What happens when talent, startups, and industry leaders end up in the same room for three hours? You get ScaleUp 2026, and you get the kind of energy that reminds you why we do this work in the first place.
On May 28, NextStars joined ScaleUp 2026 at Humber Downtown, a fast paced innovation and entrepreneurship event built around one idea: bring Toronto's tech ecosystem together and let the connections happen. Entrepreneurs, investors, students, founders, and seasoned professionals all packed into the space, and the response was electric from the first hour.
A Marketplace Worth Walking Through
The heart of the event was the Marketplace, where more than 50 organizations, startups, and businesses set up to share their work. Picture rows of booths, each one a different idea, a different pitch, a different reason to stop and talk. Services, innovations, partnership opportunities, all on display at once.
We were proud to be among them. The NextStars booth gave us a front row seat to the conversations that matter: founders looking for their next step, students figuring out where they fit, investors scanning for the next thing worth backing.
What Happened at the NextStars Booth
Short version? It got busy.
Our booth pulled a steady stream of visitors and industry professionals throughout the afternoon. Rick and Mohammad led the charge, walking people through who we are, what we do, and where we're headed. The questions kept coming, and so did the interest.
Most conversations circled back to the same theme: how NextStars fits into the wider innovation and entrepreneurship ecosystem, and what collaboration could look like. We left with a stack of new contacts and a list of follow ups we're genuinely excited about.
Why Events Like This Matter
ScaleUp 2026 wasn't just a place to hand out flyers. It was a place where innovators, entrepreneurs, students, and industry leaders actually came together to swap ideas, build relationships, and open doors that weren't there yesterday.
That's the whole point. Real opportunity rarely shows up in your inbox. It shows up when the right people share a room, and that's exactly what this day delivered.
Thank You, and Let's Stay Connected
To everyone who stopped by the NextStars booth: thank you. The conversations were sharp, the curiosity was real, and we're already looking forward to what comes next.
If we talked at ScaleUp and you want to keep the momentum going, or if you're reading this and thinking your team could be a good fit, we'd love to hear from you.
Want to build something together? Partner with us.
We don't follow stars. We create them.
Learn more at nextstars.io
