Who Decides Who Gets Funded
Capital flows to familiarity. This room is structured to examine what gets missed when it does, and what changes when funders look harder.
AI is already embedded in the systems that determine who gets seen, who gets backed, and who gets capital. When the founders building those systems are drawn from the same narrow networks, the result is mispriced risk, missed returns, and overlooked companies solving real problems.
This room is structured to bring together the people with the agency to change that: founders currently building in AI, funders actively deploying capital into the space, and the policy and research leaders defining what the next infrastructure looks like.
WHO THIS IS FOR
Founders currently building AI products or actively integrating AI into their roadmap
Investors, lenders, and accelerators actively deploying capital into AI companies
Ecosystem organizations directly shaping who gets access to capital and infrastructure
Policy and research leaders working at the intersection of AI development and capital access
WHAT YOU WILL LEAVE WITH
FOR FOUNDERS
A clear read on how funding decisions are actually made, concrete ways to frame yourself and your company to investors, and direct introductions to funders in the room who are relevant to your raise.
FOR FUNDERS
Direct access to high-quality founders building in AI who are not in your current pipeline, a sharper lens on where standard evaluation frameworks create blind spots, and connections you can act on the next day.
PROGRAM
5:45 PM
Doors Open
6:00 PM
Welcome RemarksArgentina Beltran, Founder and CEO, InclusifAI
6:05 PM
Sponsor Remarks, BDC
6:15 PM
The Capital Gap: What the Data Actually Shows
6:25 PM
Panel: Who Gets Funded and Why
7:20 PM
Closing Remarks, Innovation Factory
7:30 PM
Networking
WHAT THE PANEL WILL COVER
How funders currently evaluate AI companies, and where diverse teams are systematically discounted
What governance, team composition, and risk assessment look like when the evaluator and the founder do not share the same reference points
How founders build credibility and communicate trust with investors and users across different contexts
What the research actually shows about who is building AI, who is not, and what that costs the market
Founder and Funder Lounge
A private activation for a small, curated group of underrepresented AI founders and attending funders. Participants are selected. Conversations are intentional. Registering for this event opens the path to an invitation.
Toronto Tech Week is a citywide celebration of the people building what’s next. From May 25–29, 2026, founders, investors, and builders come together for hundreds of community-led events across Toronto, connecting tens of thousands of people around Canadian tech. Torontotechweek.com