ElevateIP is a federally funded, nationwide project designed to help business accelerators and incubators like Communitech provide the tools Canadian startups need to understand, strategically manage and leverage their intellectual property.

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ElevateIP helps startups strengthen the development, understanding and protection of intellectual property.

The program is part of a $90-million investment from the Government of Canada through its ElevateIP strategy. Communitech is a proud partner with Invest Ottawa and North Forge in delivering the ElevateIP program for startups in Ontario, Manitoba and Saskatchewan.

Developing and protecting intellectual property is a core part of Canada's innovation strategy. It's also good for business.

Companies that invest in IP are:

  • 4x more likely to export.
  • 64% more likely to be high-growth.
  • 32% more likely to seek financing.

But Canada has a massive knowledge gap when it comes to intellectual property business strategy and implementation.

Across Canada:

  • Only 14% of Canadian companies performing research and development hold or use patents.
  • Only 17% of companies say IP protection is needed.
  • Only 9% of innovative companies said they have an IP strategy.

How We Help

IP education

  • Access to national, provincial and regional IP resources.
  • Identify intellectual property strategy gaps.
  • Customized training for underrepresented or marginalized groups.

IP strategy development and implementation

  • Coaching and resources for startups to develop sound intellectual property strategies.
  • Assessments, advice, legal and advisory services from leading experts.
  • Expert support to undertake intellectual property strategy implementation at significantly lower costs.

What Our Members Are Saying

Adeel Zaman
CTO & Co-Founder @ DOZR

"Intellectual Property is a startup's basis for innovation and growth. Having a well thought-out IP strategy has always helped me when leading development for a new product, fundraising, or navigating complex partnerships within our industry"

Strategic Partners

Communitech, North Forge and Invest Ottawa are recipients of Federal Government funding under ISED’s ElevateIP Program.
Communitech, North Forge and Invest Ottawa are corporations incorporated under the laws of Ontario and Manitoba and are not agents of the Crown.

ElevateIP Program FAQ

ElevateIP offers support in three Tiers: education and awareness (Tier 1), developing strategies (Tier 2), and implementing strategies (Tier 3). Tier 1 support is accessible to all startups that register a profile successfully on the portal and there is no cost for Tier 1 services. 

For Tier 2 and 3 services, startups will meet with an IP Advisor at Communitech to discuss IP needs and how ElevateIP can help. Successful applicants will have the opportunity to access up to $100,000 CAD worth of services to develop and/or implement an IP strategy. 

The program evaluates applications based on several key criteria to ensure a comprehensive assessment. Some of these criteria include:

Tech-Enabled Solutions: We look for ventures that are developing proprietary technology intended to transform their industry/sector in which this technology is their primary source of revenue. These startups are young, innovative businesses with strong growth potential that is of interest to investors.

Revenue Model: We assess the viability and sustainability of the business by examining the revenue model, however, pre-revenue startups are welcome to apply.

Business Age: The age of the business is a factor in our evaluation. While we welcome applications from early-age startups to more established scale-ups, this criterion helps us tailor our support to specific business needs at different stages.

Number of Employees (global full-time): The size of the team is considered to gauge the company's capacity, talent, and potential for scalability. Whether you're a lean startup or a growing enterprise, we aim to support ventures with diverse team structures. Startups with zero global full-time employees may apply.

These are just some of the criteria that collectively contributes to a holistic evaluation process, allowing us to identify promising ventures that align with our program's objectives and offer them meaningful support.

There are several eligibility criteria to qualify for support through the ElevateIP program. Most importantly, a participating startup must:

  • be a Canadian-Controlled Private Corporation (CCPC)
  • have less than 500 employees, and
  • have IP owned (or to be owned) by the startup, not an individual.
  • be headquartered in ON, MB, SK to work with Communitech and its local delivery partners Invest Ottawa and North Forge
    • Startups headquartered in other jurisdictions may be eligible and would work with other recipients of ElevateIP funding
    • Please also see the question "I am not located in Ontario, can I still participate in ElevateIP?

Please note that funding is not guaranteed and is allocated at the discretion of ElevateIP.