitch Competition, where teams of students are tasked with the challenge of identifying important industry problems and conducting research, before pitching their findings for the chance to win a share of over $30,000 in funding.
Six teams were selected as finalists from over 40 applicants. Teams are competing for two awards of $7,500 in funding to support their ventures. Teams will also have the opportunity to double their funding following the event as they work with the Problem Lab to develop a solution to the problem identified. Below are the finalists and the problems they have identified:
Aqua-Cell Energy: Shortcomings in energy storage technology have caused solar energy production for commercial and industrial (C&I) electricity consumers to lag behind residential and utility scale solar energy production.
Miss Mechanic: The mechanical and electrical complexity of modern vehicles leads to gaps of knowledge creating disparities in information between car owners and automotive repair service providers. This is leading to overselling and overcharging on vehicle repairs.
RightScript: Electronic prescribing systems, such as electronic medical records (EMR) and electronic health records (EHR), lack adequate sophistication to prevent prescription errors.
Authentik: Non-fungible token (NFT) companies do not have a highly reliable way of verifying the intellectual property in the NFTs they produce.
Maesos Technologies Inc.: Pests and diseases are decimating global field yields as the current methods to monitor these threats are insufficient.
Pipit: Grocery stores struggle to match consumer demand using sales data.
The Quantum Valley Investments® Problem Pitch Competition is made possible by $300,000 in funding from Mike Lazaridis and Doug Fregin, principals of Quantum Valley Investments® and founders of Blackberry.
Mathematics and Computer Building, room 2057
University of Waterloo
519-888-4567, Ext. 36421
The University of Waterloo acknowledges that much of our work takes place on the traditional territory of the Neutral, Anishinaabeg and Haudenosaunee peoples. Our main campus is situated on the Haldimand Tract, the land granted to the Six Nations that includes six miles on each side of the Grand River. Our active work toward reconciliation takes place across our campuses through research, learning, teaching, and community building, and is co-ordinated within the Office of Indigenous Relations.