Industrial innovation with Guillaume Mercier, Partner @ BDC Capital
Release Date: 08/07/2020
The Canadian Founder Building a Rocket to Orbit, Bachar Elzein, CEO & Founder @ Reaction Dynamics
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Bachar Elzein knew at 13 he wanted to build rockets. Twenty-five years later, he's the founder & CEO of Reaction Dynamics — the Montreal-based company building Canada's first orbital launch capability. In this episode, Bachar breaks down the hybrid propulsion breakthrough that makes RDX's rockets cheaper, safer, and deployable from virtually anywhere — including the back of a truck. We talk about what it takes to survive nine years building deep tech, skipping payroll, and betting everything on a technology the market wasn't ready for. We also get into the geopolitics: why Canada is...
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Building Canada's Next Flagships - Amiral Ventures
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Two years after first appearing on the Flagship Podcast, Nectar, Fred, and Dom reunite for a long-overdue conversation: Amiral Ventures has officially closed Fund 1. In this candid episode, the three partners trace the origins of the fund: how Fred's entrepreneurial journey (including co-developing LTE at Nortel and a successful Series A & B raise at Mnubo) first brought him together with Dom, a veteran M&A banker who went on to launch Xpnd Capital and deliver two IPOs. Nectar rounds out the team, coming off years of post-investment value creation work at PNR and crossing paths with...
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Unlocking the Next Interface with Anthony Azrak, CEO & Co-Founder @ General Magic
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Today I’m joined by Anthony, co-founder of General Magic and one of the most exciting young builders coming out of the Canadian AI ecosystem. We talk about his journey from building robots as a kid to launching startups while still in university, what he learned from failing his first company, and how General Magic is rethinking the way humans interact with software using natural language. We also dive into their recent $7M seed round, going through a16z Speedrun, and why the future of computing might move beyond the traditional graphical interface. I really enjoyed this conversation,...
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New Frontier of Navigation with Tyler Reid, Co-Founder & CTO at Xona Space Systems
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In this episode of the Flagship Podcast, we sit down with Tyler Reid, co-founder and CEO of Xona Space, to explore the future of satellite navigation and why GPS as we know it is no longer enough. Tyler shares his journey from space-obsessed kid to Stanford researcher to venture-backed space founder, and explains how Zona is building a next-generation positioning system designed for centimeter-level accuracy, stronger signals, and built-in security. We unpack how modern infrastructure depends on timing and location, why GPS is vulnerable to jamming and spoofing, and what new satellite...
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North Star | Unicorn Panel
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What does it really take to build a unicorn-scale company from Canada? At North Star, the Unicorn Panel brings together founders behind global tech leaders to talk candidly about ambition, scaling, capital, leadership, near-death moments, and the realities behind the highlight reel. Moderated by Sophie Boulanger, this conversation goes beyond success stories and digs into the hard decisions: when not to sell, how to think about control and cap tables, scaling teams, surviving crises, and building companies with long-term impact. You’ll hear firsthand lessons from founders who have built and...
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North Star | Fireside Dax Dasilva & Fred Lalonde
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Two of Montreal’s most iconic tech founders — Dax Dasilva (Lightspeed) and Fred Lalonde (Hopper & Deep Sky) — sit down for a rare and candid fireside conversation on building global companies from Canada, surviving the founder rollercoaster, and using technology and capitalism to tackle world-scale problems. From bootstrapping and product-market fit, to IPOs, hypergrowth, culture, leadership, and climate action — this keynote goes deep into what it really takes to build enduring companies. This is not a highlight reel. It’s an unfiltered operator conversation. In this keynote,...
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North Star | Young Founder Panel
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At North Star, we brought together top founders and emerging entrepreneurs for a candid panel on what it really takes to build in today’s tech ecosystem — from first traction to scale, hard lessons, and unfair advantages. In this session, the panel shares practical insights on: How to get your first real customers Mistakes founders make early (and how to avoid them) Fundraising vs. bootstrapping decisions Building momentum with limited resources What great investors actually look for Tactical growth and execution tips If you’re a founder, operator, investor, or student exploring...
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North Star | Live Tech Poutine Podcast
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This is the North Star Pre-Show — recorded live as a Tech Poutine podcast session — where founders, investors, and ecosystem builders warm up the room before the main event with unscripted startup talk, real operator stories, and behind-the-scenes insights. This pre-show segment sets the stage for an exciting day filled with inspiration and insight from a dynamic lineup of entrepreneurs. Reflecting on last year's success, the hosts discuss the unique value of gathering experienced founders and ambitious young entrepreneurs, all while growing the event to new heights. Hear about keynote...
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AI Salon x Flagship Podcast: Live @ Mila
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We closed out the year with a special live recording of the Flagship Podcast in collaboration with AI Salon at Mila, a packed evening featuring a Montréal VC panel, an AI founder roundtable, and a fireside keynote with Sam Ramadori (BrainBox AI, now co-president of Law Zero). Across all three segments, one theme dominated: AI is moving faster than any tech cycle before it, and Canada has a once-in-a-generation chance to lead. VC Panel, Navigating the AI Wave Investors from Inovia, White Star, and Amiral Ventures explored the chaos and opportunity of today’s market. The AI cycle is...
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Inside Canadian Tech Journalism with Josh Scott, Lead Reporter @ Betakit
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In this insightful episode, we turn the tables on Josh Scott from BetaKit, delving into his journey in journalism and passion for Canadian tech. Josh shares his early writing experiences, challenges in the industry, and the invigorating process of reporting on tech startups. We dive into engaging discussions on the evolution of journalism, the state of Canadian tech, the intricacies of venture capital, and the policy landscape shaping the tech industry. With candid reflections on past stories and predictions for future trends, Josh offers a compelling look at the importance of transparent...
info_outlineOn this week’s show, we spoke with Guillaume Mercier, Partner @ BDC Capital. Guillaume Mercier is a Partner, Industrial Innovation Venture Fund for BDC Capital. Through his consulting and entrepreneurial experience, he brings meaningful operational and strategic expertise that benefits the ambitious early- to late-stage firms supported by the fund. One of his key areas of focus will be advanced manufacturing.
Before joining BDC Capital in 2020, Guillaume led small and large teams in various executive positions at start-ups and scale-ups such as SSENSE, Vention and Aevium (Lune Rouge). He was previously a principal at Real Ventures, investing in companies at the seed stage, and he spent four years at McKinsey & Company, advising large organizations on key strategic issues across a variety of industries, Guillaume started his career at Procter & Gamble in Toronto and also worked as a videogame producer in San Francisco for Take 2 Interactive. He is a board member for Montreal's Pour 3 Points, a charity that helps underprivileged youth learn life skills through sport.
Guillaume holds an MBA from Harvard University and a bachelor's degree in finance from Laval University.
On the show, we spoke about:
- His need for intellectual stimulation and innovation
- Getting into startup investing and lessons learned
- How startups and entrepreneurship help society
- Joining BDC Capital’s industrial innovation fund
- His three core sectors of focus
- The massive opportunity in hyper automation
Guillaume has already had an impressive career but I get this feeling that he’s only just started. He shared some great insights that I hope you find as useful as I did.
Let us know what you think. What types of guests would like to see on the show? What topics interest you the most? Send me your thoughts at nectar@thepnr.com
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