Calgary conference hosts 3,000 delegates hoping to bring new companies, new jobs to Alberta

Alberta Innovates is drawing 3,000 startups, investors, partner groups and trendsetters from around the world to Inventures, the second annual innovation conference at the Calgary Telus Convention Centre, June 5 to 7.

"Inventures" brings together people from Alberta and around the world to talk about innovation, investment and deals.

Whether they're trying to sell a product, looking for an investor,or trying to find a new market, delegates are networking and cutting deals in the halls of this conference, organizers say.

Kamea Lafontaine is with Intelli Network, a tech company that will pay people in crypto-currency to anonymously report crime so it can map those incidents.

Lafontaine says his company is going tolaunch an app soon.

"We're here all week to meet with investors, to meet with stakeholders, to meet with government so that we can show them our innovation and hopefully plug into the right channel partners," Lafontaine said.

The conference is organized by Alberta Innovates. Its CEO,Laura Kilcrease, says the energy sector is well represented but the meeting is really about all industries.

"Energy is here. We're talking about clean-tech, smart grids,things that affect energy, emissions reduction,use of carbon in new materials," she said. "So yes, energy is here but energy isn't the only thing that's here. Every single industry sector in the province is actually here."

Kilcreasesays $100 million in deals were signed at theconference last year, and the event is still growing.

"It more that doubled this year and in the innovation business, we like exponential curves, so we're heading to that growth and it will be here next year, the first week of June 2020," Kilcrease said.