Three Ottawa firms have landed among the country’s hottest startups, according to Deloitte Canada’s annual ranking of Canada’s 50 fastest-growing companies.
Shopify led the group of local firms with four-year revenue growth of 897 per cent, good enough for No. 24 on this year’s Technology Fast 50. The ranking marks a slight return to glory for Shopify, which, after snagging the No. 3 spot in both 2013 and 2014, was left off the list for the past two years.
Further down this year’s list were Klipfolio (505 per cent growth) and You.i TV (499 per cent growth) at Nos. 42 and 43, respectively. Both firms were named as companies to watch in 2015, and You.i TV led fast-growing Ottawa startups at No. 16 in 2016.
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The companies to watch category typically applies to newer firms with high growth potentials that Deloitte expects to see on the Fast 50 in coming years. MindBridge AI, which uses artificial intelligence to assist in fraud detection, was the lone Ottawa firm to make the list this year.
Shopify earned an additional acclaim, alongside fellow Ottawa firm Kinaxis, in the form of a “leadership award.” Deloitte says these honours go to companies deemed dominant in their respective sectors, with sizeable competitive advantages in high-growth markets.
Outside of Canada’s capital, London, Ontario-based social media publisher Diply took top spot on the Fast 50 this year with monumental 92,881 per cent growth.
Deloitte noted that a slight majority (29) of this year’s firms were Ontario-based companies.
In a related survey, 62 per cent of this year’s Fast 50 firms indicated that access to capital had improved in the past five years. Artificial intelligence also proved popular with this crop, with 49 per cent indicating they use AI tools in their businesses.
In order to qualify for Deloitte Canada’s Technology Fast 50, companies must be headquartered in Canada, have been in business for at least four years with revenues more than $5 million, own their own proprietary technology and conduct R&D in Canada.
