Brampton is quietly becoming one of Canada’s most promising startup destinations — thanks in large part to the Brampton Venture Zone (BVZ), a tech incubator that’s helping early-stage founders turn bold ideas into thriving businesses.
Take Tenomix, a medtech startup that joined BVZ three years ago with little more than a prototype to automate lymph-node detection in cancer pathology. Today, the company has entered pilot testing and raised $3 million — a journey that began when BVZ provided critical early guidance and industry connections.
“We believed in the founders and their vision,” says Fardan Khan, BVZ’s Interim Director. “It shows that good things can happen when even very early-stage startups get the right support at the right time.”
The City of Brampton recently renewed its partnership with BVZ, part of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Zone Learning network, for another five years. This renewed support will ensure that the incubator continues to offer a launchpad for the next generation of tech ventures. “Brampton is one of Canada’s most dynamic cities, full of energy and people who will shape the nation’s future,” says John MacRitchie, TMU’s Assistant VP of Zone Learning & Strategic Initiatives.
A Healthtech Ecosystem Takes Shape
Over half of BVZ’s portfolio now focuses on health and medtech. With TMU’s new School of Medicine opening this fall and established institutions like William Osler Health System and the Osler Research Institute for Health Innovation nearby, Brampton is emerging as an ideal testing ground for digital health innovation.
“For founders at the early stage, having access to the right kind of people and experts is sometimes the biggest challenge,” Khan explains. “Because we’ve built those partnerships in the community, we can make the introductions — and then it’s up to the founders to do the hard work.”
The city sits at the heart of North America’s third-largest biotechnology cluster, with employment in health and life sciences growing by 50 percent since 2005. Major players like Medtronic, Dynacare, Sun Pharma Canada, Boston Scientific, and Canadian Blood Services are based in Brampton. Rather than focusing on big pharma, BVZ is carving out a niche in digital health, wellness, and early-stage medtech — areas like preventative care, chronic disease management, and supply chain innovation.
Success Stories and Diversity at the Core
BVZ’s Launch program helps MVP-ready startups validate their market fit and secure pilot opportunities. Tenomix, for instance, leveraged BVZ’s introductions to William Osler and Dynacare to conduct a pilot study. Waive, another healthtech company using AI to reduce doctors’ administrative workloads, expanded through BVZ’s ties with TMU and local health networks.
Beyond health, BVZ supports ventures like Scooty, which is reshaping shared mobility in Brampton with e-scooters, and Transify, which aims to streamline logistics through data visualization.
Since 2021, 48 startups have graduated from BVZ’s Launch program, nearly half led by women and most by founders from underrepresented communities. “It’s not just the stereotypical young guys in hoodies pitching to VCs,” Khan says.
Building Brampton’s Innovation Identity
BVZ’s Brampton Innovator Program gives local founders structured mentorship and access to resources across sectors like mobility, logistics, fintech, AI, and healthtech. For MacRitchie, this ecosystem — blending emerging technologies with community collaboration — is setting Brampton up for a national leadership role.
“As we continue to focus on our core strength in healthtech, collaboration with community partners and experts in areas like extended reality tech, logistics, and AI will be essential,” he says.
Khan sees the next chapter as one of deepening ties with the medical school, strengthening partnerships, and bridging Brampton’s startups with Toronto’s broader innovation ecosystem through resources like the Biomedical Zone.
“Ultimately,” he says, “we want healthtech founders to instinctively look to Brampton as the place for opportunity. That’s the legacy we’d love to build.”