If you want to understand the future of Manitoba’s economy, don’t look at a skyscraper. Look in a basement.
Look at the borrowed boardrooms, the co-working spaces, the half-written pitch decks and recycled coffee cups. That's Manitoba's Startup Ecosystem. Look at the startups that have been grinding away through the province’s largest startup incubator, building companies that have now generated over $6.5 million in revenue… in just three months. And that number is only from the 63 founders who answered a recent survey. The real total is almost certainly higher.
This wasn’t a fluke quarter. It was the future coming into focus.
The latest data from North Forge’s Founders Program — Canada’s only non-profit incubator and fabrication lab offering free support to early-stage Manitoba startups — shows not only 80 full-time equivalent jobs created, but also $1.45 million raised in investment. Those revenue numbers dwarf entire fiscal years in recent memory. The North Forge Founders Program saw $2.48 million in startup-earned revenue over all of 2022-23. Now, that's nearly tripled in one quarter.
The question is: what changed?
From grind to growth: Manitoba's startup ecosystem
“There’s a shift happening,” said Grace Gyolai, Program Manager at North Forge. “Founders are moving away from relying on traditional investment and really starting to understand that the best way to grow is to sell something — and make money.”
It’s a statement that sounds obvious. But in startup culture, where momentum is often measured by successful pitches and funding rounds, actually generating revenue signals a meaningful change. Founders aren’t just building to raise capital anymore. They’re building to sell, to scale, and to stay. And for many of the companies coming through North Forge — as well as programs like the University of Manitoba’s Lab2Market and IDEA START, and Manitoba Innovates — it’s beginning to feel less like a trend and more like a movement.
That isn’t to say investor interest in Manitoban startups is slowing. While many companies are leaning into revenue generation, others — like 2018 RampUp Weekend winner TAIV and fintech standout Conquest Planning — have recently closed funding rounds of $14.4 million and $110 million, respectively.
These aren’t just digital side projects or flashy apps. They're software companies, medtech platforms, manufacturing ventures… Essentially, businesses that are bringing in real revenue, driving economic impact, and hiring for roles that didn’t exist in the province a few years ago.
One of those companies is Q-Doc Virtual Healthcare, co-founded by pediatric emergency room physician-turned-entrepreneur, Dr. Norm Silver.
“In medicine, I always hated inefficiencies,” Silver said. “I didn’t want to just complain — I wanted to fix them.”
That instinct turned into a string of clinic launches, a pandemic-era COVID site, and eventually Q-Doc: a platform that’s now brought at least 45 nurse practitioners onto its virtual roster.
It’s a different scene from the emergency room, and Silver credits Manitoba’s startup community for helping him navigate the leap.
“There’s this culture here [in Manitoba] — a friend of mine had this saying… a rising tide lifts all boats,” Silver said. “You don’t always see competition between companies. By raising awareness of the ecosystem, raising the quality of companies in Manitoba, and building on the infrastructure we have here, it helps everyone.”
A path to stay — and a reason not to leave
The economic impact is measurable. But the social ripple effect is just as compelling.
“There are a lot of people graduating [post-secondary] here with really strong skills,” said Gyolai. “But without mid and senior-level managers to train them, they’re leaving the province.”
“Startups,” she explains, “offer a rare opportunity for junior hires to level up fast — to take on responsibility, stretch their capabilities, and become the type of leadership talent Manitoba desperately needs to retain.”
And in Q-Doc’s case, it’s about building new bridges in health care. The company has worked closely with regulators to improve access to virtual care, helping to streamline processes and bring new solutions to Manitobans faster.
“There’s a strong commitment from the Province of Manitoba to support innovation in this province,” said Joelle Foster, President and CEO of North Forge. “They’ve been an invaluable partner in helping create the right environment for startups to grow, scale, and make a real impact.”
By addressing real-world challenges and collaborating across sectors, companies like Q-Doc are showing what’s possible when innovation meets support — and why more founders are choosing to build in Manitoba.
It’s not just about building companies. It’s about building reasons to stay.
What impact looks like
It’s easy to get lost in metrics. A million here, a few dozen jobs there. But behind those numbers are founders working 18-hour days, graduates staying in Manitoba because a startup gave them a shot, nurse practitioners seeing patients virtually from rural communities that might otherwise wait weeks.
“It’s really cool,” Gyolai said, “to wake up and have a job where you get to listen to people talk about the things they’re passionate about, and then to see it pay off with real results. Like 80 new jobs. That’s not just emotionally rewarding. It’s real. It matters to the province.”
At a time when many sectors are facing uncertainty, this corner of Manitoba is quietly punching above its weight — not just in dollars, but in the lives it’s shaping.
And it’s only the first quarter.
