Velocity, University of Waterloo

What would happen if we took the University of Waterloos brightest students and gave them access to a learning-focused community of mentors and like-minded peers, the latest equipment, and the resources to turn their business ideas into successful startups? What better place to build such a unique community than University of Waterloo, which Macleans Magazine has named Canadas most innovative university 21 years running. With these questions in mind, the University of Waterloos Velocity program was born. Drawing on the Region of Waterloos thriving startup community and the University of Waterloos most ambitious, entrepreneurial students, Velocitys first program - the Velocity Residence - was created in 2008. In the years since, Velocity has grown into a set of six interlinked entrepreneurial initiatives: Velocity Residence, Velocity Garage, Velocity Alpha, Velocity Science, Velocity Foundry and the Velocity Fund Finals (VFF). Each of these unique initiatives supports Velocitys vision of developing an engaging community that fosters creativity and entrepreneurship while turning students ideas into sustainable businesses. They also form the perfect complement to the environment at uWaterloo - a university that holds entrepreneurship as one of its key pillars - by equipping students with the knowledge and tools necessary to navigate the entrepreneurial space, supporting knowledge sharing among peers, providing access to a diverse network of mentors, and allowing students to maintain ownership of their intellectual property. Velocitys commitment to education, idea sharing and the creation of support systems has allowed it to become a highly successful startup community, which contributed to the success of companies like Kik, Thalmic Labs, BufferBox, Vidyard and MappedIn.