Vanessa Lee

Cohere CEO Aidan Gomez says that #1 blocker for Enterprise GenAI use cases is data privacy and #2 blocker is the cost (implies ROI). He also explained what Canadian AI startup, Cohere does and how they make money. A must watch for anyone who is interested in Enterprise GenAI use cases. He also said that GenAI fear mongering is cheap ways to get attention (I am paraphrasing, he didn’t use the word cheap). Quite a bit commentary on Google Cloud AI developments as well. Other mentions Oracle and Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Aidan comes across as a mature tech leader for his young age. He sounds more realistic and less me too, in GenAI hyped era. Aidan was talking to CNBC’s Steve Kovach. https://lnkd.in/g36SFYfn ____________________ Last month, Cohere has raised $450 million in funding from returning investors such as Nvidia and Salesforce Ventures, as well as new investors including Cisco and Canadian pension fund PSP Investments cc David Vellante David Linthicum John Furrier Ron Miller Shelly DeMotte Kramer Robert Hof

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The Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) tax incentive is one of Canada's most powerful tools for fostering tech innovation - enabling businesses to recoup up to 65% of their R&D salary costs. Here's the troubling reality though: While this program distributes ~$4B annually to 20,000 businesses, an unnecessary "SR&ED consulting industry" has emerged that extracts $400M-800M from these funds. Why? These consultants capitalize on companies' fears about complex paperwork, despite the fact that 94% of SR&ED applications are approved. They charge 10-20% of the tax credit simply to complete forms. Let that sink in: Nearly a billion dollars meant for Canadian innovation is instead diverted to middlemen who add minimal value. At Publicus, we're passionate about streamlining government processes through automation. While SR&ED reform isn't our current focus, we believe in raising awareness about the systemic, government-related inefficiencies that hold back Canadian tech companies. #CanadaTech #GovTech #Grants #Innovation

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👋 Hey product hiring managers! You may have noticed dozens of people now with a new certificate from the Alberta Product Leadership Program. If you manage or are prospectively seeking a new PM to join your team, you should know that: 1) The program is selective. You can't just sign-up. Since it's inception, the program has sought to upskill professionals that have shown their motivation for growth and desire to hone their product management craft. 2) The graduates get broader exposure to practices and industries beyond their resume. Our sessions are interactive and facilitate sharing of perspectives and ways of working across multiple organizations - from grassroots startups to FAANG giants. 3) There's more to it than training. During the course of the program, many participants gain mentorship, build a supportive peer group, and get out of their comfort zone. The program is refreshed every year by hiring managers just like you to optimize for the skills we need to hire and promote for. So if you see the APL certificate with a candidate profile, know that candidate choose to do more than your average course. #abtech #yyctech #yegtech #productmanagement

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As the founder of tabii.cloud, I’ve learned a thing or two about staying laser-focused. 🎯 We’re all about one thing: providing private and secure SOCKS proxies for seamless access to the Canadian internet. 🇨🇦 In my previous startup gig, we tried to juggle too many balls at once. The result? Thrash—not the cool kind you find in skate parks, but the chaotic, work-sanity-draining kind. 🌀 The Power of Singular Purpose: Imagine a tightrope walker. Their entire existence hinges on that thin line. Similarly, when your startup zeroes in on a single product, it’s like finding your balance. 🎪 The Thrill of Mastery: Becoming the go-to in your niche is exhilarating. It’s not about being a jack-of-all-trades; it’s about being the ace. 🃏 Customer Love: When you pour heart and soul into one thing, your users feel it. They become loyal fans, spreading the word like confetti. 🎉 Peace Amid Chaos: Remember that startup chaos? Well, focus is your lifeboat. It keeps you afloat when the waves get wild. 🌊 So, embrace the Zen of Singularity and unleash a cascade of positive outcomes. 🙏 #StayFocused #TabiiCloud #StartupLife #TorontoTech

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“Who in the audience already thinks that AI is conscious?” I asked a Vancouver AI crowd last night. Check out the first 3 minutes of my presentation below. Full video on YouTube: https://lnkd.in/ge-dc3wa Thrilled to be able to have conversations about consciousness in AI. Thanks to Kris Krüg for the opportunity! #ConsciousAI #YouAreConscious #VancouverAI

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Checkout is just a form. How hard could it be, right? 🤷🏻‍♂️ That's not wrong, but it turns out that the answer is "very". Once you account for all the business requirements (how things are sold, bundled, paid for, ..., delivered, etc.), the byzantine landscape of regulatory and compliance requirements around the world, and the operational scale of serving spiky traffic, ..., it's a challenging service to deliver and operate at scale. Checkout is complex. Shopify makes it simple. Fun conversation with Benjamin Popper and Cassidy Williams: https://lnkd.in/e-3aDwJu

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We turned a skeptic into a full-fledged AI believer after closing a deal driven entirely by AI within just 30 days of launch. Two weeks ago, we went live with Zemlar Offices, Ontario's largest co-working operator with over 25 buildings. The Challenge: - High volume of inbound leads 24/7 - Leads coming from 10+ third-party sites - Limited capacity to respond quickly and convert effectively Waleed R. Javed, ZEMLAR Offices head of sales, knew there was money left on the table due to these challenges. But Zemlar was cautious about AI solutions after being burned before by a provider that couldn't handle their unique, complex workflows and that hallucinated too often. Fast forward two weeks: Our AI agent autonomously closed a sale for one of Zemlar's products. No human intervention. No phone calls. No 60-minute meetings. Just pure, efficient AI-driven sales. All in all, companies with genuine challenges are often the most open to trying new solutions. Past disappointments with AI can lead to caution, but also to greater appreciation when the right solution comes along. And in the next 6-12 months, most businesses will start to realize that AI Isn't replacing humans. It's augmenting their capabilities, handling routine tasks so the sales team can focus on high-value interactions. P.S. Are you still skeptical?

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3. Sidekick We all already know and use AI like Chatgpt, but Shopify's Sidekick is like a Chatgpt trained on your own data. That's like the difference between a CEO and a (very smart) janitor. Also, Sidekick has access to your store, so it can make changes to it (like creating a customer segment or discount).

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We’re excited to announce that Erode AI will have a booth at this year’s Innovation Week 2024: Startup Studio Station in Calgary! Last year, we had an incredible time engaging with the community, sharing ideas, and learning from others who are passionate about innovation. This year, we’re bringing even more to the table. Erode AI is revolutionizing weather forecasting with cutting-edge generative AI technology, and we’re excited to show you how far we’ve come. Whether you’re in energy, agtech, insurance, or curious about the future of weather forecasting and weather-derived outcomes we’d love for you to stop by! 👥 Let’s talk about the challenges you face in your industry and how hyper-focused, AI-driven forecasting can help you solve them. 📅 Save the Date: 👉 When: November 20, 10am - 3pm 👉 Where: Platform Calgary #InnovationWeek2024 #GenerativeAI #WeatherForecasting #YYCInnovation #ErodeAI #Startups #FutureOfForecasting

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Final Reminder! Don’t Miss Out on Our Upcoming Workshop: Unlocking Product Market Fit! 🚨 We’re just a few days away from our interactive WIP Montreal workshop on Product Market Fit, and tickets are going fast! 🎟️ Join these really talented ladies Sabrina Damato, PPCC, Reforge alumni and Elitsa Asenova for an evening of hands-on learning, networking, and practical insights to take your PM skills to the next level. Wondering what you’ll work on? Here’s a sneak peek of the exercise: 🔹 Example Exercise: Let’s say your team selects a “Remote Work Productivity Tool.” Using a Lean Canvas, you’ll define customer problems, target segments, and outline potential solutions. This collaborative approach helps you gain real-world experience in validating and achieving product-market fit! 📅 Event Details: • Date: Thursday, November 7th • Time: 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM • Location: Nakisa Inc (2000 Rue Mansfield, Suite 301) 🗣️ Don’t miss this chance to learn, connect, and walk away with actionable strategies. Get your tickets here: https://lnkd.in/en_HTpcK See you there! #ProductManagement #WomenInProduct

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Collision Conf is one of the biggest tech+AI events in North America and I am looking forward to learning more in this exploding space. If anyone is heading that way, feel free to ping and we can connect! #AI #generativeAI #digitaltransformation

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Transitioning to a new role at Shopify has been a journey filled with both excitement and challenges. Here are a few key learnings from my experience so far. Prioritizing Information: One of the biggest challenges has been sifting through the vast amount of information available. With so much happening across the organization and an abundance of content to absorb, distinguishing between what's actionable and what's just for context is crucial. I've learned the importance of seeking early guidance from my team to help prioritize effectively. This approach has been invaluable in focusing on what truly matters and ensuring my contributions have the most impact. It's about striking a balance between being informed and overwhelmed, and I've found that open communication with colleagues has been key to navigating this. By actively engaging in discussions and leveraging the expertise of those around me, I've been able to streamline my focus and direct my efforts where they are needed most. Embracing Change and Adaptability: This is a dynamic environment where some applications and processes have been around for ages, while others may have been introduced just the month before I started. Some systems endure because they work exceptionally well, while others might be in desperate need of a rewrite, refactor, or replacement. This mix of tradition and innovation requires a willingness to ask more questions than anyone else in the room. It's about understanding the rationale behind existing systems and being game to exploring new approaches. Through all of this, I am realizing that change, while daunting, offers a chance for growth and reinvention. I was ready for a new challenge, and I got exactly what I was looking for. The supportive and collaborative spirit of the team has made this transition not only possible but rewarding. I'm lucky to be a part of this team, where the shared commitment to Shopify's mission makes it very clear we are all rowing together in the same direction. #Shopify #SoftwareEngineering #NewBeginnings #GrowthMindset

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We hosted our first ever Hangar DX dinner in SF this week! We kept the dinner intimate with 12 DX leaders from Slack, Notion, Figma, Reddit, Amplitude, LinkedIn, Yelp, Benchling, Babylist and AMD. This gave everyone opportunity to have open unfiltered conversation about the DevEx space today, and form real connections. These were some of my most surprising findings: 🌟 None of the DevEx teams have a Product Manager - it is extremely hard to find a PM for DevEx who truly understands and aligns with developers' complex workflow needs 🌟 Even though everyone feels the pain of ownership, no one is using any off-the-shelf IDP today 🌟 Roadmap is primarily driven bottoms up - everyone uses some form of surveys and internal interviews to inform the roadmap 🌟 Influencing C-suite and explaining impact seems to be on top of mind Thank you Poya Osgouei for helping host the dinner, and Aviator for sponsoring :) #developerproductivity #developerexperience #devex

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Not many people know the story of "why" Zenhub exists...so here it goes👇 Back in 2014, the team that would come to be "Zenhub" was a scrappy group of devs and PMs working at a product studio up in Vancouver. When clients are paying you to do work, they (rightfully so) want to understand where that work is at and “when is this going to be done?” The problem was that we could never answer that question… No matter what project management solution we tried (and believe me, we tried them all), we kept coming back to the same core problem. Context switching... Ie. our devs always felt like they were being forced away from where they were working from (ie. GitHub) in order to update our PM tools. So they didn't update them. Needless to say, this wasn't leading to a productive relationship with our clients. So our devs got together on a weekend to try and fix the problem. What they hacked together was a simple Chrome extension to bring a Trello-esque "task board" into GitHub. And as they say, the rest was history. Well, not really, but we’ll save that story for another set of posts… Reducing context switching has been core to our mission from day one. But while GitHub was the home for teams back in 2014, that's changed. Today that home is Slack. While I know people have a lot of mixed feelings about Slack, it has (for better or worse) become where “work” happens in most modern organizations. That’s why today, we’re announcing early access for an entirely new Slack integration that’s going to be a game-changer for how teams use Zenhub. While platforms evolve, that idea of “reducing context switching” has remained a constant, and we’re excited to double down on that mission with Slack. With this new integration teams will be able to create, plan, and track work in Zenhub all without having to leave a Slack channel. If you want to get hands on with what we’re building and join our early access program, check out the link in the comments below. #slack #github #developers #agile #scrum #projectmanagement #devex

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Shopify is such a cool story because of the way their existence totally changed their own total addressable market. Shopify made going direct-to-consumer easy. It's not just the storefront bits - it's the app ecosystem. Shopify enabled companies like ShipBob to turn highly physical processes into a software abstraction, dramatically reducing the capital required to launch a real-world DTC business. AWS did the same for software. Twilio did the same for software/telephony interactions. There's no way to "size" the market for category definers like this before they happen... because their very presence creates new markets.

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Too often, we get caught up in pursuing perfect outcomes, forgetting that innovation is a journey of trial and error. Check out my full Dialog interview with Mourad Zerroug, CTO at Splash (SplashThat.com): https://lnkd.in/eMgEyBt9

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By popular demand, I'm sharing the list of all tech events in Toronto for May here 👇 https://lnkd.in/eQc5yhjY Whether you're looking to learn from the best founders in the city, getting introduced to your next lead investor, hoping to land that next tech role, or just hang out with some of the coolest people changing the world, with over 130+ tech events on the list, there's bound to be something for you! My recommendations for events coming up? 1. Start with Toronto Tech Fest's exclusive Opening Gala experience (formal wear, food, drink, speakers, and secret passwords 🤫) 90% of all tickets sold, grab the last ones before they're gone! https://lu.ma/TTFGALA 2. Come see what people in the city are building at Demos Only! with Google. If you think you have the chops, sign up to demo what you're building yourself! https://lu.ma/qkmyfpyp 3. 6 of the top female founders will be battling it out at the Woman Founder Pitch Battle at the 6six. Signups are still live and pitching slots are open for women founders currently building their businesses. https://lu.ma/he8edd0d 4. Close out the week with a 1000+ person Founder Rooftop Mixer Party at Lavelle. This is shaping up to be the biggest startup gathering of the season, with an opportunity to meet, mingle, and learn with top founders, investors, operators, and business executives from across the tech space. https://lu.ma/b7jlqx2w If the list was helpful, please consider dropping me a like 👍 and helping to repost 🪃! Mell Truong Frank Chen Eric Lay Parry Chan Arda Erturk Victor Ou Oliver Xin ✨ Interested in more events in May? Check out lu.ma/torontotechfest for a whole month of amazing May tech events in Toronto! 👉 Got questions on the hottest tech events? Chat with us and stay in the know: lnkd.in/gNiWyJXv 📣 Want a list of all the tech events happening this month in Toronto? Click below 👇

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🚨Breaking news! So apparently I'm speaking tomorrow (Nov 20) at the Product-Led Alliance Summit here in #Toronto at the last minute! I'll be sharing stories and practical tips on how we as product leaders can tune out the noise to prioritize the right thing for our product team. 👋 If you're attending, come say hi! ✉️ Or hit me up if you're interested in this topic!

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