The annual Bootstrap Awards recognize entrepreneurs in the National Capital Region who have “bootstrapped” the growth of their company with limited investment funding to achieve commercial success.
This year’s ceremony was held May 6 as part of Tech Tuesday at the Brookstreet Hotel in Kanata.
The winners are founders and entrepreneurial businesses that have demonstrated innovation and creativity in growing self-funded startups and early-stage companies in a variety of industries and across a range of categories. Each winner is an entrepreneur or company from the National Capital Region that has been in business for less than seven years without having received more than $500,000 in outside funding.
OBJ360 (Sponsored)
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The awards are presented by The Ottawa Network with support from Wesley Clover. Here are the 2025 winners:
Green Award: Green Carbon Products
Founded on the desire to improve soil health and reduce emissions from common wood residue disposal practices such as open burning, chipping or decomposition, Green Carbon Products transforms wood residues into high-quality biochar using mobile pyrolysis. This carbon-rich material supports agriculture and horticulture, strengthens urban green infrastructure, aids environmental remediation and locks away carbon for centuries while significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Through a circular economy approach, Green Carbon Products aims to empower communities to turn locally available wood residues into practical, climate-resilient solutions.
Innovation Award: Neuralign
Neuralign provides cloud-based, gamified neurocognitive therapy for students with reading difficulties and dyslexia. This revolutionary platform has helped more than 3,500 students across 11 countries by leveraging neuroscience to build strong neural reading pathways. Recently expanding to virtual reality to enhance immersion and engagement, Neuralign is changing lives by enabling children to read when traditional teaching methods fail.
SaaS Award: Ext.tech
Ext.tech delivers comprehensive landscape management software that streamlines operations for green industry businesses. Its tailored suite includes features for scheduling, invoicing, customer management and real-time project tracking, helping clients reduce project management time by 40 per cent. This Ottawa-based, Canadian-owned company has rapidly become a vital resource in the landscape management community.
Marketing Award: The LoudCup
The LoudCup is an innovative beverage container with an integrated horn mechanism that amplifies sound when blown into. Created during the pandemic by Ottawa police officer Jay Conohan, this dual-function tumbler keeps drinks hot or cold while enabling fans to cheer loudly at events. With customization options for organizations and teams, LoudCup is revolutionizing the fan experience at sporting events nationwide.
Bootstrap Capital Award: Tactiql
Tactiql is a veteran-owned company developing innovative data conditioning software for remote-sensor processing. Founded in 2022, Tactiql is actively selling into the Canadian Armed Forces and has been accepted into the NATO DIANA 2025 cohort as one of just 74 companies selected from 2,600-plus applicants across North America and Europe. Its Fulcrum platform transforms how humans and machines work with sensor data, enabling standardized, contextually enriched and geospatially accurate situational awareness for mission-critical operations.
Disruptor Award: H2 Analytics
H2 Analytics provides innovative software solutions that enhance operational readiness for mission-driven organizations. Its flagship Ease platform enables users to create and execute complex, realistic training at a fraction of the cost of traditional methods. Clients describe the technology as a game-changer, significantly improving personnel preparation for real-world challenges.
Community Impact Award: My Personal Mentor
My Personal Mentor is a community-driven platform helping immigrants secure jobs in Canada. Its unlimited membership offers daily Q&A sessions with industry experts, AI-powered resume building and free access to premium job search tools. Since 2023, My Personal Mentor has helped 500-plus members land positions at companies like RBC and TD, growing from five attendees to 1,250-plus per session. In the past three years, more than 40,000 people have attended the webinars and over 100,000 people have downloaded the resources.
Founder of the Year Award: Diana Birsan, Downpay
Founded in Ottawa, Downpay is a bootstrapped SaaS solution transforming how merchants sell made-to-order, custom and premium products online. Built by Shopify alumni, Downpay empowers businesses to offer flexible partial payments and deposits, making high-value purchases more accessible. Since launch, Downpay has processed more than $80 million in sales and is trusted by more than 1,000 merchants. With a bold, product-first approach, Downpay is reshaping commerce payments and helping merchants grow on their own terms.
The awards are supported by sponsors SaaSCan, Paterson & Company, PureColo, Capital Angel Network, Gifford and Carr Insurance and Smart and Biggar, with support from community partner Invest Ottawa.
