CONFERENCE AGENDA

Subject to change

DAY 1 - Entrepreneurship & Growth

Tuesday January 20

8:00AM - 9:00AM Breakfast

9:00 - 9:30AM Opening Remarks & Welcome

• Mary Point, Musqueam Elder, Director Indigenous Relations, YVR

• Victoria LaBillois, Founder, The Eloquent Hostess

• Candice Loring, Director Indigenous Relations, Genome BC & Board Chair, Indigenous Tech Circle

9:30 - 10:30AM The Importance of Tech and Growth for Indigenous People How technology drives sovereignty, jobs, and opportunity

• Betsy Fore, Founding Partner & Managing Director Velveteen Ventures

• Jeff Ward, Founder & CEO, Animiiki

• Bobbie Racette, Founder, Tapwi & Virtual Gurus (Acquired)

• Ryan St. Germaine, Founder, Indigenous Tech Circle (moderator)

10:30 - 10:45AM Break

10:45 - 11:30AM Workshops

• B: AI Nations Designing a Future Where Technology Serves the People

  • Dean Bittner, CTO, Co-Founder, Principal Inventor, RUNWITHIT (RWI) Synthetics

  • Lynnsey Chartrand, Head of Indigenous Initiatives, Mila

  • Michael Running Wolf, Co-founder & Lead Architect First Nations Languages AI Reality, Mila

• A: Creating An Effective PR Strategy

  • Kari Kylo, Founder & Managing Partner, Soma Public Relations

• C: Trends in BC’s Innovation Ecosystem For 2026

  • Elizabeth Dutton, COO, Innovate BC

  • Angie Schick, Executive Director, New Ventures BC

  • Dr. David G. Harper, CEO, Discovery Foundation

11:30 - 12:30PM Lunch

12:30 - 1:20PM Importance of Mentorship in Technology: Building Capacity, Confidence, and Community

• Shauna McAllister, Sales Manager, R8dius

• Noah Wilson, Senior Business Development Manager, Futurpreneur

• D'Arcy Lussier, Partner Technology Strategist, Microsoft

• Brett Hotas, Executive Director, Future Workforce Development Strategy, TECHNATION (moderator)

1:40 - 2:30PM Workshops

• A: Earth Tech 2050: Co-Creating Clean, Affordable, Community-Centered Energy Future

  • Jackie McCoy, Director of Engineering, Grengine

  • Keith Gillard, CEO & Co-Founder, Sustaero

  • Hayden Smith, CEO & Co-Founder, FeX Energy

  • Zachary McCue, CEO & Founder, REPWR

    • This session is empowered by Foresight Canada, EarthTech 2050 & Social Innovation Canada

• B: The State of Indigenous Investment Where capital is flowing, gaps that remain, and what founders need to do to be ready

  • Richard Tuck, Co-Founder & CEO, Wakopa Financial & Indigenous Venture Challenge

  • Richard Egli, General Partner, Emend Vision Fund

  • Darian Hirst, Indigenous Entrepreneur Fund, BDC

  • Althea Wishloff, General Partner, Raven Indigenous Capital Partners (moderator)

• C: Indigenous Leaders Who Have Created Tech to Improve Cultural Needs In Community

  • Lawrence Lewis, Founder & CEO, OneFeather

  • Denis Carignan, President, PLATO

  • Hannes Edinger, Founder & Managing Director, Big River Analytics

2:30 - 2:45PM - Break

2:45 - 4:30PM Lightning Talks: Indigenous Startup Showcase Founders introduce their companies and highlight opportunities for funders, supporters, and peers to engage. This session is empowered by Invest Vancouver.

• Jacquie Griffiths, President, Invest Vancouver

4:30 - 4:40PM Closing

6:00 - 8:00PM Reception & Indigenous Venture Challenge Winner Announcement

• Featuring Richard Tuck on SEALS and celebrating community achievements.

DAY 2 - Careers & Technology

Wednesday January 21

8:00 - 9:00AM Breakfast

9:00 - 9:15AM Welcome, Day 2 Overview & Platinum Sponsor Remarks

• Victoria LaBillois, Founder, The Eloquent Hostess

• Michele Young-Crook, Founder, Sage3 Productions

9:15 - 10:05AM Leading As Indigenous Tech CEOs Hear from successful Indigenous Tech Founders sharing their journey and how they navigate two eyed seeing in the world of tech

• Teara Fraser, Founder & CEO, Iskwew Air

• Bill Hale, Co-founder & CEO, FetchGoat

• Althea Wishloff, General Partner, Raven Indigenous Capital Partners (moderator)

10:05 - 10:20AM Break

10:20 - 11:05AM Workshops

• A: Top Tech Tools for Indigenous Businesses 2026

  • Rochelle Grayson, Founder, Mosaic Accelerator

• B: Reclaiming Health Through Technology and Indigenous Data Governance

  • Josh Gray, Co-founder, The Arlo Healthcare Company

  • Angela Robert, CEO, Conquer Experience

11:05 - 12:05PM Lunch

12:05 - 12:55PM Women At The Helm: Advancing Indigenous Innovation and Workforce Growth

• Candice Loring, Director Indigenous Relations, Genome BC & Board Chair, Indigenous Tech Circle

• Magnolia Perron, Director of Strategy & Partnerships, NACCA

• Janice Gladue, Chief Operating Officer, TIPI Group of Companies

• Michele Young-Crook, Founder, Sage3 Productions (moderator)

12:55 - 1:10PM Break

1:10 - 1:55PM Workshops

• B: Cybersecurity 101 Protecting Your Business & Community Online

  • Darion Ducharme, Founder & CEO, Teqare

• A: IP Strategy: Safeguarding Innovation 

  • Susan Tees, IP Director, New Ventures BC

• C: E-commerce For Artists and Makers: Selling Online As A Creator

  • Chelsee Pettit, Founder & CEO, aaniin

1:55 - 2:10PM Break

2:10 - 3:00PM Navigating Indigenous Data Sovereignty

• Ja’-elle Leite, CEO, Ultralogix Inc.

• Angie Saltman, Founder, Saltmedia

• Sara Wolfe, Consultant, Equity Cubed

• Candice Loring, Director Indigenous Relations, Genome BC Board Chair, Indigenous Tech Circle (moderator)

3:00 - 3:30PM Closing

• Mary Point, Musqueam Elder, Director Indigenous Relations YVR

• Victoria LaBillois, Founder, The Eloquent Hostess

• Ryan St. Germaine, Founder & CEO, Indigenous Tech Circle