Nanoleaf / en Syncing light to music: 茄子直播 startup Nanoleaf hosts programming hackathon for students /news/syncing-light-music-u-t-startup-nanoleaf-hosts-programming-hackathon-students <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Syncing light to music: 茄子直播 startup Nanoleaf hosts programming hackathon for students</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-07-26-hack-the-light_0.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=ddgtv5Do 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2017-07-26-hack-the-light_0.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=ofrp3arf 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2017-07-26-hack-the-light_0.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=fiizHQ9r 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-07-26-hack-the-light_0.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=ddgtv5Do" alt> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>ullahnor</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-07-26T12:04:27-04:00" title="Wednesday, July 26, 2017 - 12:04" class="datetime">Wed, 07/26/2017 - 12:04</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Students work with Nanoleaf's multicoloured Aurora panels to develop programs aimed at changing the hue to the music </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/nina-haikara" hreflang="en">Nina Haikara</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Nina Haikara</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/breaking-research" hreflang="en">Breaking Research</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanoleaf" hreflang="en">Nanoleaf</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/alumni" hreflang="en">茄子直播</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/computer-science" hreflang="en">Computer Science</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/dcsil" hreflang="en">DCSIL</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/entrepreneurship" hreflang="en">Entrepreneurship</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/startup" hreflang="en">Startup</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p><a href="http://nanoleaf.me/">Nanoleaf</a>, the startup co-founded by University of Toronto alumni <strong>Gimmy Chu</strong>, <strong>Tom Rodinger</strong>, and <strong>Christian Yan</strong>, brought its latest lighting product, Aurora, to 茄子直播 this weekend for a hackathon.&nbsp;</p> <p>The startup was hosting&nbsp;Hack the Light in collaboration with the Computer Science Student Union (CSSU) and the Department of Computer Science Innovation Lab (DCSIL), with&nbsp;students developing programs to sync Nanoleaf's new Aurora bulb panels to change colours&nbsp;and patterns to&nbsp;music.&nbsp;</p> <p>With the Aurora Rhythm, a small microphone add-on that the company has yet to bring to market, developers could&nbsp;create software plug-ins to make the multicolour, interlocking light panels react in different ways.</p> <p><iframe allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/eADfwFfV8pc" width="560"></iframe></p> <p>鈥淓very time the bass hits, it will flash the panels,鈥 said Chu, Nanoleaf co-founder and CEO. 鈥淥r&nbsp;you could have another one where, depending on the frequency of sound it hears, it will pop the light in a different way, so you can feel the music.鈥</p> <p>For students, it was a chance for coding and technology skills to meet creative design and musical expression.&nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淔or these students to really understand the whole technology platform and to be able to create something unique&nbsp;and creative&nbsp;in just two days&nbsp;was amazing,鈥 said Chu.&nbsp;</p> <p>Nanoleaf got its start at 茄子直播, and so hosting the hackathon here was important for Chu.</p> <p>鈥淚 owe a lot of my own personal success to the education I got at 茄子直播, the friends I made here, to some of the relationships&nbsp;鈥&nbsp;like&nbsp;茄子直播 President Meric Gertler&nbsp;introducing us to some of our investors,鈥 Chu said. 鈥淚 owe a lot to 茄子直播, so part of it is just giving back.鈥</p> <p><img alt class="media-image attr__typeof__foaf:Image img__fid__5363 img__view_mode__media_original attr__format__media_original" src="/sites/default/files/2017-07-26-hack-the-light2.jpg" style="width: 750px; height: 500px; margin: 10px;" typeof="foaf:Image"><br> <em>Participants of Hack the Light with DCSIL staff and Nanoleaf's Gimmy Chu (second from left) at the event this weekend&nbsp;</em></p> <p>Chu, Rodinger and Yan met while they were members of the Faculty of Applied Science &amp; Engineering鈥檚 Blue Sky Solar Racing team. The friends reconnected in 2009 to create&nbsp;a solar product&nbsp;but then&nbsp;designed what became known as <a href="/news/fiat-lux-alumni-launch-nanolight">the world鈥檚 most energy-efficient lightbulb</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;raised&nbsp;nearly $200,000 through a Kickstarter campaign.&nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淭hree years later, we have a team of 30 people, and our products are being sold in 40 different countries. It鈥檚 been a ride for us.鈥&nbsp;</p> <h3><a href="/news/asia-richest-philanthropist-major-silicon-valley-firm-invest-alumni-nanoleaf-light-bulb">Read more about Nanoleaf</a></h3> <p><strong>Helen Kontozopoulos</strong>, co-founder and co-director of DCSIL, said the event was a great example of how the&nbsp;lab can work with startups in the future.&nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淟et's de-risk a product before it goes out, and maybe even fine-tune it, with the best developers,鈥 she said.</p> <p><strong>Arseniy Ivanov</strong>, president of the computer science student union, said the hackathon was an&nbsp;opportunity to bring students together and hack for fun.</p> <p>鈥淎t night, people turned off the lights and turned on their visualizations, and it was mesmerizing to see what people did,鈥 he said.&nbsp;</p> <p>The weekend鈥檚 grand prize winners <strong>Xin Li</strong>, <strong>Yang Li</strong> and <strong>Xian Zhou</strong>, from 茄子直播's electrical &amp; computer engineering program, set their visualization to the Oscar-winning <em>City of Stars</em>,&nbsp;from the film, <em>La La Land</em>.&nbsp;</p> <p>Li said the team took its&nbsp;inspiration from a shooting star.</p> <p>鈥淚t's more than who had the most complicated code, or who had the most efficient&nbsp;algorithm,鈥 said Chu. 鈥淚t&nbsp;was really about who was able to use technology to create an emotion.鈥</p> <p>Read more about <a href="/news/u-t-engineering-students-light-low-income-mexico-city-community">茄子直播 initiatives</a> and <a href="/news/bright-ideas-researchers-entrepreneurs-industry-leaders-u-t-conference-exploring-future-light">startups</a>&nbsp;using&nbsp;light.</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Wed, 26 Jul 2017 16:04:27 +0000 ullahnor 110808 at Marketing is key to building a successful startup: 茄子直播's Impact Centre /news/marketing-key-building-successful-startup-u-t-s-impact-centre <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Marketing is key to building a successful startup: 茄子直播's Impact Centre</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-05-02-gimmy-chu.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=sSITIE5R 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2017-05-02-gimmy-chu.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=Sr92r7Cc 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2017-05-02-gimmy-chu.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=d7xctqY_ 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-05-02-gimmy-chu.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=sSITIE5R" alt> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>Christopher.Sorensen</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-05-02T17:13:37-04:00" title="Tuesday, May 2, 2017 - 17:13" class="datetime">Tue, 05/02/2017 - 17:13</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">When Nanoleaf's Gimmy Chu co-founded the smart lighting company, he had to build up skills in sales and marketing (photo by Johnny Guatto) </div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/chris-sorensen" hreflang="en">Chris Sorensen</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Chris Sorensen</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/city-culture" hreflang="en">City &amp; Culture</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/entrepreneurship" hreflang="en">Entrepreneurship</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/startup" hreflang="en">Startup</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/innovation" hreflang="en">Innovation</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/impact-centre" hreflang="en">Impact Centre</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanoleaf" hreflang="en">Nanoleaf</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/gimmy-chu" hreflang="en">Gimmy Chu</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>When <strong>Gimmy Chu</strong> co-founded smart lighting company&nbsp;Nanoleaf back in 2012, he initially conceived of the firm as one focused exclusively on technology development.&nbsp;</p> <p>But he soon realized that&nbsp;he was actually&nbsp;in the business of selling consumer products: Nanoleaf's&nbsp;debut offering was&nbsp;a&nbsp;dodecahedron-shaped LED bulb that was as stylish, as it was energy efficient.</p> <p>The problem? Neither Chu nor fellow University of Toronto engineering graduates <strong>Tom Rodinger&nbsp;</strong>and <strong>Christian Yan</strong> knew the first thing about sales and marketing.</p> <p>鈥淚 read <em>Marketing for Dummies</em>,鈥 says Chu. 鈥淚 needed to understand the fundamental principles of how to run that side of the business.鈥</p> <p>While Chu and his team hit on a winner with their bulb design and 鈥渨orld's most energy-efficient鈥&nbsp;tagline, other research-types aren't always so savvy straight out of the gate. Some even say this may be holding back startups 鈥&nbsp;particularly among researchers who&nbsp;launch companies based on their work.</p> <p>But would an earlier emphasis on sales and marketing really help Canadian startups scale themselves into giant, market-dominating firms?</p> <p>鈥淭his issue of marketing and sales is never talked about in government circles as being one of the causes of our problems in innovation,鈥 says<strong> Charles Plant</strong> of&nbsp;茄子直播's <a href="http://www.impactcentre.ca/">Impact Centre accelerator</a>, who recently penned&nbsp;a discussion paper on the subject.</p> <p>In a bid to test his thesis, Plant conducted a cross-border <a href="http://www.impactcentre.ca/research/canadian-tech-tortoises/">comparison</a> of startups by pairing funding data for 900 Canadian companies with LinkedIn data about their employees. He found that well-funded Canadian startups, on average, spend about 25 per cent less on marketing and sales than ones in the United States.</p> <p>This is a problem, argues Plant, because insufficient sales and marketing&nbsp;slow&nbsp;down a product's market entry. It can also turn off venture capital investors, who often want to see evidence of market traction before ponying up cash. That, in turns, leaves less to spend on future sales and marketing endeavors. In his paper, Plant&nbsp;calls it a 鈥渧icious cycle.鈥</p> <p>Why might Canadian entrepreneurs be susceptible to this trap?</p> <p>Plant, who recently discussed his findings on <a href="http://www.bnn.ca/video/tech-bytes-spending-more-on-r-d-over-marketing-think-again~1110249?hootPostID=9587980b01647dde6318c233debef8b4">Business News Network</a> and wrote about it on <a href="https://techvibes.com/2017/04/26/canadian-tech-tortoises">Techvibes</a>, says the sheer number of entrepreneurs emerging from Canada's top-notch post-secondary institutions probably&nbsp;plays a role. After all, these are people who are typically experts in their field&nbsp;but don't necessarily have any business training. He also blames Canada's reliance on commodity-type industries 鈥&nbsp;from oil to lumber 鈥&nbsp;for creating a business culture that puts far less emphasis on marketing and sales than is the case in the consumer-oriented U.S.&nbsp;</p> <p>However, not everyone believes Canadian entrepreneurs are necessarily being outshone by their&nbsp;U.S. counterparts.</p> <p><strong>Becky Reuber</strong>, a professor of strategic management at 茄子直播's Rotman School of Management, says she's yet to see anything other than anecdotal evidence to support the notion that U.S. startups are more successful&nbsp;than Canadian ones.</p> <p>鈥淎 lot of what鈥檚 looked at are unicorns,鈥&nbsp;says Reuber, referring to the tiny fraction of (mostly U.S.) startups that manage to amass a valuation of $1 billion or more. 鈥淏ut these are the outliers. You can't develop [policy] models based on them.鈥</p> <p>So what鈥檚 the lesson, if any, for Canada's budding entrepreneurs?</p> <p>Plant recommends they start thinking about marketing and sales as early as possible. The knowledge&nbsp;gleaned can then be used to help guide research and product development, helping to ensure&nbsp;the resulting creations&nbsp;find a lucrative market niche, he says.</p> <h3><a href="http://entrepreneurs.utoronto.ca/">Learn more about entrepreneurship and startups at 茄子直播</a></h3> <p>Meanwhile, Chu&nbsp;says accelerator programs like the ones at 茄子直播 鈥&nbsp;there are&nbsp;10 spread across the university's three Toronto campuses 鈥&nbsp;can play an important role in&nbsp;helping researchers think more like business people.&nbsp;</p> <p>But while Canadian entrepreneurs could probably benefit by borrowing a page from their American counterparts when it comes to self-promotion, Chu warns the 鈥渕ore bold and outspoken鈥&nbsp;approach has its drawbacks,&nbsp;too.&nbsp;</p> <p>Case in point: high profile flame-outs of startups like Theranos, the Silicon Valley firm that raised hundreds of millions for its blood-testing technology only to be engulfed in a massive scandal about its claims.</p> <p>鈥淵ou don鈥檛 want to be caught selling fluff,鈥 says Chu.</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Tue, 02 May 2017 21:13:37 +0000 Christopher.Sorensen 107012 at Renewable energy research, clean-tech startups from 茄子直播 take centre stage /news/renewable-energy-research-clean-tech-startups-u-t-take-centre-stage <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Renewable energy research, clean-tech startups from 茄子直播 take centre stage</span> <div class="field field--name-field-featured-picture field--type-image field--label-hidden field__item"> <img loading="eager" srcset="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-04-17-summit-nanoleaf-display.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=ax0rdxkl 370w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_740/public/2017-04-17-summit-nanoleaf-display.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=WvNX4dNy 740w, /sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_1110/public/2017-04-17-summit-nanoleaf-display.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=Pz8vBycT 1110w" sizes="(min-width:1200px) 1110px, (max-width: 1199px) 80vw, (max-width: 767px) 90vw, (max-width: 575px) 95vw" width="740" height="494" src="/sites/default/files/styles/news_banner_370/public/2017-04-17-summit-nanoleaf-display.jpg?h=afdc3185&amp;itok=ax0rdxkl" alt="photo of conference attendees checking out Nanoleaf display"> </div> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>lanthierj</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2017-04-17T09:16:38-04:00" title="Monday, April 17, 2017 - 09:16" class="datetime">Mon, 04/17/2017 - 09:16</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Nanoleaf was just one of the 茄子直播 startups at the Toronto Sustainability Summit (all photos by Johnny Guatto)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/chris-sorensen" hreflang="en">Chris Sorensen</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Christopher Sorensen</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-topic field--type-entity-reference field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Topic</div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/topics/our-community" hreflang="en">Our Community</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/entrepreneurship" hreflang="en">Entrepreneurship</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/innovation" hreflang="en">Innovation</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/startups" hreflang="en">Startups</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/alumni" hreflang="en">茄子直播</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/sustainability" hreflang="en">Sustainability</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanoleaf" hreflang="en">Nanoleaf</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/phantin" hreflang="en">Phantin</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/vive-crop-protection" hreflang="en">Vive Crop Protection</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanotechnology" hreflang="en">Nanotechnology</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/lighting" hreflang="en">Lighting</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Toronto Sustainability Summit </div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>If Silicon Valley is where big minds fixate on small problems 鈥 a better way to hail a taxi or swap photos on your smartphone 鈥 then the University of Toronto may soon be known as the place where the world鈥檚 biggest, most intractable issues are solved.&nbsp;</p> <p>That was the underlying message at 茄子直播鈥檚 recent Toronto Sustainability Summit, held at the MaRS Centre in downtown Toronto.&nbsp;</p> <p>The sold-out event brought together leading 茄子直播 researchers, key government officials and senior industry executives to discuss ways to work together to tackle planet-threatening climate change. Reza Moridi, Ontario鈥檚 minister of research, innovation and science, took the opportunity to announce a new, $7 million competition designed to develop breakthrough technologies to help the province鈥檚 industrial plants reduce greenhouse gas emissions.&nbsp;</p> <h3><u><a href="/news/u-t-brings-city-together-toronto-sustainability-summit">Read more about the summit</a></u></h3> <p>鈥淯niversities have a crucial role to play,鈥 said <strong>Meric Gertler</strong>, 茄子直播鈥檚 president, offering a long list of research areas, from biofuels research to environmental law, where 茄子直播 excels. 鈥淚n fact, among universities worldwide, I was delighted to recently discover that 茄子直播 is the seventh leading producer of research and scholarship in environmental research and environmental sciences 鈥&nbsp;and we鈥檙e third in North America behind Berkeley and Harvard.鈥</p> <p>Over the past three years alone, 茄子直播 attracted more than $300 million in funding for clean technology and renewable energy research. The university boasts more than 550 faculty working in the space, including 11 Canada Research Chairs.&nbsp;</p> <p>The breadth of 茄子直播鈥檚 sustainability research, focusing on subjects both large and small, was on full display at the summit.&nbsp;</p> <p><u>Professor&nbsp;<a href="/news/five-visions-future-energy-science-literacy-week-panel"><strong>David Zingg</strong>, the director of the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies</a>,</u> talked about trying to overcome the challenges of reducing airplane emissions 鈥 namely the sky-high price of developing new aircraft types 鈥 by applying high-fidelity aerodynamic shape optimization to aircraft designs.</p> <p>At the other end of the spectrum, <u><a href="/news/10000-greenhouses-professor-david-sinton-awarded-ewr-steacie-memorial-fellowship"><strong>David Sinton</strong>, a professor in the Faculty of Applied Science &amp; Engineering</a></u>, explained how the study of small-scale fluid dynamics is yielding big insights by turning harmful carbon dioxide into useful products like fuels.&nbsp;</p> <p>茄子直播 is not just creating climate change and sustainability knowledge. It鈥檚 implementing it, too. Many of 茄子直播鈥檚 researchers are working in partnership with industry or launching their own companies. Some 14 startups in clean tech and renewable energy were launched&nbsp;over the past three years.</p> <p><strong>Cynthia Goh</strong> is&nbsp;the founding director of <u><a href="http://www.impactcentre.ca/">茄子直播鈥檚 Impact Centre development hub</a>, </u>the academic director of<u><a href="http://entrepreneurs.utoronto.ca/"> University of Toronto Entrepreneurship</a></u> and&nbsp;a professor of chemistry in the Faculty of Arts &amp; Science. She cited one young one company with a potentially bright future that she co-founded with <strong>Cheng Lu</strong>. It鈥檚 called Phantin and it makes nano-coating that repels dust from solar panels, boosting their energy production.&nbsp;</p> <h3><u><a href="/news/here-comes-sun-phantin">Read &nbsp;more about Phantin</a></u></h3> <p>The hurdles new clean-tech companies face are particularly daunting. Alumnus<u> <a href="/news/meet-darren-anderson-vive-crop-protection"><strong>Darren Anderson</strong> is the founding president of Vive Crop Protection</a></u>, which uses nanotechnology to improve the delivery of fertilizer and pesticides to farmers鈥 crops. Anderson told the panel it takes far longer to build a clean-tech company than one based on a smartphone app.&nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淲e launched our first product literally a month before our tenth anniversary,鈥 said Anderson, who started Vive in 2006 from 茄子直播鈥檚 chemistry department.&nbsp;</p> <p>Clean-tech also tends to be expensive, which can turn&nbsp;off venture capital, or VC, investors. &nbsp;</p> <p>鈥淎nytime I say we鈥檙e a clean-tech company that鈥檚 focused on sustainability, the VC just cringes,鈥 said <strong>Gimmy Chu</strong>, the CEO of <u><a href="https://nanoleaf.me/en/">green lighting company Nanoleaf </a></u>and another 茄子直播 alum. 鈥淪o the question is: how do you [build] the business model?鈥&nbsp;</p> <p>Nanoleaf鈥檚 solution: make a LED light bulb that鈥檚 both eye-catching and two times more efficient than those already on the market 鈥 and then follow it up with modular lighting panels that look more like art installations than light fixtures.&nbsp;</p> <h3><u><a href="/news/federal-government-backs-three-u-t-startups-and-their-clean-tech-innovations">Read more about Nanoleaf</a></u></h3> <p>Fortunately, there鈥檚 an expanding universe of accelerators and incubators on the 茄子直播 campus to help guide today鈥檚 budding entrepreneurs. One of those programs is the Rotman School of Management鈥檚 Creative Destruction Lab. The nine-month program pairs startups with experienced technology entrepreneurs and investors to help them scale up their businesses.&nbsp;</p> <p><u><a href="http://www.rotman.utoronto.ca/FacultyAndResearch/Faculty/FacultyBios/Blundell"><strong>Richard Blundell</strong>, an adjunct professor at Rotman</a>,</u>&nbsp;said the biggest challenge facing startups in the clean-tech space is seldom technology-related. Rather, it鈥檚 finding an innovative way to succeed in a crowded marketplace.</p> <p>鈥淚f the business doesn鈥檛 make money,鈥 said Blundell, 鈥渢hen it will fail.鈥</p> <p><img alt="photo of panel at summit" class="media-image attr__typeof__foaf:Image img__fid__4265 img__view_mode__media_original attr__format__media_original" src="/sites/default/files/2017-04-17-summit-panel-nanoleaf.jpg" style="width: 750px; height: 500px; margin: 10px;" typeof="foaf:Image"></p> <p><em>(<strong>Gimmy Chu</strong> shows one of the Nanoleaf light bulbs to, from left: <strong>Tom Rand</strong>, <strong>Richard Blundell</strong>, <strong>Cynthia Goh</strong> and <strong>Darren Anderson</strong>)&nbsp;</em></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> Mon, 17 Apr 2017 13:16:38 +0000 lanthierj 106826 at Federal government backs three 茄子直播 startups and their clean tech innovations /news/federal-government-backs-three-u-t-startups-and-their-clean-tech-innovations <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Federal government backs three 茄子直播 startups and their clean tech innovations</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2016-03-09T05:39:31-05:00" title="Wednesday, March 9, 2016 - 05:39" class="datetime">Wed, 03/09/2016 - 05:39</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Nanoleaf founder and 茄子直播 grad Gimmy Chu (photo above by Johnny Guatto/photos below courtesy Nanoleaf))</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/olivia-tomic" hreflang="en">Olivia Tomic</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Olivia Tomic</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/features" hreflang="en">Features</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/sustainability" hreflang="en">Sustainability</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/startups" hreflang="en">Startups</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanoleaf" hreflang="en">Nanoleaf</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/mars" hreflang="en">MaRS</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/ipo" hreflang="en">IPO</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/innovation" hreflang="en">Innovation</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/entrepreneurship" hreflang="en">Entrepreneurship</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/commercialization" hreflang="en">Commercialization</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/bbcie" hreflang="en">BBCIE</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Three 茄子直播 startups are&nbsp;among 36 projects from across the country receiving&nbsp;funding from the federal government in support of their clean technology innovations.&nbsp;</p> <p>Nanoleaf, QD Solar and ARDA Power Inc. received a total of almost $6 million&nbsp;from Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), a governmental foundation which helps clean tech entrepreneurs commercialize their products by removing the funding barrier that hinders so many high potential startups.</p> <p><img alt="photo of Nanoleaf products" src="/sites/default/files/2016-03-09-nanoleaf-embedSmarter-Kit-24.jpg" style="width: 300px; height: 248px; margin: 10px; float: right;">鈥淣anoleaf is creating truly innovative products right here in Canada, but it鈥檚 difficult to get access to the capital needed to compete globally,鈥 said 茄子直播 engineering alumnus&nbsp;<strong>Gimmy Chu</strong>, co-founder and CEO of Nanoleaf. (<a href="http://nanoleaf.me/">Visit the Nanoleaf site</a>.)</p> <p>鈥淲ith this support from the Government of Canada, we can sustain our already impressive pace of product development and continue to make a truly positive impact for the planet and the people living on it.鈥&nbsp;</p> <p>With an infusion of more than&nbsp;$2.8 million from SDTC, Chu said Nanoleaf will continue to develop their low-cost and highly intelligent 鈥淪marter Kit鈥 (pictured at right),&nbsp;adding to their collection of the world鈥檚 most energy-efficient LED light bulbs which are already on the market.</p> <h3><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/tags/nanoleaf">Read more <em>茄子直播 News</em> stories about&nbsp;Nanoleaf</a></h3> <p>QD Solar also secured funding from SDTC, receiving $2.55 million for their project which revolutionizes conventional solar panels by capturing infrared light energy that would otherwise be lost using existing panel technologies.&nbsp;</p> <p>QD Solar has worked with 茄子直播鈥檚 Innovations &amp; Partnerships Office as well as MaRS Innovation to advance the project, which will now have the necessary resources to develop, test and de-risk the solar cells, says CEO <strong>Dan Shea</strong>.(<a href="http://www.qdsolarinc.com/">Visit the QD Solar site</a>.)</p> <p>鈥淭he SDTC鈥檚 endorsement is great news for our game-changing technology and the business opportunity it presents for Canadian energy and manufacturing.鈥&nbsp;</p> <p>Also receiving funding this year from the SDTC is ARDA Power Inc. ARDA Power was founded in 2009 to commercialize power conversion technology developed out of the University of Toronto and licensed to ARDA Power. Recently the company has focused on direct current (DC) microgrid technologies for which it received a $400,000 grant. (<a href="http://www.ardapower.com/">Visit the ARDA Power site</a>.)</p> <p>鈥淭hese SDTC funds will support the development, installation and commissioning of a state-of-the-art Burlington DC Microgrid project that will accommodate not only rooftop solar and local energy storage but other new and existing DC and AC sources and loads,鈥 said <strong>Aleksey Toporkov</strong>, chairman and CEO of ARDA Power. 鈥淭he microgrid, which will be located at a commercial facility in the GTA will be based on ARDA Power鈥檚 DC Microgrid Open Platform.鈥</p> <p>This SDTC funding represents 鈥渁 great recognition of 茄子直播鈥檚 impact in the area of clean technology,鈥 said <strong>Karen Sievewright</strong>, director of 茄子直播鈥檚 Banting &amp; Best Centre for Innovation &amp; Entrepreneurship.</p> <p>鈥淭his is evidence of ongoing excellence from the university,鈥 Sievewright said. 鈥淐onsistently companies affiliated with 茄子直播 have received funding from SDTC, growing the local economy and promoting environmental sustainability.鈥</p> <h2><a href="http://entrepreneurs.utoronto.ca/">Interested in startups and entrepreneurship? Visit the BBCIE</a></h2> <p>鈥淩esearchers at 茄子直播 are regularly turning their discoveries into marketable inventions,鈥 said <strong>Vivek Goel</strong>, vice-president of research and innovation. 鈥淚鈥檓 very pleased to see the support that these three companies are receiving from the government to continue the important work they鈥檙e doing in sustainable development.鈥&nbsp;</p> <p>(<em>Image below: Aurora lighting system by Nanoleaf</em>)</p> <p><img alt="photo of Nanoleaf house" src="/sites/default/files/2016-03-09-nanoleaf-house.jpg" style="width: 640px; height: 360px; margin: 10px 20px;"></p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2016-03-09-chu-nanoleaf.jpg</div> </div> Wed, 09 Mar 2016 10:39:31 +0000 sgupta 7718 at Canada Next: MaRS CEO on the future for startups /news/canada-next-mars-ceo-future-startups <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Canada Next: MaRS CEO on the future for startups </span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2016-02-02T03:08:21-05:00" title="Tuesday, February 2, 2016 - 03:08" class="datetime">Tue, 02/02/2016 - 03:08</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">A young man interested in entrepreneurship speaks to representatives from MaRS at the 2015 Startup Career Expo. "茄子直播 is increasingly a 鈥渄riving force鈥 for startups", says Ilse Treurnicht, CEO of MaRS Discovery District.</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/alan-christie" hreflang="en">Alan Christie</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Alan Christie</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/bbcie" hreflang="en">BBCIE</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/business" hreflang="en">Business</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/canada-next" hreflang="en">Canada Next</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/entrepreneurship" hreflang="en">Entrepreneurship</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/features" hreflang="en">Features</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/mars" hreflang="en">MaRS</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanoleaf" hreflang="en">Nanoleaf</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/startups" hreflang="en">Startups</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Canada is good at creating startup companies but not enough of them are high-growth enterprises, the so-called gazelles of the industry, says <strong>Ilse Treurnicht</strong>, CEO of the MaRS Discovery District.</p> <p>But the good news, she says, is that 茄子直播 is increasingly a 鈥渄riving force鈥 &nbsp;for startups, helping them not just to thrive but to succeed in Canada so that the economic benefits accrue to this country.&nbsp;</p> <p>The Global Entrepreneurship and Development Institute recently released a global entrepreneurship index that placed Canada second, behind the United States.</p> <p><em>茄子直播 News</em> asked Treurnicht for her analysis of the survey and her views about some recent stories in the media about Canada and entrepreneurship, including an op-ed piece in the <em>Globe and Mail </em>co-authored by President <strong>Meric Gertler</strong>: 鈥淪outhern Ontario should be an innovation cluster, not a farm team.鈥</p> <p>The survey, she said, was a valid one and 鈥渁nother indication that entrepreneurship is important everywhere, and that Toronto has some good fundamentals in place, and that we have some areas where we can probably grow.鈥</p> <p><img alt="photo of Ilse Treurnicht" src="/sites/default/files/2016-02-01-ilse-embed.jpg" style="width: 300px; height: 375px; margin: 10px; float: left;">Data on startups in Canada is relatively sparse but statistics from the U.S. and the U.K. suggest 鈥渢hat out of 100 startups somewhere between four and 10 become high-growth industries, the so-called gazelles.鈥&nbsp;</p> <p>Treurnicht &nbsp;(pictured at left) described&nbsp;a gazelle as a company that that increases its revenues by at least 20 per cent annually for four years or more, starting from a revenue base of at least $1 million.&nbsp;</p> <p>Gazelles 鈥済row quite quickly and are major job creators, major contributors to revenue and economic growth,鈥 Treurnicht said. 鈥淪tarting up a company is important but it is not sufficient, you have to start more robust companies and more of them have to grow to scale.</p> <p>鈥淐anada is pretty good at starting companies but we don鈥檛 have enough of them that grow to scale.鈥</p> <p>Our companies face 鈥渟mall local markets, and eco-systems that are still maturing,鈥 she said. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 have the serial entrepreneurs that they have in Silicon Valley.鈥 &nbsp;</p> <p>In Canada, the capital contributions made to startups is about one-third of what it is in the U.S.</p> <p>鈥淎 lot of startups have to be international companies because the markets are so small here," she said. There are good reasons why so few become gazelles. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not like we are stupid.鈥&nbsp;</p> <p>Still, there are grounds for optimism, Treurnicht said.</p> <p>鈥淥ver the last 10 years 茄子直播 has helped build the ecosystem in Toronto and the GTA. There is now a huge appetite among students to participate in such companies, and a growing appreciation among faculty, especially young faculty, to participate.鈥</p> <p>The survey suggests Canada is poised to do great things, she added.&nbsp;</p> <p>Treurnicht said the barriers to starting a company are very low, especially in the high-tech field. Companies focused on health care, 鈥渁dvanced materials鈥 or artificial intelligence<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">&nbsp;鈥&nbsp;</span>firms with 鈥渉ard-core intellectual property heft"<span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 21px;">&nbsp;鈥&nbsp;</span>take a bit longer to develop so they require more investment.</p> <p>But the 鈥渄eep technology competency and the feeder system鈥 coming out of 茄子直播 鈥渋s as good quality as the rest of the world,鈥&nbsp;she said. That means that more companies 鈥渨ill grow right here, with the economic benefits accruing to Canada.鈥<br> <br> 鈥淭his is a story about the growing momentum of 茄子直播 being a key force in making startups more successful. That is the message we want to get out. Stay tuned. There is a lot more come.鈥</p> <h1>Three to Watch</h1> <p>The majority of companies that have homes&nbsp;at the MaRS centre 鈥渉ave serious roots back to 茄子直播,鈥 Treurnicht&nbsp;said. They include Nanoleaf, Teabot and Chipcare.</p> <center> <p><img alt src="/sites/default/files/2014-09-23-nanolight-chu.jpg" style="width: 300px; height: 200px; float: left; margin: 5px;"></p> </center> <address>&nbsp;</address> <address>&nbsp;</address> <address><span style="font-size: 12.6px; line-height: 21px;">Gimmy Chu, one of the University of Toronto alumni behind startup success Nanoleaf, with the revolutionary light bulb backed by investors around the world. Photo by Johnny Guatto.</span></address> <address>&nbsp;</address> <h2><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/tags/nanoleaf">Read more about Nanoleaf</a></h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <center> <p><img alt src="/sites/default/files/2015-03-11-teaBOT-1.jpg" style="width: 300px; height: 300px; float: left; margin: 5px;"></p> </center> <address>&nbsp;</address> <address>&nbsp;</address> <address>teaBOT, the brainchild of U of&nbsp;T aerospace and robotics PhD candidate Rehman Merali and engineer Brian Lee, is part of the JOLT business incubator at MaRS Discovery District. Photo courtesy&nbsp;teaBOT.</address> <address>&nbsp;</address> <h2><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/tags/teabot">Read more about Teabot</a></h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <center> <p><img alt src="/sites/default/files/2015-03-15-chipcare-device.jpg" style="width: 300px; height: 200px; margin: 5px; float: left;"></p> </center> <address>&nbsp;</address> <address>&nbsp;</address> <address>University of Toronto researchers James Dou and Stewart Aitchison founded ChipCare, an affordable and efficient lab-on-a-chip that can revolutionize HIV monitoring in developing countries. Rendering courtesy&nbsp;ChipCare.</address> <address>&nbsp;</address> <h2>&nbsp;</h2> <h2><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/tags/chipcare">Read more about Chipcare</a></h2> <p>There are difficult challenges that startups face, she said, but tackling those 鈥渋s 茄子直播鈥檚 thing. That is the sweet spot.鈥</p> <p>Prime Minister Justin Trudeau recently announced a $20-million grant to the Centre for the Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine at MaRS&nbsp;鈥 the commercialization arm of Medicine By Design.</p> <h2><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/tags/medicine-design">Read more about Medicine by Design</a></h2> <p>GE Healthcare, a global company, also invested $20 million.</p> <h2><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/prime-minister-justin-trudeau-backs-commercialization-stem-cell-research-u-t-and-partners">Read more about CCRM</a></h2> <p>When global companies such as GE or <a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/jlabs-startup-incubator-selects-university-toronto-mars-first-international-expansion">Johnson and Johnson</a> make major investments here it&nbsp;shows they 鈥渨ant to interact with high-quality young companies, and they also want the proximity to outstanding research and the talent pipeline that comes out of 茄子直播 and its partner hospitals,鈥 Treurnicht&nbsp;said.</p> <p>鈥淚t is not 茄子直播 just pushing out discoveries and startups but also the university being a magnet for global companies that recognize the strength of Toronto and the strength of 茄子直播 and its partners.鈥</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2016-02-01-MaRS-entrepreneurship_0.jpg</div> </div> Tue, 02 Feb 2016 08:08:21 +0000 sgupta 7618 at Beat the holiday shopping blues with 茄子直播 creativity /news/beat-holiday-shopping-blues-u-t-creativity <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Beat the holiday shopping blues with 茄子直播 creativity</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2015-12-15T10:02:17-05:00" title="Tuesday, December 15, 2015 - 10:02" class="datetime">Tue, 12/15/2015 - 10:02</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">(photo by Denise Rosser via Flickr)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/olivia-tomic" hreflang="en">Olivia Tomic</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Olivia Tomic</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/features" hreflang="en">Features</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/startups" hreflang="en">Startups</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanoleaf" hreflang="en">Nanoleaf</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/entrepreneurship" hreflang="en">Entrepreneurship</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/bbcie" hreflang="en">BBCIE</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Five gift ideas developed by 茄子直播 entrepreneurs</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>The holiday season is upon us, and while for some it鈥檚 the most wonderful time of year, for others it鈥檚 a rush to find the perfect gift on a dwindling deadline.</p> <p>Have no fear 鈥 the University of Toronto鈥檚 entrepreneurs have been at work crafting products that might be just the item you鈥檝e been searching for. From tech gadgets to fashion solutions, these five&nbsp;products are ready for purchase for the loved one on your list.</p> <p><strong><img alt="photo of the aerolight" src="/sites/default/files/2015-12-15-gifts-aerolight-embed.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px; margin: 10px; float: left;">OTI Lumionics鈥 Aerelight A1</strong></p> <p>Developed by <a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/organic-led-age-here-meet-u-t-engineers-behind-oti-lumionics">OTI Lumionics</a>, the Aerelight A1 is an ultra-thin and environmentally-friendly&nbsp;OLED lamp. The sleek aluminum lamp comes in three colours and has three brightness settings that can be changed by touch. The walnut base of the lamp doubles as a wireless charging dock for compatible devices.</p> <p>As a holiday promotion OTI is including a free black charging case for iPhone 6 and 6s devices if ordered before December 31st&nbsp;with the promo code 鈥淚PHONE鈥 (limited quantities available). They are also providing free shipping until the end of December.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2><a href="https://aerelight.com/">Shop OTI Lumionics</a></h2> <p><strong><img alt="photo of the nanoleaf light" src="/sites/default/files/2015-12-15-gifts-nanolight-embed.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px; margin: 10px; float: left;">Nanoleaf</strong></p> <p>Wielding awards for design excellence and global efficiency, Nanoleaf鈥檚 eco-friendly light bulbs are great gifts for environment and modern design enthusiasts. Nanoleaf has a product line of five different types of bulbs, each uniquely shaped to be self-reinforcing and for maximum strength.</p> <p>Nanoleaf鈥檚 most recent addition is the&nbsp;<a href="http://www.news.utoronto.ca/nanoleaf-launches-new-product-apple-home-system">Nanoleaf Smarter Kit</a>, which combines the company鈥檚 sustainable and stylish bulb with Apple鈥檚 HomeKit. The Nanoleaf Smarter Kit allows users to turn on/off or dim their lights to customized brightness using Siri voice control.&nbsp;Nanoleaf is offering free shipping for orders over $100.&nbsp;</p> <h2><a href="http://www.nanoleaf.me/">Shop Nanoleaf</a></h2> <p><strong><img alt="photo of woman wearing Adrenalease shirt" src="/sites/default/files/2015-12-15-gifts-adrenalease-embed.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px; margin: 10px; float: left;">Adrenalease鈥檚 Posture Performance Shirt</strong></p> <p>This Dragon's Den-approved posture <a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/u-t-startup-adrenalease-inc-secures-90000-investment-dragons">performance shirt&nbsp;</a>is ideal for athletes or fitness fiends, but can also be given to anyone who wants to reverse bad posture habits. Through passive stretching, the shirt conditions the user to keep shoulders back in the correct upright position, improving aerobic performance and relieving stress off certain muscle groups.</p> <p>Unlike similar products on the market, this shirt has adjustable straps that the user can set to their desired comfort for the recommended 30 minutes every one to two hours, then released to maintain muscle balance.&nbsp;</p> <h2>&nbsp;</h2> <h2><a href="http://www.adrenalease.com/">Shop Adrenalease</a></h2> <p><strong><img alt="photo of woman wearing Arctic Trim furs" src="/sites/default/files/2015-12-15-gifts-arctic-trim.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px; margin: 10px; float: left;">Arctic Trim</strong></p> <p>Arctic Trim鈥檚 removable fur 鈥渞uffs鈥 and 鈥渃uffs鈥 can give a new flair to old styles by adding trim to standard Canadian winter gear.&nbsp;<a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/why-did-science-undergrad-launch-fashion-startup-and-which-prof-helped-her-succeed">Esther Vlessing</a>, the 茄子直播 undtergrad behind the startup, came up with idea when she noticed a gap in the market for this type of removable and interchangeable fur accessory.</p> <p>In addition to making the fashionista on your list happy, a portion of all online sales will also be donated to Out of the Cold, a Toronto-based initiative that provides food and shelter for those in need.&nbsp;</p> <h2><a href="http://www.arctictrim.com/">Shop Arctic Trim</a></h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong><img alt="photo of the flipd app displayed on a phone" src="/sites/default/files/2015-12-15-gifts-flipd-embed.jpg" style="width: 150px; height: 150px; margin: 10px; float: left;">Flipd</strong></p> <p>Far too often we find ourselves glued to our smartphones, disconnected from what鈥檚 going on around us in favour of a virtual reality. Give your friends and family the gift of being present this holiday season by downloading Flipd to your phone. This free app is available on iOS and android, and lets users lock their phones for a set period of time. No texting, no social media, no email, no games.</p> <p>The app lets users set an automatic reply to any texts that come in so those on the other end of the line know they鈥檙e 鈥淔lipd off.鈥 If &nbsp;something important comes up, a 60-second 鈥渃heat鈥 window is allowed before the lockdown continues.</p> <p>Whether it鈥檚 for a few minutes or a couple hours, embrace what matters most this holiday season by flipping off and turning Flipd on.&nbsp;</p> <h2><a href="http://flipdapp.co/">Download Flipd</a></h2> <p>(<a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/foxrosser/2079995974/in/photolist-4aNwky-axcPqs-2fUqyU-6JVdzv-5srch-fo52Kb-zjWEc-5beN3H-q7dXdn-4A5Rxc-q8Q5vx-ptvQoc-qnZtQJ-62HzB2-qoQuYu-qoAGtf-q8Q6kD-fTP2R6-3cdfQ1-b6voCR-twisg-q5j6Eq-7Jb7po-q64nW6-qnhkmF-qmNrAh-4zhJib-aQWve2-7wXP8U-CzU9b-dJwNWK-eok53-7YgDrr-i3cS3G-8HXJgq-5U6Pux-5f7sfE-avW6CM-nQ5dBm-i1gyL1-4f7Yrk-3Yzs69-82WdpX-87DkU2-i1gC5z-2ipG8P-ir7yoH-5vqWfg-6d4rZy-6cZgZR">Visit Flickr to see&nbsp;the original of the photo at top</a>)&nbsp;</p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2015-12-15-ribbon.jpg</div> </div> Tue, 15 Dec 2015 15:02:17 +0000 sgupta 7529 at Meet undergrad Frank Gu, one of the 茄子直播 interns lighting up Nanoleaf /news/meet-undergrad-frank-gu-one-u-t-interns-lighting-nanoleaf <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Meet undergrad Frank Gu, one of the 茄子直播 interns lighting up Nanoleaf</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2015-11-04T01:01:59-05:00" title="Wednesday, November 4, 2015 - 01:01" class="datetime">Wed, 11/04/2015 - 01:01</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">Frank Gu says the energy at Nanoleaf shouts 鈥淲e are going to do great things, so if you are ready, hop aboard!鈥 (photo courtesy Blue Sky solar racing)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/brianna-goldberg" hreflang="en">Brianna Goldberg</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Brianna Goldberg</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/undergraduate-students" hreflang="en">Undergraduate Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/undergrad" hreflang="en">Undergrad</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/startup" hreflang="en">Startup</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/education" hreflang="en">Education</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanoleaf" hreflang="en">Nanoleaf</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/intern" hreflang="en">Intern</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/entrepreneurship" hreflang="en">Entrepreneurship</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/engineering" hreflang="en">Engineering</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/bbcie" hreflang="en">BBCIE</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/alumni" hreflang="en">茄子直播</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/features" hreflang="en">Features</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Travelling to Shenzhen, China, the second-year Engineering student discovers he has no limits</div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><div>&nbsp;</div> <div>How does&nbsp;a second-year undergraduate student&nbsp;nab a coveted&nbsp;internship with a global lighting startup like Nanoleaf?</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>It helps&nbsp;to offer critical thinking, creativity and boundless energy 鈥 but&nbsp;having the boss&nbsp;share your&nbsp;intellectually impressive hobby&nbsp;doesn't hurt.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>When Nanoleaf CEO <strong>Gimmy Chu</strong> met electrical and computer engineering student&nbsp;<strong>Frank Gu</strong>, he discovered that the young applicant was a member of 茄子直播's Blue Sky Solar Racing Club. Chu had worked on the acclaimed Blue Sky&nbsp;car almost a decade earlier.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>鈥淕immy gave me an assignment to prove my capability for the intern position,鈥 Gu says.&nbsp;鈥淭hen, Gimmy and I proceeded to talk about&nbsp;Blue Sky Solar Racing&nbsp;at 茄子直播.鈥&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><em>茄子直播 News</em>&nbsp;is profiling some of the interns helping to power&nbsp;<a href="http://www.nanoleaf.me/">Nanoleaf, an LED startup&nbsp;from 茄子直播 Engineering alumni</a>&nbsp;that recently announced a new product launch in partnership with Apple. (<a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/these-undergrad-interns-are-helping-power-nanoleaf-jeanny-yao-and-josh-hwang">Read about the fourth-year math and statistics undergrad and the science undergrad working for Nanoleaf</a>.)</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>鈥淭he 茄子直播 presence is still very strong at Nanoleaf, and I believe it always will be,鈥 says Nanoleaf spokesperson&nbsp;<strong>Leslie Chen</strong>. 鈥淲hen we were looking for interns to join our team, the first place we looked was at 茄子直播.鈥</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>(<a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/nanoleaf-launches-new-product-apple-home-system">Read the latest news&nbsp;about Nanoleaf and Apple</a>)</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><em>茄子直播 News</em>&nbsp;writer <strong>Brianna Goldberg</strong> spoke with Gu about his experiences at&nbsp;Nanoleaf, which he joined in early 2015.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div> <hr> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>How did Nanoleaf recruit you?</strong></div> </div> <div>I met the Nanoleaf team during the <a href="https://yourenext.ca/">You鈥檙e Next </a>startup career fair 2015. They had a booth in the lower level of the MaRS building, and a <em>very </em>bright light bulb for demonstration. I remember the first thought that flashed past my mind when I saw what they were doing: 鈥淢Y EYES!鈥 So that blinding experience was how the Nanoleaf people made their impression on me. <a href="http://alumni.engineering.utoronto.ca/news/youre-next-career-network-resource-alumni/">(Read more about the You're Next career fair)</a></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>I did the standard routine of shaking some hands, taking a card, and dropping off a resume. After one day, no reply, not even a confirmation. One week, still nothing. Finally, I emailed <strong>Gimmy Chu</strong>, Nanoleaf's CEO, and he got back to me pretty quickly wanting to schedule a meeting to chat. We spoke briefly about some current technological trends. Gimmy gave me an assignment to prove my capability for the intern position. Then, Gimmy and I proceeded to talk about&nbsp;Blue Sky Solar Racing&nbsp;at 茄子直播. Gimmy also worked on the Blue Sky&nbsp;car almost a decade ago, and I am an active team member of the&nbsp;Blue Sky team.&nbsp;I guess that鈥檚 how Nanoleaf recruited me!&nbsp;<a href="http://www.blueskysolar.utoronto.ca/">(Read more about Blue Sky Solar Racing at 茄子直播)</a></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>Why did you want to work with them?</strong></div> <div>At first I just wanted a job for some additional learning experience and a challenge. But after meeting with Gimmy, I was immediately attracted to Nanoleaf. Of all the CEOs/managers/bosses that I have dealt with in the past, I can confidently say that Gimmy is the most 鈥渃hill鈥 (excuse my slang). At the time, I was merely a frosh in school for only half a year. Gimmy did not seem to mind.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>He was interested in two things: what I can offer, and what I want to obtain from working with Nanoleaf. It is almost a feeling of urgency, a liveliness that shouts, 鈥淲e are going to do great things, so if you are ready, hop aboard!鈥&nbsp;I think it鈥檚 this energy that drew me to them, and it鈥檚 because of this energy that I am staying with them. The first day at work, I stayed till 8 p.m. because I felt like I was finally in a place I belonged.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>Does your work at Nanoleaf connect with or supplement what you鈥檝e learned at 茄子直播?</strong></div> <div>The projects I work on at Nanoleaf give me an opportunity to convert theoretical knowledge obtained in the classrooms into real applications that serve real purposes. Specifically, the project management and strategies I learned in my&nbsp;Engineering Strategies and Practice course were used heavily during the discussion and design of a solution at Nanoleaf. Computer Fundamentals taught the basics of the C/C++ programming language, and writing kernel drivers at Nanoleaf allowed me to apply this&nbsp;abstract knowledge. These are some aspects that connect directly with my courses.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>I believe university is also a place to learn how to socialize and form new connections and friendships. Beyond the scope of courses at 茄子直播, working at Nanoleaf has exposed me to an exciting cross section of different social groups in our society: programmers, PhDs, electrical engineers, artists, writers, marketing and strategists. As a surprise, during my stay in the Shenzhen office, I was also offered the opportunity to visit Nanoleaf鈥檚 production facility, providing me with a rich first-hand experience of the modern electronics manufacturing industry.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>So yes, I would say working at Nanoleaf complements my academic and social pursuit at 茄子直播 greatly!</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>What have you learned in working with Nanoleaf that surprised you?</strong></div> <div>Your 鈥渓imit鈥 is where you define it to be.&nbsp;When I first started working at Nanoleaf, I had only a preliminary knowledge of the programming languages used:&nbsp;C, Javascript and&nbsp;Swift. However, Gimmy let me begin with a highly experimental project that involved networking, servers, databases, cloud architectures, and whatever other jargon that鈥檚 out there in the industry. I took it up as a challenge. A month into the project, and I was already comfortable with the technologies involved. Two months in, I began cooperating with the rest of the team in the main program development. By May, I was patching up kernel drivers (advanced development) with guidance from Tom.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>At Nanoleaf, I was surprised by my 鈥渓imit.鈥&nbsp;I have no limit. We all have no limits. If I take something as a challenge, I can always push myself ever harder and further to accomplish it no matter how daunting the task. The key is to always believe in yourself&nbsp;and acknowledge that you can be your own greatest enemy.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h2><a href="http://entrepreneurs.utoronto.ca/">Interested in entrepreneurship and startups at 茄子直播? Visit the Banting &amp; Best Centre for Innovation &amp; Entrepreneurship&nbsp;</a></h2> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2015-10-26-nanoleaf-frank-2.jpg</div> </div> Wed, 04 Nov 2015 06:01:59 +0000 sgupta 7388 at These undergrad interns are helping to power Nanoleaf: Jeanny Yao and Josh Hwang /news/these-undergrad-interns-are-helping-power-nanoleaf-jeanny-yao-and-josh-hwang <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">These undergrad interns are helping to power Nanoleaf: Jeanny Yao and Josh Hwang</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2015-11-02T05:59:15-05:00" title="Monday, November 2, 2015 - 05:59" class="datetime">Mon, 11/02/2015 - 05:59</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">(image courtesy Nanoleaf)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/brianna-goldberg" hreflang="en">Brianna Goldberg</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Brianna Goldberg</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanoleaf" hreflang="en">Nanoleaf</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/undergraduate-education" hreflang="en">Undergraduate Education</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/undergraduate-students" hreflang="en">Undergraduate Students</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/undergrad" hreflang="en">Undergrad</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/math" hreflang="en">Math</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/lighting" hreflang="en">Lighting</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/engineering" hreflang="en">Engineering</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/bbcie" hreflang="en">BBCIE</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/utsc" hreflang="en">UTSC</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/features" hreflang="en">Features</a></div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Why would a fast-growing LED lighting startup&nbsp;hire a statistician and a scientist as business development interns?</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Nanoleaf 鈥 a global startup from 茄子直播 Engineering alumni&nbsp;鈥&nbsp;says it was for their&nbsp;different perspective&nbsp;and critical mindset.<a href="http://www.nanoleaf.me/"> (Read more about Nanoleaf)</a></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>鈥淭he 茄子直播 presence is still very strong at Nanoleaf, and I believe it always will be,鈥 said spokesperson&nbsp;<strong>Leslie Chen</strong>. 鈥淲hen we were looking for interns to join our team, the first place we looked was at 茄子直播.鈥</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The interns,&nbsp;who hooked into Nanoleaf's team through a specialized new venture internship course called<a href="http://www.impactcentre.ca/undergraduate/imc390"> IMC390</a>, get to earn course credits while exploding all conventions of what they can do with their degree.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h2><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/nanoleaf-launches-new-product-apple-home-system">Read more about Nanoleaf on 茄子直播 News&nbsp;</a></h2> <div><em>茄子直播 News</em> is profiling some of the&nbsp;interns helping to power the company as it continues to innovate with clean tech products in Canada and around the world. Below,&nbsp;writer <strong>Brianna Goldberg</strong> talks with&nbsp;<strong>Jeanny Yao</strong>,&nbsp;a fourth-year science student at 茄子直播鈥檚 Scarborough campus and&nbsp;<strong>Josh Hwang</strong>,&nbsp;a fourth-year mathematics and statistics student who just began working with Nanoleaf this September.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div> <hr> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>How did Nanoleaf recruit you and why did you want to work with them?</strong></div> <div><strong>Yao</strong> IMC390 is a venture course that allows students to work in a startup company for eight months, gaining entrepreneurship experience as well as university credits. I recently co-founded a biotechnology company that aims&nbsp;to save the oceans&nbsp;so I was very excited about this business learning opportunity. Nanoleaf particularly caught my eye because of their belief in green technology and sustainable energy, which perfectly align with my values and interests. <a href="http://www.impactcentre.ca/undergraduate/imc390">(Read more about IMC390)</a></div> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>Hwang</strong> I applied for an internship at Nanoleaf through the Impact Centre at 茄子直播<a href="http://entrepreneurs.utoronto.ca/"> (read more about the Impact Centre and the vast network of accelerators and startup supports at 茄子直播)</a>. I thought this was a great way for me to gain new experiences and learn outside of the classroom while earning one course credit. The IMC390 course allows students to gain work experiences with a startup while in school and I鈥檓 fortunate to be able to contribute to the business development of such a cool green-tech company.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>Does your work at Nanoleaf connect with or supplement what you鈥檝e learned at 茄子直播?</strong></div> <div><strong>Yao</strong> Indirectly, yes. I am a science student a 茄子直播. My role at Nanoleaf is in business development. The two may not seem connected&nbsp;but definitely complement one another. The technical side of an idea or research project is essential but there are countless number of technicalities that could keep a person occupied. To be able to bring this research to the real world, there must be an appropriate market fit and strategic plan. I believe in the importance of academic research for fundamental understanding of how the world functions but I also believe that application is the key to bringing benefit to society through science.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>Hwang</strong> My work at Nanoleaf as a business development intern is quite different from my studies in mathematics and statistics at 茄子直播, but I鈥檓 able to supplement my hard skills with varied soft skills. I haven鈥檛 had any experiences with group work at university, but my work at Nanoleaf allows me to work in a team and interact with many different people, such as potential clients, and further develop my people skills.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>What have you learned in working with Nanoleaf that surprised you?</strong></div> <div><strong>Yao</strong> Everyone is extremely intense and passionate about his/her work but the setting is quite casual and the atmosphere is friendly. When physical and laborious work needs to be done fast, everyone gets on the ground and helps out.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><strong>Hwang</strong> As an intern, I expected I would have to give a lot to the company, but the company is also interested in helping the interns learn and grow, and make the most out of the internship. Everyone at Nanoleaf is very friendly and supportive, and the managers have been invested in my personal growth as well.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <h2><a href="http://entrepreneurs.utoronto.ca/">Interested in learning more about startups and entrepreneurship at 茄子直播? Visit the Banting &amp; Best Centre for Innovation &amp; Entrepreneurship</a></h2> <p><iframe allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HCFg5n1JI2M" width="640"></iframe></p> <p><em><a href="https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/nanoleaf-smarter-kit-lights-you-control-with-siri#/">(Video courtesy Nanoleaf's Smarter Kit Indiegogo)</a></em></p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2015-10-27-nanoleaf-interns-1_0.jpg</div> </div> Mon, 02 Nov 2015 10:59:15 +0000 sgupta 7387 at Nanoleaf launches new product for Apple home system /news/nanoleaf-launches-new-product-apple-home-system <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">Nanoleaf launches new product for Apple home system</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2015-10-27T12:25:27-04:00" title="Tuesday, October 27, 2015 - 12:25" class="datetime">Tue, 10/27/2015 - 12:25</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">The Nanoleaf Ivy bulb (hanging) and hub (on table) work in connection with Apple HomeKit</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/brianna-goldberg" hreflang="en">Brianna Goldberg</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Brianna Goldberg</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/features" hreflang="en">Features</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/startup" hreflang="en">Startup</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanoleaf" hreflang="en">Nanoleaf</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/lighting" hreflang="en">Lighting</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/led" hreflang="en">LED</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/entrepreneurship" hreflang="en">Entrepreneurship</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/engineering" hreflang="en">Engineering</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/bbcie" hreflang="en">BBCIE</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/apple" hreflang="en">Apple</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/alumni" hreflang="en">茄子直播</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Siri lets users wirelessly control alumni鈥檚 award-winning super-efficient LED bulbs </div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>Nanoleaf, the&nbsp;fast-growing startup from University of Toronto alumni, launched a new product Oct. 27 tied to Apple's&nbsp;HomeKit line.</p> <p>鈥淲e've received Apple's approval to join the HomeKit ecosystem,鈥 said Nanoleaf spokesperson <strong>Leslie Chen</strong>.&nbsp;</p> <div>The Nanoleaf Smarter Kit combines 鈥渢he world鈥檚 most energy efficient smart bulb鈥 and a stylish, connected hub with Apple鈥檚 Siri-enabled HomeKit, Chen said. This&nbsp;will allow&nbsp;users to wirelessly control the startup鈥檚 award-winning LED bulb designs by simply using their voice.&nbsp;<a href="http://www.nanoleaf.me/">(Read more about Nanoleaf and the new Nanoleaf Smarter Kit)</a></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>鈥淲ith the emergence of smart home products, lighting is entering a whole new territory,鈥 said Chen,<strong>&nbsp;</strong>one of a&nbsp;growing number of recent 茄子直播 grads&nbsp;recruited to&nbsp;Nanoleaf.&nbsp;</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div> <div><img alt="image of ivy bulb" src="/sites/default/files/2015-10-26-nanoleaf-main-ivy-embed.jpg" style="font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px; width: 232px; height: 300px; margin: 10px; float: left;">鈥淚magine sitting in the living room and being able to control all of the lights in your home with just a few words,鈥 she said. 鈥淧retty revolutionary to say the least!鈥</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Chen said the Ivy is an app-controlled bulb that users can turn on, off and dim using their Apple phone, tablet or smart watch. The Nanoleaf Smarter Kit&nbsp;is set for release in selected Best Buy locations in early November, she added, with&nbsp;more details still to come.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>鈥淚ntegrating technology like this, especially through a company as famed as Apple, is a great way to reach a wider audience and get access to a new market,鈥 said <a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/meet-karen-sievewright-managing-director-u-t-new-entrepreneurship-hub"><strong>Karen Sievewright</strong></a>, managing director of 茄子直播's <a href="http://entrepreneurs.utoronto.ca/">Banting &amp; Best Centre for Innovation &amp; Entrepreneurship</a>. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a smart move by Nanoleaf.鈥</div> </div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The green tech startup founded by Engineering alumni <strong>Gimmy Chu</strong>, <strong>Christian Yan</strong> and <strong>Tom Rodinger</strong> has grown from a massively successful Kickstarter project in early 2013, based on the strength of their stylish 鈥渨orld鈥檚 most energy efficient鈥 bulb, to a bustling company with approximately 40 employees spread between its Toronto and Shenzhen, China, offices.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>The venture recently scored funding from 鈥楢sia鈥檚 richest philanthropist,鈥 debuted&nbsp;products at fairs in New York, Shanghai and Tokyo and won a reddot design award for 2015.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/fiat-lux-alumni-launch-nanolight">Read about Nanoleaf鈥檚 Kickstarter surpassing its goal by 500 per cent</a></div> <div><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/asia-richest-philanthropist-major-silicon-valley-firm-invest-alumni-nanoleaf-light-bulb">Read about 鈥楢sia鈥檚 richest philanthropist鈥 investing in Nanoleaf</a></div> <div><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/alumni-startup-nanoleaf-creating-green-jobs-toronto-china">Read about Nanoleaf creating green jobs in Canada and China</a></div> <div><a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/new-dimming-bulb-does-not-need-special-light-switch-and-is-still-world-most-energy-efficient">Read about Nanoleaf鈥檚 revolutionary dimming bulb</a></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Chen says the next big step for Nanoleaf will be releasing a product they believe will change the way people think about lighting.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div><img alt="image of bulbs and hub" src="/sites/default/files/2015-10-26-nanoleaf-main-ivy-embed-2.jpg" style="width: 300px; height: 434px; margin: 10px; float: right;"></div> <div>鈥淟ight is not merely illumination. Light is atmosphere, it wakes you up after a night of sleep, it keeps us safe and content, just as much today as two million years ago,鈥 said Chu, CEO of Nanoleaf. 鈥淲e want to make products that will transform simple lighting solutions into meaningful experiences.鈥</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Nanoleaf made the announcement as 茄子直播's Impact Centre prepared to host a&nbsp;symposium celebrating the International Year of Light. <a href="http://www.impactcentre.ca/light2015">(Read more about the IYL Symposium)</a></div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Chen says the gains of Nanoleaf rely on the team members they continue to recruit from 茄子直播.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>鈥淭he 茄子直播 presence is still very strong at Nanoleaf, and I believe it always will be,鈥 said Chen. 鈥淲hen we were looking for interns to join our team, the first place we looked was at 茄子直播.鈥</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>Watch for <em>茄子直播 News</em>&nbsp;stories profiling Nanoleaf's three undergrad interns, <strong>Jeanny Yao</strong>, <strong>Frank Gu</strong>&nbsp;and<strong> Josh Hwang</strong>&nbsp;in the coming week.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>鈥淣anoleaf will always be very closely connected with 茄子直播: our three founders are all alumni and without the school, they would have never met in the first place,鈥 said Chen.</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <div>鈥淚t will always be part of our identity and I think that鈥檚 why 茄子直播 grads are a good fit for us.鈥</div> <div>&nbsp;</div> <p><iframe allowfullscreen frameborder="0" height="360" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/HCFg5n1JI2M" width="640"></iframe></p> <p><em><a href="https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/nanoleaf-smarter-kit-lights-you-control-with-siri#/">(Video courtesy Nanoleaf's Smarter Kit Indiegogo)</a></em></p> <h2><a href="http://entrepreneurs.utoronto.ca/">Learn more about entrepreneurships and startups at 茄子直播:&nbsp;visit the Banting &amp; Best Centre for Entrepreneurship.</a></h2> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2015-10-26-nanoleaf-main-lead.jpg</div> </div> Tue, 27 Oct 2015 16:25:27 +0000 sgupta 7386 at 茄子直播 startup Nanoleaf creating green jobs in Toronto, China /news/alumni-startup-nanoleaf-creating-green-jobs-toronto-china <span class="field field--name-title field--type-string field--label-hidden">茄子直播 startup Nanoleaf creating green jobs in Toronto, China</span> <span class="field field--name-uid field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden"><span>sgupta</span></span> <span class="field field--name-created field--type-created field--label-hidden"><time datetime="2015-04-22T10:08:39-04:00" title="Wednesday, April 22, 2015 - 10:08" class="datetime">Wed, 04/22/2015 - 10:08</time> </span> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-field-cutline-long field--type-text-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Cutline</div> <div class="field__item">The energy-efficient Nanoleaf Gem is company's first designer bulb (image courtesy Nanoleaf)</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-reporters field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/authors-reporters/brianna-goldberg" hreflang="en">Brianna Goldberg</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-author-legacy field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Author legacy</div> <div class="field__item">Brianna Goldberg</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-story-tags field--type-entity-reference field--label-hidden field__items"> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/nanoleaf" hreflang="en">Nanoleaf</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/sustainability" hreflang="en">Sustainability</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/startup" hreflang="en">Startup</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/entrepreneurship" hreflang="en">Entrepreneurship</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/engineering" hreflang="en">Engineering</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/commercialization" hreflang="en">Commercialization</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/alumni" hreflang="en">茄子直播</a></div> <div class="field__item"><a href="/news/tags/features" hreflang="en">Features</a></div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-subheadline field--type-string-long field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">Subheadline</div> <div class="field__item">Earth Day sees company add designer bulb to its suite of energy-efficient LEDs </div> </div> <div class="clearfix text-formatted field field--name-body field--type-text-with-summary field--label-hidden field__item"><p>It started with a viral campaign for the world鈥檚 most energy-efficient light bulb in 2013. Now, international media are also calling Nanoleaf a 鈥済reen job鈥 leader.</p> <p>Founded by University of Toronto &nbsp;engineering alumni <strong>Gimmy Chu</strong>, <strong>Tom Rodinger </strong>and <strong>Christian Yan</strong>, the company has grown from its days as a crowdfunded venture working from the founders鈥 apartments to a bi-continental company attracting investment from the likes of Li Ka Shing (dubbed 鈥淎sia鈥檚 richest man鈥 by Bloomberg News).&nbsp;(<a href="http://news.utoronto.ca/asia-richest-philanthropist-major-silicon-valley-firm-invest-alumni-nanoleaf-light-bulb">Read more about NanoLeaf in 茄子直播 News</a>&nbsp;or&nbsp;check out&nbsp;<a href="http://nanoleaf.me/">its&nbsp;website</a>.)</p> <p>Now, Nanoleaf鈥檚 efforts have been <a href="http://www.reuters.com/video/2015/04/14/more-green-jobs-in-a-cleaner-china?videoId=363845801">highlighted by Reuters as a best practice for the increasing trend of 鈥榞reen jobs鈥</a> in a country that the International Monetary Fund ranks as the world鈥檚 largest economy.&nbsp;</p> <p>(<a href="http://entrepreneurs.utoronto.ca/">Interested in entrepreneurship and startups at 茄子直播? Visit 茄子直播's Banting &amp; Best Centre for Innovation &amp; Entrepreneurship</a>.)</p> <p>Nanoleaf recently won two 2015 Red Dot international design awards for its bulbs and opened an office in Toronto.&nbsp;And, on Earth Day, the startup launched its newest product: Nanoleaf Gem 鈥 described as 鈥渢he world鈥檚 first all-glass, designer LED bulb.鈥</p> <p>One of Nanoleaf鈥檚 newest recruits, alumna <strong>Leslie Chen</strong>, shared the latest on their recent growth鈥</p> <p><strong>What鈥檚 new with NanoLeaf?&nbsp;</strong><br> Nanoleaf recently set up an office in downtown Toronto, so we are now officially a global company that spans two continents.&nbsp;</p> <p>The Toronto office opened in January this year. We were originally in the MaRS building, which started off with three people, but now we have moved into our own office at Queen and John, having expanded to eight people. There are about 20 employees in China and we have a small office in Hong Kong with a few people as well.&nbsp;</p> <p>The expansion to Toronto was to focus on research and development, to expand our team of engineers as well as develop the creative team, which includes me and a new industrial designer.&nbsp;We mostly coordinate with the China team over Skype and e-mail. Meetings are usually nights for us and mornings for them!</p> <p>We鈥檝e also been getting ready for the launch of our new product, the Nanoleaf Gem, which is the world鈥檚 first LED d茅cor bulb.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>How has the green lighting landscape developed since you came on the scene?&nbsp;</strong><br> Green lighting has definitely expanded since Nanoleaf started. There are now so many 鈥榞reen鈥 companies and products out there, but Nanoleaf is constantly striving to be the best and to create the most sustainable yet stylish products available.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>What are you most interested to see in the near future in terms of energy-efficient lighting?&nbsp;</strong><br> We鈥檙e excited to see even more energy-efficient bulbs available. Not just energy-efficient but also LED lights that challenge the industry standards, which inspired us to create the Nanoleaf Gem.&nbsp;</p> <p>People usually don鈥檛 associate LED bulbs with beauty, so we wanted to create a light bulb that was eco-friendly but still appealed to designers and artists.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>What鈥檚 your next big goal or challenge to work through as a company?</strong><br> Our goal for the Nanoleaf Gem is to get designers and others in that industry to start thinking about adopting LED lighting. We鈥檙e all about green without compromise. Green products usually only focus on the energy efficiency aspect and forget about style, but we wanted to bring those two worlds together with the Gem.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Any favourite 茄子直播 startup companies that you鈥檙e keeping an eye on?</strong><br> We recently saw Fuel Wear Clothing in Metro, which was really interesting. Similar to Nanoleaf, it was founded by three engineering grads who launched their product with a Kickstarter campaign.</p> <p><em>Brianna Goldberg writes about entrepreneurship and produces The Cities Podcast for 茄子直播 News.</em></p> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-news-home-page-banner field--type-boolean field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">News home page banner</div> <div class="field__item">Off</div> </div> <div class="field field--name-field-picpath field--type-string field--label-above"> <div class="field__label">picpath</div> <div class="field__item">sites/default/files/2015-04-22-nanoleaf-gem.jpg</div> </div> Wed, 22 Apr 2015 14:08:39 +0000 sgupta 6970 at