{"id":10193,"date":"2019-12-06T13:34:22","date_gmt":"2019-12-06T18:34:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.brainstation.io\/?p=10193"},"modified":"2020-04-17T11:30:00","modified_gmt":"2020-04-17T15:30:00","slug":"2019-vancouver-year-in-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/2019-vancouver-year-in-review","title":{"rendered":"2019: Vancouver Year in Review"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Those who have been following Vancouver\u2019s tech scene know that the picturesque West Coast city has <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/4-years-in-vancouver-the-rise-of-a-tech-giant\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">gradually become a tech hotbed<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, and 2019 was another banner year.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">As we wind down toward the holidays, we thought it was a good time to reflect on the year that was.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Here are some of the most important trends and stories from a busy 2019 in Vancouver tech.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Government Support Remains Robust<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2018, the Canadian government announced a $700 million investment in the country\u2019s Cleantech industry. That funding disproportionately benefits Vancouver, which is home to 25 percent of Canada\u2019s Cleantech companies. More than 220 companies employ roughly 3,500 people there, and six local companies were named to the 2019 Global Cleantech 100 (including General Fusion, the utility-scale fusion power developer that has secured $127 million in funding).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That support for Cleantech continued in 2019 when the federal government announced a $50 million investment in venture capital for Canadian Cleantech companies. The investments are being matched by the private sector and will contribute up to $1.5 billion in Canada\u2019s economy. This news comes after the B.C. government similarly committed to spurring Cleantech investment with its CleanBC plan.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The support from the federal government continued in September when the government announced $353,550 in funding to the Vancouver Economic Commission to develop the Technology Deployment Network \u2013 an online platform designed to develop Cleantech solutions \u2013 and another $100,000 to promote Vancouver as an e-sports hub.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cVancouver is Canada\u2019s fastest-growing and most diverse low-carbon economy, with local companies continuing to play a crucial role on the front lines of climate action and digital innovation,\u201d <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.canada.ca\/en\/western-economic-diversification\/news\/2019\/09\/government-of-canada-invests-in-bcs-growing-digital-and-clean-technology-sectors.html\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Vancouver Economic Commission CEO Catherine Warren.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_10196\" style=\"width: 324px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><a href=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/download.jpeg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-10196\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-10196\" src=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/download.jpeg\" alt=\"Catherine Warren, CEO, Vancouver Economic Commission\" width=\"314\" height=\"161\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/download.jpeg 314w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/download-300x154.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 314px) 100vw, 314px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-10196\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Catherine Warren, CEO, Vancouver Economic Commission<\/p><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThis federal funding for tech deployment unleashes the chance for startups to work with keystone institutions on urgently needed climate solutions. And funding for a regional Vancouver e-sports strategy underscores Vancouver\u2019s bench strength in the tech, creative and entertainment industries.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Meanwhile, a March trade mission to Korea and Japan led by B.C.\u2019s Minister of Jobs, Trade, and Technology Bruce Ralston and Minister of State for Trade George Chow sought to advance trade relationships in six key sectors, including clean energy, Cleantech, agrifoods, tourism, and information and communications technology. Japan and Korea are B.C.\u2019s third- and fourth-largest trading partners, respectively.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The city of Vancouver also furthered its collaborative relationship with Seattle by announcing a new cooperative <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.vancouvereconomic.com\/blog\/media\/greater-seattle-partners-joins-vancouver-economic-commission-in-cascadia-economic-development-agreement\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">agreement<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to promote the economy throughout the Cascadia Innovation Corridor, running from Vancouver to Portland.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"lead-grid-container\">\n<div class=\"lead__card\">\n<div class=\"lead__image\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"hide--mobile\" src=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/OnlineLearning.jpg\" alt=\"Icon\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"lead__content\">\n<p id=\"lead__heading\" class=\"heading--4\">Develop new digital skills to boost your career \u2013 from home!<\/p>\n<p class=\"lead__description\">BrainStation offers <a href=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/courses?utm_source=Blog&amp;utm_medium=blogPost&amp;utm_campaign=blogLead#,online\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Online Live Certificate Courses<\/a> in data, design, development, marketing, and product management. Attend live classes and interact with Instructors and peers from anywhere in the world.<\/p>\n<p id=\"lead__button--margin\"><a id=\"lead__button--hover\" class=\"lead__button\" href=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/book-call?utm_source=Blog&amp;utm_medium=BlogPost&amp;utm_campaign=blogLead\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Speak to a Learning Advisor<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Further to that point, in November Microsoft hosted the three-day Cascadia Rail Summit, gathering business leaders, government representatives, and other experts to discuss a long-in-the-works high-speed rail line that would create the potential for a one-hour trip between Vancouver and Seattle. A <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsdot.wa.gov\/publications\/fulltext\/LegReports\/17-19\/UltraHighSpeedGroundTransportation_FINAL.pdf\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">study<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, released in July, found that the project could attract between 1.7 million and 3 million annual trips by 2040 and generate as much as $250 million in fare revenues.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cIn order to tie Vancouver and British Columbia up with its neighbors, and to link its economy with the rest of the region and the world, it\u2019s about transportation,\u201d SNCF America spokesperson Jerry Ray <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/globalnews.ca\/news\/6143262\/vancouver-washington-oregon-high-speed-train\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cI think it is inevitable that you\u2019re going to do it.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We should point out that 2019 wasn\u2019t entirely without bad news. B.C. Tech did announce in April that it would close its Cube facility in Railtown, a 6,000-square-foot community hub for AR\/VR\/MR established in September 2017.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Tech Giants Expand Footprint<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Vancouver now has the second-lowest downtown office vacancy rate in North America, so it makes sense that smart companies spent 2019 snatching up as much of the land that\u2019s left as possible.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Consider that Amazon turned heads in 2018 when it announced a new 416,000-square-foot office in downtown Vancouver; a year later, that estimate looked downright modest.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Recently, the Globe and Mail <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.theglobeandmail.com\/business\/technology\/article-amazon-vancouver-offices-expansion-tech-jobs\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">reported<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> that the Seattle-based eCommerce giant will actually triple that first estimate by ultimately occupying 1.1-million square feet in downtown Vancouver. In fact, Amazon will take up an entire city block by leasing two new officer towers currently under construction that the Globe and Mail reports will be called The Post.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_10194\" style=\"width: 1034px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/The-Post.jpg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-10194\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-10194 size-large\" src=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/The-Post-1024x525.jpg\" alt=\"Rendering of The Post\" width=\"1024\" height=\"525\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/The-Post-1024x525.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/The-Post-300x154.jpg 300w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/The-Post-768x394.jpg 768w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/The-Post-960x493.jpg 960w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/The-Post.jpg 1072w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-10194\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">A rendering of The Post in Vancouver.<\/p><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Other U.S. giants are also racing to expand their footprints in B.C. In October, <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">plans<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> were revealed for Microsoft to take over all 75,000 square feet of office space at an under-construction office building at 155 Water Street. That comes just three years after Microsoft opened its 142,000-square-foot office within the CF Pacific Centre \u2013 where nearly 1,000 people work \u2013 and the company has another office near B.C. Place Stadium. The new building \u2013 which is expected to open in 2020 \u2013 will feature a 3,800-square-foot outdoor rooftop lounge and panoramic views of the mountains and harbor.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In other news, Apple is <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/business.financialpost.com\/real-estate\/property-post\/apple-plans-to-open-office-in-westbanks-glitzy-vancouver-tower\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">reportedly<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> going to establish an office in a glitzy new development at 400 West Georgia that is expected to be completed in Spring 2020, Tile \u2013 which helps users find and track their belongings \u2013 chose Vancouver as the first major office opening aside from its California headquarters, and Grammarly announced in September that it would open its fourth office around the world in Vancouver.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cThis is particularly meaningful to me, as I live in Vancouver and have had the pleasure of watching the city\u2019s technology scene develop at an inspiring pace,\u201d <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.grammarly.com\/blog\/vancouver-office-announcement\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Grammarly co-founder Max Lytvyn.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cOur new office will be based in the downtown area, and we will be expanding our team across a variety of functions and roles. The talent in Vancouver is exceptional, and I\u2019m looking forward to the process of adding key hires to the Grammarly team from such a vibrant tech community.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s not just major Silicon Valley companies scooping up Vancouver real estate.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">At the end of 2018, Vancouver-based mobile game developer Kabam announced the long-term lease of 105,000 square feet across seven floors with a targeted completion date of 2021, while Slack \u2013 which was founded in Vancouver before shifting its headquarters to San Francisco \u2013 reportedly <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/dailyhive.com\/vancouver\/slack-vancouver-office-550-burrard-street\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">leased<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> 34,000 square feet in the Bental 5 office tower. Rumor has it that vehicle financing platform Canada Drives could take up a chunk of the new \u201cJenga\u201d tower on West Georgia.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It makes sense that so many companies want to operate in Vancouver \u2013 even with all the money being thrown around locally, Vancouver still ranks as the second-cheapest city in North America for a tech company to operate, according to CBRE.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Tremendous Opportunity<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Simply put, Vancouver right now is a great place to be for tech workers looking for opportunities.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In CBRE\u2019s annual Tech-30 report, Vancouver rocketed up 27 spots to take the No. 1 overall position for high-tech job growth in North America. According to the report, jobs in Vancouver\u2019s tech scene grew at a rate of 29.5 percent over 2017 and \u201918, significantly higher than runner-up San Francisco (24.7 percent), Toronto (23.9 percent), Seattle (23.7 percent) or Austin (22.5 percent).&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_10197\" style=\"width: 210px\" class=\"wp-caption alignleft\"><a href=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/0.jpeg\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-10197\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-full wp-image-10197\" src=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/0.jpeg\" alt=\"Raghwa Gopal, President and CEO of Innovate BC\" width=\"200\" height=\"200\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/0.jpeg 200w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/0-150x150.jpeg 150w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/0-109x109.jpeg 109w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/0-100x100.jpeg 100w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 200px) 100vw, 200px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-10197\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Raghwa Gopal, President and CEO of Innovate BC<\/p><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In the period from 2013 to 2018, Vancouver\u2019s total number of tech occupations has grown by 42.6 percent to 74,700.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cWe\u2019ve seen the growth, but something like this (ranking) solidifies it in real terms,\u201d <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/dailyhive.com\/vancouver\/vancouver-tech-job-growth\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Raghwa Gopal, President and CEO of Innovate BC. \u201c(Vancouver) has always had a very high talent pool, and I think that\u2019s very attractive for companies when they move here and hire people here as well.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Another CBRE <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/cbre.vo.llnwd.net\/grgservices\/secure\/2019%20US%20%20Tech%20Talent.pdf?e=1575043217&amp;h=20133bbe36a787a5fc17e9728ce40b0c\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">report<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> offered further insight into not just the abundant opportunity in Vancouver, but also the high quality of local tech talent, which ranks near \u201cexceptional.\u201d They\u2019re well-compensated, too, bringing in an average annual salary of $80,106, compared to $55,024 earned by people in the city with non-tech occupations.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And talent is the most-cited driver for the companies shifting operations to the Lower Mainland.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cSome of the really salient things that stuck with us for Vancouver was that there\u2019s a really strong market and talent quota,\u201d <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.straight.com\/tech\/1261681\/why-so-many-silicon-valley-companies-are-moving-vancouver\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Niranjan Ravicahndran, Vancouver site lead for Asana, the work management tool company that pledged to expand from 500 employees to 700 in Vancouver by the end of 2019. \u201cThere are such a lot of startups with a strong entrepreneurial spirit.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Obviously, people are catching on to what\u2019s happening in B.C. \u2013 the CBRE study also found that Vancouver was Top 5 in \u201cbrain gain,\u201d meaning out-of-towners are flocking to the city for an opportunity.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>VC Funding Continues to be Robust<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In 2019, B.C.\u2019s VC funding didn\u2019t get off to a roaring start, but business sure picked up as the year went on.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">With $158 million over 27 deals in the first half of the year \u2013 according to the Canadian Venture Capital and Private Equity Association\u2019s H1 <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">report<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> \u2013 Vancouver did produce some major funding rounds.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">That includes a US$71 million growth investment in PDFTron, a provider of document processing tools for software developers, and a C$75 million investment in 123Dentist from Peloton Capital Management in June. And Carbon Engineering Ltd \u2013 a Cleantech company based just north of Vancouver in Squamish \u2013 closed a C$90 million funding round in March followed by a $25 million investment from the federal government.&nbsp;<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">While those numbers were certainly encouraging, Vancouver\u2019s VC funding skyrocketed in the third quarter, when Vancouver-based companies generated $777 million across 49 deals or 17 percent of all VC funding raised in Canada over that time period.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The headlining deal was a massive $250 million Series D round announced by locally based legal software company Clio, one of the largest rounds in Canadian history.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The good news kept coming. Chinhook Therapeutics announced a $65 million Series A round to discover and develop precision machines for kidney diseases, while Trulioo announced a $70 million funding round in September, and cleantech startup Terramera raised a $59.5 million Series B round in September following a $13 million round of growth capital financing in February.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s also worth pointing out that Vancouver ranks in the Top 5 globally for early-stage funding per startup, according to Startup Genome.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cRecent funding raises from companies like Clio, Trulioo and Terramera contributed to one of the most successful quarters in B.C. tech history,\u201d Gopal <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/betakit.com\/cbre-report-sheds-new-light-on-tech-job-growth-in-vancouver\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>Local Startups Continue to Impress<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The city that nurtured three of Canada\u2019s tech unicorns \u2013 Slack, Hootsuite, and Avigilon \u2013 continues to produce thriving startups.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In Canadian Business\u2019 Growth 500 ranking of Canada\u2019s fastest-growing companies, Vancouver claimed three of the top 11 spots.<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_6879\" style=\"width: 1034px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/Pic-4-slack.png\"><img aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-6879\" decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-large wp-image-6879\" src=\"https:\/\/brainstation.io\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/Pic-4-slack-1024x440.png\" alt=\"Slack Vancouver\" width=\"1024\" height=\"440\" srcset=\"https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/Pic-4-slack-1024x440.png 1024w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/Pic-4-slack-300x129.png 300w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/Pic-4-slack-768x330.png 768w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/Pic-4-slack-960x413.png 960w, https:\/\/d2re7sjnpekmig.cloudfront.net\/prod\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/06\/Pic-4-slack.png 1600w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/a><p id=\"caption-attachment-6879\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Slack Vancouver<\/p><\/div>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Online furniture delivery startup Article earned the top spot again with a stunning five-year growth rate of 24,182 percent after again exceeding $100 million in gross sales. Pixieset was next at No. 8 after posting a five-year growth rate of 8,555 percent \u2013 the photography software startup was also included in Deloitte\u2019s 2019 Fast 50 and Technology Fast 500 lists \u2013 and debt relief platform Progressa took the 11<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">th<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> spot with a 6,909 percent growth rate.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Deloitte\u2019s survey, meanwhile, also singled out connected mobility platform Mojio (months after the company closed a $40 million Series B round), people analytics and workforce planning startup Visier, office catering platform Foodee, and content marketing platform Pressboard, which in July announced a new software allowing brands to boost their press mentions on social media. It\u2019s already being used by Nintendo, Intel, and Birchbox.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Vancouver companies also took three of the top nine spots on Deloitte\u2019s Enterprise Fast 15 award list, with media-tech company BroadbandTV, online gift cards solution company Buyatab Online, and Canada Drives leading the way.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There was plenty of other good news for thriving Vancouver startups in 2019. Precision OS \u2013 a VR training platform for orthopedic surgeons that won company of the year (startup success) at the 2019 Technology Impact Awards \u2013 announced it was expanding to the U.S., while biotech startup AbCellera announced a two-year agreement with the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation to accelerate global health research, and fintech startup Bench Accounting managed to rebound dramatically after a first-quarter when it missed sales targets by 40 percent. By the end of the year, the company was looking to hire upward of 200 new employees.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201cSimply put, our tech companies are among the best in the world,\u201d Gopal <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/betakit.com\/cbre-report-sheds-new-light-on-tech-job-growth-in-vancouver\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">said<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>2019 was a banner year for Vancouver. Here are some of the most important trends and stories from the last year in Vancouver tech.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":10199,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[681],"tags":[688,88,71,682,683],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v18.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>2019: Vancouver Year in Review | BrainStation\u00ae Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"2019 was a banner year for Vancouver&#039;s tech sector. 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