A nice slice
Tech companies to split $1.7 million in federal funding announced in New Waterford
When Slyce Canada Inc. opened in New Waterford in 2014, not only did the major technology company become part of the community, it also began changing lives.
Justin Hurley, a managed services specialist, was hired two-and-a-half years ago. He formerly had a home business that specialized in computer and technology repair.
“It changed my life in a tremendous way, I was able to buy a nice house in Dominion.”
On Friday. Mark Eyking, Liberal MP for Sydney-Victoria, was in New Waterford to announce a combined $1.7 million in funding for Slyce Canada Inc. and Ubique Networks Inc.
The announcement included $736,000 to Slyce, a visual search and recognition company, to help it expand its core technology through a $500,000 loan from ACOA through its business development program and up to $236,000 through the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program.
Eyking also announced almost $968,407 for Sydneybased Unique Networks Inc., which includes a $468,750 loan from ACOA’s BDP, and up to $499,657 through the NRCIRAP to assist with the commercialization of its Swarmio “lagless” gaming technology.
Andrew Sheppard is another Slyce success story. Born and raised in River Ryan, he moved to Toronto to work for Maple Leaf in their IT data centre in 2006 before moving to Halifax in 2010
“My goal was to get home because I was getting married and I wanted to be close to my wife, Lydia,” he said, adding she works a nurse at the Cape Breton Regional Hospital.
He then heard about Slyce from a friend, and in August 2014 was hired as a managed services specialist.
“I was able to move home and we were married two months later,” he said. “It’s great being close to home and it was a great opportunity as it was a new startup with new and exciting things happening.”
Eyking said it has become clear over the past few years that one of the best ways for people to live and work in their own hometowns is through new technology.
“The world we live in today is hyper-connected by intelligent software and devices,” he said, adding that many technologybased companies have “come out of the gate at top speed.”
“Our government encourages innovation because we know innovation leads to productivity, growth and, of course, prosperity.”
Eyking said the government’s contribution of $1.7 million in support of the local technology sector was a good investment for the area.
“Today’s recipients are promissing examples of why technology has become such a dynamic influence in building a stronger and more robust economy here in Cape Breton and throughout Atlantic Canada.”
Cape Breton Centre MLA David Wilton, MC for the press conference, said talent is the key component to innovation and Cape Breton has the talent, know-how and resources that technology-based companies are looking to harness.
“Nova Scotia is fast becoming a hot spot for tech startups.”
Spokesmen for both technology companies said the funding allows for expansion and more jobs.
Ted Mann, CEO of Slyce, said they are hiring for four positions in total right now, including a computer vision specialist and a machine learning specialist.
“We are expanding as a team and growing as a company.”
Slyce, which has 30 employees in New Waterford, creates visual search and image recognition technology which allows people to take pictures on their smartphones or tablets, and then matches those photos with products available from a range of retailers.
Mann said their visual recognition technology provides a retail moment for people, as a person can take a picture and search for the most identifiable product through major retailers. Mann said they have 25 major U.S. retailers as well as retailers in Canada. He said a month ago they landed Tommy Hilfiger as a client; the company was looking for an app that could identify clothes runway models were wearing at a fashion show, but in real time.
“It’s the most ambitious thing we’ve ever done,” he said. “They loved it, the fashion show was in Los Angeles, called Tommyland.”
“It was an awesome showcase of our technology in action.”
Colin Cummings, manager of managed services, has been with Slyce from the start.
“The news today is awesome, I look forward to our IT department growing. This is a huge step in that direction and keeping our IT growing. This is very important to keeping things growing in New Waterford, very important to the community.”
Ubique Networks Inc. will also benefit from federal investments to assist with the commercialization of its Swarmio “lagless” gaming technology. This technology enhances the player experience in multiplayer online games by optimizing latency across networks.
Vijai Karthigesu, CEO and founder of Ubique Networks Inc. said they started in 2015 with four employees and now have 20, including 12 in Sydney, three in Halifax and five in Toronto.
He said they will eventually be opening several more offices across the world, including Singapore.
“We will be expanding globally — huge — hiring up to 50 people, a minimum of 15-20 in Sydney and maybe more. We are hungry for talent and Sydney is our head office.”
Karthigesu said the general public is unaware that the quality of most Internet service is actually quite poor, but their technology will allow for real-time applications through unique technology applied to gaming.
He said 2.1 billion people play video games online, making it a $100 billion industry. An estimated 265 million people actually tune in through Twitch to watch other people play.