Competition Overview
The Synapse Competition is Ontario's premier life science pitch competition and is dedicated to fostering the commercialization of innovation in the life science sector. Delivered by Innovation Factory, in collaboration with the Synapse Consortium, this competition assists innovators, scientists and researchers to bring their ideas to market, increase revenues, leverage intellectual property attract, investment and create jobs.
Innovator finalists receive training, mentorship, a $5,000 grant and a chance to pitch and compete for up to $100,000 in prizes

COMPETITION STATS SINCE 2013




100+ COMPANIES
$600K+ PRIZES AWARDED
$50M+ FUNDS RAISED
GLOBAL MARKETS ACCESSED
The competition is separated into four phases, outlined below.

PHASE ONE
TEAM FORMATION
Interested participants will complete a short application and finalists will be notified in December of their acceptance into the competition. Innovators and students will form teams at our Meet & Greet in January 2022.

PHASE TWO
COMMERCIALIZATION PLAN
Teams will receive training and mentorship in order to submit a
10-15 page
Commercialization Plan, outlining detailed steps needed to commercialize their innovation, and a timeline to market in February, 2022.

PHASE THREE
INVESTOR PITCH
Teams will attend training to develop and deliver a 5-minute investor
pitch, including the components of a pitch, delivery methods, and
addressing questions in March 2022.

FINAL PHASE
FINAL PITCH & SHOWCASE
The top-ranked teams will deliver a business pitch, competing for cash and in-kind services from our generous partners. All finalists will present a poster and have the opportunity to network with top industry leaders in the life science sector on March 23, 2022.
KEY DATES
October 7, 2021: Applications open
November 7, 2021: Applications Close
December 2021: Finalists Notified
January 6, 2022: Networking & Team Formation
January 12+ 13, 2022: Commercialization Plan Training
January 20, 2022: Regulatory Training
Jan or Feb, 2022: Business Advisory Meetings
February 10, 2022: Commercialization Plan Due
February 17 2022: Investor Pitch Training
March 11, 2022: Elevator Pitch & Poster Due
March 23, 2022: SYNAPSE PITCH COMPETITION SHOWCASE
*Dates subject to change





