Skip to content

Whether you are a student or a startup founder, Velocity can help.

Apply to Velocity

Our programs

Velocity offers programs for all stages of your founder journey.

Gain access to connections, practical and authentic business expertise, a deeply supportive community, space to build a team and develop products, and risk-tolerant capital.

For startups For students

For startups

MedAtlas - one of the companies incubated at Velocity

Velocity Incubator

Located at the heart of Kitchener’s Innovation District, the Velocity Incubator offers flexible support for early-stage founders solving the world’s greatest challenges.

Velocity provides early-stage founders (seed and pre-seed) with expert advice and connections to investors, advisors, and other key stakeholders. Velocity founders also join a supportive community of founders at similar stages, allowing them to share knowledge and network with peers.

Learn more about the Velocity for startups
Cobionix cofounder working on their robotic solution for health tech workers

Velocity health

Founders are supported at every stage of their health startup journey.

• Research & Product Development with access to a growing network of clinical trial partners and assistance in clinical design, regulatory support and funding

• Growing and funding your start-up through dedicated mentorship from experienced HealthTech founders and access to a global network of investors

• Building health technologies at scale through access to world class labs and workshops where you can connect and learn from a community of successful HealthTech entrepreneurs

Learn more about Velocity health
Velocity companies raised over $3.6B

Velocity Fund

A pre-seed fund spun out of the University of Waterloo to invest in world-changing companies at the earliest stage.

Learn more about the Velocity Fund

For Waterloo Campus

Student talking to Velocity ambassador at event

Up Start

Up Start is for Waterloo students and recent graduates who want to transform their work into real world commercial ventures.

Whether you are working on a graduate degree or capstone project, we want to accelerate your success and help you make an impact on the world. 

Learn more about Up Start
TAMVOES founders (Female and male) sit at a desk and are looking at a computer screen, working.

Cornerstone

Cornerstone is the culmination of the student entrepreneurial process. Test your business ideas by finding and speaking directly with customers.

Validate your business plan and gain firsthand knowledge of your target market while joining a network of founders to share knowledge and resources.

Learn more about Cornerstone
Early-stage University of Waterloo student startup winners of the spring 2022 Velocity $5K stand on stage to accept the large recipient cheques. From left to right: Adanna Amechi (Engineering, Chemical Engineering) of The President Braids; Glaucia Melo dos Santos, (Math, Computer Science) of OrientaMED; Avery Chiu (Engineering, Mechatronics Engineering) & Christopher Samra (Engineering, Mechatronics Engineering) of Symphonic and; an Hung Le (Engineering, Master of Business, Entrepreneurship and Technology) from Tako.

Velocity Pitch Competition

The Velocity Pitch Competition offers the opportunity for University of Waterloo student-led teams with innovative solutions and high potential business ideas to showcase their hard work and compete for grant funding.

Participants receive valuable feedback, pitching experience, and idea validation from a network of experienced entrepreneurs and Velocity coaches. 

Learn more about the Pitch Competition
Student founder being coached by Velocity

1:1 coaching

Our network of coaches includes a variety of individuals made up of founders, small business owners, early employees from successful startups, and experienced entrepreneurs.

They are available to meet on-on-one or in a small group to discuss your startup ideas and aspirations and help guide you to turning your concept into a reality.

Learn more about coaching
Launch Session

Startup 101

Want to know what an entrepreneurship journey looks like? Need to find funding and unsure of where to start? Startup 101 will kickstart your business knowledge with our simple hour long (sometimes more) themed sessions. Hosted by founders for everyone.

See you IRL Mondays at EIT 1015 from 5:30-7pm. No experience necessary.

Learn more about Startup 101
Mike & Ophelia Lazaridis Quantum-Nano Centre building photograph

WIN / Velocity scholarship

The WIN-Velocity Scholarship supports research-based master’s students from the University of Waterloo looking commercialize their research and build a deep-tech start-up company.

Selected students will receive support from Velocity and funding from the Waterloo Institute for Nanotechnology (WIN).

Learn more about the WIN | Velocity scholarship
Outdoors at the University of Waterloo, students mingling and walking on the path

Campus Ambassadors

The Velocity Campus Ambassadors engage, support and connect students with entrepreneurship experiences that help foster ambitious ideas.

Ambassadors are on campus weekly to hand out swag, talk, support & plan events, build community and more!