Inside PitchDay: Showcasing the Next Wave of High-Potential Founders

One of the most exciting moments of the night was announcing that GSA Ventures is providing a cheque to Terra Bioindustries, an extraordinary alumni company of Global Startups’ NEA Program, co-funded by NRC–IRAP. TerraBio was part of the very first NEA cohort — and their trajectory since then has been nothing short of remarkable.

A Brief Look at TerraBio’s Journey

TerraBio is tackling one of the world’s biggest sustainability challenges: the enormous volume of agri-food waste. Their upcycling platform transforms by-products — starting with Brewers Spent Grain — into high-value ingredients for the food and beverage industry. Their flagship products include:

  • Recyclose — a functional sugar replacement derived from barley that performs like malt extract but at significantly lower cost.
  • Protina — a high-quality, great-tasting protein for baked goods and snacks, offering food manufacturers a much-needed alternative to pea and soy proteins.

Backed by deep bioprocessing expertise and supported by a global network of partners, TerraBio is rapidly moving toward commercialization. With technical demonstrations, industry interest, and strong progress across food and beverage verticals, they are nearing completion of their $750K second pre-seed round — and we’re proud to back them again on this journey.

PitchDay Presenting Companies

In addition to TerraBio, we were thrilled to showcase four impressive companies from our portfolio, each building solutions in high-growth markets around the world.

Fitofan – Sports-Tech (Mississauga, ON)

Fitofan is a global social-sports platform that helps athletes of any age or sport build and monetize their careers using real-time, first-party performance data and AI analytics. It connects athletes, clubs, federations, and fans in a unified digital ecosystem designed for the creator-driven future of sports.

Classroom Studio – EdTech (Vancouver, BC)

Classroom Studio unifies lesson planning and automates repetitive tasks for teachers and administrators. The platform reduces workload, restores student engagement, and supports schools as they address nationwide shortages and rising burnout in the education sector.

Aspedan – E-Commerce (Toronto, ON)

Aspedan provides AI-powered pricing infrastructure for multi-platform e-commerce brands, helping merchants convert more visitors, increase average order value, and eliminate guesswork from pricing.

Zagitas – AI Enterprise (Toronto, ON)

Zagitas delivers enterprise-grade AI — from intelligent agents to fully autonomous workflow orchestration — helping mid-sized and large companies eliminate manual processes, reduce costs, and scale operations.

SaHera – Health-Tech (Montreal, QC)

SaHera is building integrated health-tech solutions for women experiencing perimenopause, offering personalized support to manage symptoms such as hot flashes, sleep disruption, and mood changes — serving one of the world’s most underserved health markets.

Portfolio Updates from the Stage

Several alumni companies took the stage to share milestones and future plans:

  • Actuality – Update on product expansion and early customer traction.
  • Verdnt (formerly Khetibuddy) – New verticals and growing demand for agricultural productivity tools.
  • HealthBuddha – Progress on integrated wellness solutions and next steps for commercialization.
  • TerraBio – Shared key developments leading into the close of their second pre-seed round.

Their progress demonstrates why the Moneyball Thesis works: overlooked founders, exceptional execution.

Looking Ahead

PitchDay reaffirmed our belief that early-stage investing is strongest when diverse founders, informed investors, and supportive communities come together. We’re excited to continue conversations with those who want to learn more about our approach — and with those who want access to companies like the ones showcased last night.

If you’re an investor, aspiring investor, or ecosystem partner interested in the Moneyball Thesis, we’d love to talk.

👉 Schedule a call with us and learn more about our founders, portfolio, and investment strategy.

Here’s to another year of building a better, more inclusive, and globally competitive early-stage ecosystem.

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