Vancouver's AI funding hit $1.4B+ in 2024 and grew another 22% in 2025. These 12 investors are actively writing checks into AI startups in BC right now - from seed-stage deep tech to Series B industrial AI.
Vancouver has two types of AI investors right now. The first is homegrown BC funds - Yaletown, Vanedge, Rhino - that have been backing technical founders in the province for years. The second is national capital like BDC, Radical, and TELUS Ventures that show up on Vancouver cap tables because the deal quality is real.
If you're building AI in Vancouver, both matter. The local funds get to a first meeting faster. The national funds come in at Series A and above once you have traction and clear metrics. Getting both types to look at your company is a different process.
Vancouver's AI scene is no longer a footnote to Toronto and Montreal. Sanctuary AI has raised over $140M for general-purpose robotics. Inverted AI closed a seed led by Yaletown for autonomous vehicle simulation. Web Summit brought 768 investors to Vancouver in May 2026 - the largest investor turnout the event has ever seen.
The list below covers 12 investors that closed AI deals in Vancouver or actively deploy into BC-based AI companies in 2026. Read how to build a data room for VC fundraising before you start reaching out.
| Stage | Check size | Sector focus | Contact | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yaletown Partners | Seed, Series A, Growth | $1M-$15M | AI, industrial software, physical AI | yaletown.com |
| Vanedge Capital | Seed, Series A, Series B | $1M-$15M | Hard tech, AI, semiconductors | vanedgecapital.com |
| Version One Ventures | Seed | $100K-$1.3M | AI, robotics, deep tech, Web3 | versionone.vc |
| Rhino Ventures | Series A | $2M-$10M | Enterprise AI, SaaS, healthtech | rhinoventures.ca |
| InBC Investment Corp. | Seed, Series A | $2M-$15M | AI, deep tech, cleantech, healthtech | inbcinvestment.com |
| TELUS Ventures | Series A, Series B, Series C | $5M-$100M | AI, IoT, enterprise platforms | telus.com/en/global-ventures |
| BDC Capital Deep Tech | Seed, Series A | $500K-$5M | AI, deep tech, cleantech | bdc.ca |
| Radical Ventures | Seed, Series A | $1M-$50M | AI-native companies, machine learning | radical.vc |
| Evok Innovations | Series A, Series B | $5M-$30M | AI for heavy industry, cleantech | evokinnovations.com |
| Pender Ventures | Series A, Series B | $2M-$15M | B2B AI, healthtech, enterprise software | penderventures.com |
| Export Development Canada | Series A, Series B | $5M-$50M+ | AI, deep tech, export-ready companies | edc.ca |
| Creative Destruction Lab | Pre-seed | Up to $250K | AI, quantum, life sciences | creativedestructionlab.com |
See who actually reads your AI pitch
Upload your deck to Ellty and send trackable links. Know which Vancouver VCs open your materials and which slides they spend time on.
Start free 14-day trialWhat is a Vancouver AI investor?
A Vancouver AI investor backs founders building machine learning systems, applied AI products, and AI infrastructure. They differ from generalist VCs because they evaluate model architecture, training data quality, and technical defensibility - not just market size slides.
Check sizes run from $250K pre-seed at CDL and InBC to $100M+ at TELUS Ventures. Most first institutional checks in Vancouver land between $1M and $5M at seed stage. Growth rounds above $10M typically require national or US capital coming in alongside the local fund.
What separates Vancouver AI investors from Toronto is proximity to deep tech talent at UBC and SFU, plus access to Pacific Rim partnerships. Yaletown's Intelligent Industry thesis explicitly targets AI applied to physical industries like energy, manufacturing, and logistics. Vanedge was a D-Wave investor when quantum was still considered too early.
Vancouver AI founders often get underestimated in national fundraises. Use Ellty to organize your technical documentation, model performance data, and IP filings before any partner meeting. Send a trackable link so you know which slides get the most attention. For broader context, explore the British Columbia investors list that covers non-AI sector funds in the province.
Building in atoms still has a real differentiator, if you nail it.
12 Vancouver AI investors in 2026
1. Yaletown Partners
The Vancouver firm with $600M AUM and the most specific AI thesis on the West Coast - Intelligent Industry, meaning AI applied to manufacturing, energy, logistics, and agriculture rather than pure software plays.
- Recent Deals: Inverted AI seed co-lead (generative AI for AV simulation, 2023); GHGSat $47M Series C participation (September 2025); Nanoprecise $38M Series C lead (2025); IGF III first close at $100M CAD (July 2025) targeting $250M final close
- LinkedIn: Yaletown Partners LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: Physical AI, industrial software, edge computing, advanced analytics, robotics
- Stage Focus: Seed, Series A, Growth
- Location: Vancouver, BC
- Website: yaletown.com
2. Vanedge Capital
Vancouver's most technical early-stage fund - their managing director Paul Lee helped grow D-Wave and Electronic Arts, and the team goes deep on semiconductor, AI infrastructure, and analytics architecture in diligence.
- Recent Deals: Mojo Vision $75M Series B Prime participation (September 2025); NeuroBionics $10M seed co-lead (December 2025); Fund IV closed with InBC $10M commitment (March 2025); $500M+ AUM across four funds
- LinkedIn: Vanedge Capital LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: Hard tech, AI, analytics, semiconductors, enterprise software
- Stage Focus: Seed, Series A, Series B
- Location: Vancouver, BC (also Silicon Valley)
- Website: vanedgecapital.com
3. Version One Ventures
Boris Wertz runs Vancouver's most globally-connected early-stage fund - he's backed Coinbase, Uniswap, and Ada from seed, and in 2025 shifted explicit focus to AI, robotics, and science-driven deep tech.
- Recent Deals: NiaHealth $3M pre-seed (April 2025); active deployment across AI and Web3 from Fund VI; portfolio includes Ada, Jobber, and Dapper Labs; $250M+ AUM; 100+ portfolio companies
- LinkedIn: Version One Ventures LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: AI, robotics, deep tech, Web3, climate, marketplaces
- Stage Focus: Seed (pre-seed to early seed)
- Location: Vancouver, BC
- Website: versionone.vc
4. Rhino Ventures
The Vancouver fund that most commonly co-invests with Radical Ventures and is known for patient, high-conviction seed bets. Their Thinkific and Ontopical exits show they can back software companies from early stages through acquisition.
- Recent Deals: ShopVision seed (September 2025); Ontopical acquisition by SOVRA (August 2025); 27 portfolio companies with 2 IPOs and 8 acquisitions; 2 new investments in the last 12 months
- LinkedIn: Rhino Ventures LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: Enterprise AI applications, SaaS, healthtech, B2B software
- Stage Focus: Series A
- Location: Vancouver, BC
- Website: rhinoventures.ca
5. InBC Investment Corp.
BC's $500M provincial strategic fund - they backed Sanctuary AI, Novarc Technologies, and Inverted AI's parent fund, and announced a $20M joint fund with SFU at Web Summit Vancouver in May 2026.
- Recent Deals: Novarc $50M Series B participation (March 2025); Vanedge Fund IV $10M commitment (March 2025); Yaletown IGF III participation (July 2025); SFU Innovates Venture Fund $7.5M co-anchor (May 2026); 38 BC companies in portfolio as of early 2026
- LinkedIn: InBC Investment Corp. LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: AI, deep tech, cleantech, healthtech, life sciences
- Stage Focus: Seed, Series A (also invests in VC funds)
- Location: Vancouver, BC
- Website: inbcinvestment.com
6. TELUS Ventures
TELUS's corporate VC arm is headquartered in Vancouver and backed Waabi's $750M Series C in January 2026. For AI founders building IoT, telecom infrastructure, or enterprise platforms, TELUS can accelerate commercial traction through its network.
- Recent Deals: Waabi $750M Series C participation (January 2026); CubeWorks investment (November 2025); TELUS AI infrastructure expansion of $1B in Vancouver announced (May 2026); 57 total investments across main Ventures fund
- LinkedIn: TELUS Ventures LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: AI, IoT, enterprise platforms, logistics tech, healthtech
- Stage Focus: Series A, Series B, Series C
- Location: Vancouver, BC
- Website: telus.com/en/global-ventures
Track every investor who views your pitch
Set up an Ellty data room before your first Vancouver VC meeting. You'll know who's engaged before you follow up.
Start free 14-day trial7. BDC Capital - Deep Tech Venture Fund
Canada's most active co-investor by deal count - they backed Sanctuary AI, Novarc, and most institutional BC AI rounds. Their Deep Tech Venture Fund writes $500K to $5M checks specifically for hard tech and AI companies.
- Recent Deals: Sanctuary AI strategic financing co-lead with InBC (July 2024); Novarc $50M Series B participation (March 2025); continuous deployment into BC AI companies; 384+ total investments across all BDC funds
- LinkedIn: BDC Capital LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: AI, deep tech, advanced manufacturing, cross-sector Canadian tech
- Stage Focus: Seed, Series A
- Location: Vancouver, BC (national presence)
- Website: bdc.ca
8. Radical Ventures
Toronto-founded but with active Vancouver deal flow - they co-invest heavily with Rhino Ventures and backed Waabi. Their $650M Fund 4 closed in October 2025, the largest early-stage AI fund raised in Canada.
- Recent Deals: Waabi $750M Series C participation (January 2026); Outset Series B (late 2025); Fund 4 $650M close (October 2025); 76 portfolio companies, 12 new investments in last 12 months; 6 unicorns including Cohere and WRITER
- LinkedIn: Radical Ventures LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: AI-native companies, machine learning infrastructure, physical AI
- Stage Focus: Seed, Series A
- Location: Toronto, ON (active Vancouver deal flow)
- Website: radical.vc
9. Evok Innovations
Vancouver's cleantech-AI crossover fund - they backed Sanctuary AI as a strategic co-investor and invest in AI that solves hard problems in energy, critical minerals, and industrial automation. Not for pure software plays.
- Recent Deals: ARIX Series B participation (January 2026); Disa Technologies $30M Series A2 (August 2025); Rodatherm Series A (October 2025); Sanctuary AI co-investor; 27 active portfolio companies
- LinkedIn: Evok Innovations LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: AI for heavy industry, clean energy tech, industrial decarbonization
- Stage Focus: Series A, Series B
- Location: Vancouver, BC
- Website: evokinnovations.com
10. Pender Ventures
Vancouver's Series A specialist for B2B AI and healthtech - Maria Pacella leads a fund with $100M+ AUM that has backed Jane Software, DrugBank, and Engineered Intelligence. Their most recent investment was in April 2026.
- Recent Deals: Engineered Intelligence Series A (April 2026); Catio $3M co-investment (March 2025); Veritree $6.5M Series A co-lead with Garage Capital (May 2025); Fund II closed at $100M+ with Alberta Enterprise and InBC as LPs
- LinkedIn: Pender Ventures LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: B2B AI software, healthtech, enterprise software, industrial transformation
- Stage Focus: Series A, Series B
- Location: Vancouver, BC
- Website: penderventures.com
11. Export Development Canada (EDC)
Canada's export credit agency - they led Novarc's $50M Series B in March 2025 and co-invest across BC AI rounds. Underused by founders who don't realize EDC writes equity checks alongside debt instruments.
- Recent Deals: Novarc $50M Series B lead (March 2025); Yaletown IGF III participation (July 2025); continuous co-investment across BC deep tech and AI companies with export potential
- LinkedIn: Export Development Canada LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: Export-ready AI, deep tech, advanced manufacturing, cleantech
- Stage Focus: Series A, Series B (equity plus debt instruments)
- Location: Ottawa, ON (active Vancouver deal flow)
- Website: edc.ca
12. Creative Destruction Lab - Vancouver
CDL's Vancouver stream at UBC runs pre-seed cohorts for science-based AI founders. The program pairs you with serial entrepreneurs as mentors and connects you to CDL's global investor network, including US funds that rarely look at early Canadian AI outside this context.
- Recent Deals: Inverted AI early-stage support (AV simulation AI); 4AG Robotics early cohort participation; active 2026 cohort running through UBC with AI, quantum, and life sciences streams
- LinkedIn: Creative Destruction Lab LinkedIn
- Sector Focus: AI, quantum computing, life sciences, deep tech
- Stage Focus: Pre-seed (up to $250K)
- Location: Vancouver, BC (UBC campus)
- Website: creativedestructionlab.com
How to approach Vancouver AI VCs
Vancouver investors respond to technical specificity faster than pitch decks with big TAM slides. Yaletown will ask what industries your AI replaces labor in. Vanedge will ask about your model architecture and where your training data moat comes from. Know the answer before you walk in.
Cold email rarely works with these 12 investors. The BetaKit Slack and VanTech Journal events are where the first conversation actually happens. CDL alumni and Rhino portfolio founders give the warmest intros. Find one relevant portfolio company founder and reach out directly.
Set up your startup data room with technical documentation, model benchmarks, and customer evidence before any intro lands. Upload to Ellty and send trackable links - you'll see which investors open your deck before you decide to follow up. Check who your target fund has co-invested with; most Vancouver AI deals involve two or three of these 12 investors in the same round.
What Vancouver AI investors check first
The first question from every fund on this list is the same: what is the data moat? Pure API wrappers on foundation models don't qualify. They want proprietary data, novel training pipelines, or hardware-level integration that competitors can't replicate in six months.
Unit economics are the second filter. Vancouver AI investors have watched enough growth-at-all-costs failures to require a clear path to positive gross margin. If your inference costs are higher than your revenue per customer, explain how scale changes that with math, not slides.
Dead pilots are the fastest way to lose a warm intro. If your biggest customer has been in a pilot for eight months without a signed contract, every investor on this list will flag it. One paying customer with real churn data is more useful than five enthusiastic pilots on your deck.
Upload your data room to Ellty and share trackable links to your benchmarks, financial model, and customer contracts. Vancouver AI VCs will request materials within 48 hours of any promising conversation. Read about virtual data room features to understand what access control and analytics you need for your raise.
SR&ED credits and how they affect your raise
Most Vancouver AI founders underestimate SR&ED. Canada's Scientific Research and Experimental Development tax credit returns up to 35% on qualifying R&D expenditures. Every $100K in eligible engineering costs generates $35K in refundable credits.
Vancouver AI investors factor SR&ED into their burn calculations. If you're not claiming it, you're artificially inflating your cash needs in a way that makes your ask look larger than it is. Get an SR&ED advisor before your Series A pitch, not after.
The enhanced 35% ITC threshold jumped to $4.5M in 2025 and capital expenditures are now eligible again. GPU and computing infrastructure costs may qualify. This is directly relevant to AI training spend and changes the unit economics story you pitch to investors like BDC and InBC.
How to pitch a Vancouver AI investor
Five steps for founders raising from AI investors in Vancouver in 2026.
- 1.Lead with your data moat, not your product featuresOpen every pitch explaining what data you have that competitors can't replicate. Vancouver AI investors filter by defensibility before they evaluate market size or roadmap.
- 2.Know your inference cost per transactionVancouver AI VCs ask about gross margin and inference costs before the second meeting. Have exact numbers - cost per API call, per user, per prediction - not rough estimates.
- 3.Get a warm intro from a portfolio founderCold email conversion at Yaletown, Vanedge, and Rhino is under 3%. Find one portfolio company founder on LinkedIn and ask for 15 minutes on their fundraising experience.
- 4.Build your data room before your first intro landsUpload technical docs, model benchmarks, customer contracts, and your cap table to Ellty. Vancouver AI investors ask for materials within 48 hours of any promising first call.
- 5.Send each investor a unique trackable linkUse Ellty's per-investor links so you see who reviews your AI benchmarks. If a partner spends time on your model architecture slides, follow up on that specific point directly.
How Ellty helps you land a Vancouver AI investor
You've identified the right 12 investors. Here's how to get your materials in front of them in a way that signals execution speed. Upload your AI pitch materials to Ellty and share a unique trackable link with each investor you contact.
- 1.Build your AI data room with all technical filesCreate an Ellty data room and upload your pitch deck, model benchmarks, and financial model. Vancouver AI investors request technical documentation within hours of any promising conversation.
- 2.Set granular permissions per investor linkRequire email verification before access to your proprietary model architecture and training data. Use screenshot protection for sensitive IP files in your AI data room.
- 3.Get real-time alerts when investors open your deckKnow which investors open your materials and which slides they spend the most time reviewing. If a Yaletown partner reads your model benchmark section twice, follow up the same day.
Common questions about Vancouver AI investors
- Not always, but it helps at seed stage. InBC and CDL strongly prefer BC-based founders. Yaletown, Vanedge, and BDC will fund remotely if traction is clear and the team has ties to BC.
- Usually 10-14 weeks from first meeting to wire. Having an Ellty data room ready from week one prevents the back-and-forth that adds weeks to most BC seed processes.
- Yes, but expect questions about BC presence and export potential. EDC and InBC both have mandates tied to BC jobs and global commercialization - explain how your company contributes to both.
- At least $1M ARR with clear gross margin visibility, one named enterprise customer, and a defined US market entry plan. BC market size alone won't justify a Series A check from any fund on this list.
- Before your first investor conversation. Upload your materials to Ellty and send a trackable link - you'll know which investors are actually engaged before spending time on follow-up calls.
- Directly, yes. They factor SR&ED into your effective burn rate. Founders who aren't claiming eligible R&D credits are presenting artificially high cash needs, which affects raise size and dilution.
