The MIT Technology Review explains Quanttus’ core as a “watch-like gadget” that “gives a more direct view of the heart’s mechanical performance than an ECG can, capturing the strength and timing of a person’s heartbeats.” (Read the Technology Review feature)

“This could be the first time that we have gained access to an unprecedented amount of continuous vital signs data in real-life settings. These data may lead to new discoveries about our heart and how our lifestyles affect our body,” said He. “Our long-term vision is that unforeseen and preventable health events will be a thing of the past.”

Creative Destruction Lab, an elite startup accelerator at the University of Toronto, will receive a major boost over the next three years as it teams up with influential crown corporation BDC Capital, a leading investor in emerging business in Canada.

– ScienceScape profiled on U of T News: ScienceScape startup founded by U of T student helps researchers track findings

– Snip.ly co-founder Mike Cheng took entrepreneurship courses at U of T’s School of Continuing Studies. His startup’s dramatic turnaround was featured in the Globe and Mail: After generating $12 in revenue, startup faced a difficult decision

– Creative Destruction Lab-accelerated OTI Lumionics, Engineering alumni startup Nanoleaf, featured in U of T News feature on lighting innovations: U of T’s entrepreneurs shine light on energy efficiency, reducing pollution and improving sleep

– Alumni startup Figure1 raises $4-million from Union Square Ventures: TORONTO’S FIGURE1 MEDICAL IMAGERY APP RAISES $4 MILLION FROM UNION SQUARE VENTURES

Sometimes an invention makes so much sense people wonder why it didn’t already exist. Take the U of T-based startup, ScienceScape.

A platform that organizes and streams thousands of articles published every day in biomedical science journals, ScienceScape helps researchers keep tabs on the most recent developments in their fields.

Founded in 2010 by Sam Molyneux, a U of T PhD student in biomedical physics, and his sister Amy Molyneux, a web developer and technical project manager, ScienceScape’s database includes articles published as far back as two centuries.

Early this year, 21-year old Nigel Gutzmann and two of his friends launched a music streaming website called Covr.fm in Toronto. Barely two weeks later, the platform had received hundreds of thousands of visitors and interest from notable musicians such as Moby and Our Lady Peace. These early results were encouraging but, like so many startups, the business struggled to convert popularity into profit.

Three months after that launch, despite a growing user base, no clear revenue stream was materializing. The business had generated a grand sum of $12, far short of its server costs, not to mention any salaries for the two full-time engineers and designer employed. Like many new entrepreneurs, Mr. Gutzmann and his friends were volunteering in a fun financial flop. But they didn’t want to abandon their dream of running a startup.

Walk into a hardware store these days and you’ll find more varieties of light bulbs than ever before.

Some may look a bit strange and cost a bit more than the incandescent bulbs that used to be the norm. But these amazingly energy-efficient, “green” lighting solutions – and others still in development – are also helping to drastically change our homes, our cities and our world.

For example, “light emitting diodes” (or LEDs) are already starting to brighten up the GTA even as they reduce city energy bills. They dress up Toronto’s CN Tower with colourful, changeable, sustainable light displays – and they’re popping up in more day-to-day fixtures, too.

According to Fortune, Toronto startup Figure1, which created a medical imagery app for gruesome photos, has raised $4 million from Union Square Ventures. Rho Canada Ventures and Version One Ventures also participated in the round.

The started has been well-documented in the pages of Canadian tech websites, particularly after it raised $2 million in December 2013 after launching as an iOS app. Shortly thereafter announcing in February that users had submitted 30 million images. At that point the startup expanded its app to Android and web.