2022 Hi5 Contestants left to right, Gihan Foneska, Braden Dennis, Tina Safaei, Chris James, and Baraa Fattal
BURLINGTON, ON., November 24th, 2022 – On Thursday, Haltech Regional Innovation Centre hosted its 6th annual Hi5 Pitching Competition. Returning in-person for the first time in two years at the Burlington Convention Centre, the competition showcased 5-high potential Haltech clients who pitched their business to a panel of judges for a chance to win a grand prize of $5,000, PLUS complimentary I.P. consultations with Bereskin & Parr valued at over $1,500.
That’s not all, we also let our audience vote to decide who should win the People’s Choice Award which includes a $1,000 cash prize as well as 40 hours of complimentary access to ACE Coworking Oakville.
What is Hi5?
Hi5 is our signature annual pitch competition. Our goal with Hi5 is to provide our founders and their start-ups with an opportunity to generate awareness for their company and brand, build the skills necessary to present in front of a broad audience and gain exposure to our broad ecosystem of industry partners to form new strategic connections.
The Ground Rules
Finalists are given 5-minutes to pitch their businesses. After each presentation, the judges are given up to 10 minutes for Q&A.
- Business concept
- Target customer and market problem
- Uniqueness to competition
- Go to market strategy
- Overall presentation
The Finalists
Powered by ARC
Powered by ARC builds tools for Sports and eSports organizations to manage their club, conveners to manage their leagues & tournaments, coaches to manage their teams, and players to manage their career.
Ecosystem Informatics Inc.
Ecosystem Informatics Inc. (ESI) is a next generation air quality monitoring and management system. With their proprietary, nimble, and smart technology, ESI can provide air quality insights on a scale with their mobile platform. ESI helps cities and industries manage their carbon footprint, optimize operational efficiencies, and achieve their sustainability goals.
Classlete
Classlete (the word “Class” as in “school” and “lete” as in “athlete”) is a membership platform helping high school athletes across North America who struggle to balance school, sports & their social life and who are frustrated with not getting recognized for their on and off the field of play accomplishments.
We provide opportunities for members to connect with likeminded athletes with access to a marketplace of the best academic, athletic and social resources to help them balance it all, while offering a unique way to share their stats, GPA & volunteer hours on social media through custom Classlete Sports Cards/Posters.
Pahk Solutions
Pahk Solutions provides a tech platform to communities which enables them to reduce their aggregate carbon footprint. This reduction will be achieved by helping individuals understand and manage their personal environmental impact. Pahk differentiates itself by making the process easy and engaging for users through an automatic carbon monitoring feature and a gamified user experience.
Stratosphere.io
Stratosphere.io is Yahoo Finance on Steroids. By combining powerful institutional level research tools and data you won’t find anywhere else, Stratosphere.io is the best financial data platform on the internet.
The Awards
People’s Choice
Congratulations to Tina Safaei of Pahk Solutions for winning this year’s People’s Choice award, containing a cash prize of $1,000, PLUS 40 hours of complimentary access to ACE Coworking Oakville valued at $1,200.
Tina Safaei of Pahk Solutions named winner of the People’s Choice Award
First Place Winner
Congratulations to Braden Dennis of Stratosphere.io for being named this year’s competition winner. Our first place winner received a cash prize of $5,000. On top of that, Braden will also receive complimentary intellectual property (IP) consultations up to $1,500 in value, courtesy of Bereskin & Parr.
Braden Dennis, Founder of Stratosphere.io, wins first place at Hi5 Pitch Competition
Thank You
Panel of Judges
Pitch Practice Mentors
Thank you to our pitch practice mentors who donated their valuable time and expertise to ensuring this year’s finalists were well-prepared for their pitches.
Sponsors and Partners
