TD Helps Canadian Startups Patent Artificial Intelligence and Data-Focused Innovations

Award-winning Patents for Startups Program signs Toronto-based Senso.Ai, Boro.one and Cinchy.co

TORONTO, Oct. 11, 2018 /CNW/ - TD Bank Group (TD) today announced the first three startups to join the bank's unique Patents for Startups Program. All three companies are doing work in emerging areas, ranging from Artificial Intelligence (AI) and advanced machine learning solutions to power the retail banking industry, to the development of new enterprise data and analytics collaboration tools to find new solutions for the sharing economy. Today's announcement stems from TD's launch last year of this unique program that helps early stage companies protect and patent their applications - a first of its kind in North America.

"The success of young, innovative startups is key to Canada's future," says Josh Death, TD Intellectual Property and Patentable Innovations Lead. "The patent program is the latest step towards helping young innovators thrive. We look forward to working with them to protect their exciting intellectual property and give them a leg-up as they move from creation to commercialization. Ultimately, the customer wins when banks and startups collaborate."

Fostering Canadian Innovation

• Senso.Ai is an AI startup for the retail banking industry that's developing a machine learning algorithm that can detect key advice moments for advisors to talk with customers about their retail banking needs. The company's goal is to provide advisors with more detailed information to have deeper conversations with customers.
  
  
• Boro.one is leveraging blockchain technology to develop a network that creates greater efficiencies and lower costs for the sharing economy. Boro.one is focused on ensuring users keep a bigger share of the profits when they make their home, vehicle, products, labour, or any other shareable good or service available on the Boro.one platform. Boro's product sharing platform is currently available as an app on the Apple and Google app stores (Canada).
  
  
• Cinchy.co has a big vision – to reinvent how data works in the enterprise. The company's data collaboration platform provides a more efficient and secure alternative to the conventional approach of 'data sharing.' Customers including leading banks and financial institutions use Cinchy to save time and money when building innovative solutions for their customers. The company recently received $3 million in financing through a consortium led by Blindspot Ventures, with additional funds coming from ScaleUp Ventures, the MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund, Techstars, and the Business Development Bank of Canada.

"TD's Patent for Startups Program has been instrumental in enabling us to create the next level of customer experiences for the retail banking industry," says Saroop Bharwani, founder of Senso.Ai. "We believe that our latest innovation will empower banks to offer more personalized customer experiences and make a true impact on the customer experience. Participating in TD's program is a key part of our plan to commercialize our ideas and then expand into new markets." 

TD's Patents for Startups Program

Launched in October 2017 as part of a $3.25 million pool earmarked for patent support, TD's Patents for Startups Program is designed to support companies at the seed stage with funding and assistance with the rigorous patent application process in Canada, the U.S. and elsewhere, helping them harness the value that patents can offer in supporting their growth. This mutually beneficial program is designed to support high-potential start-up organizations that TD is interested in working with, so they can continue to focus on building out their concepts.

All patents will belong to the startup and be held in their name and the companies will also retain all rights to their underlying technology. TD is the first bank in North America to offer a non-equity-based program specifically supporting the patent application process for early start-up ventures. The TD program won the Thomson Reuters Innovation Dealmaker award for in-house counsel innovation.

TD also regularly hosts Collision Days that enable startups and scale-ups to pitch solutions that solve for a specific bank challenge to a targeted group of TD executives. These events have the stated goal of helping to foster new opportunities between TD and Canada's startup community. Thirty-four startups have gone through this program, with outcomes ranging from the co-development of internal POCs (Proofs of Concept), inclusion in the bank's RFP process, prototype collaboration with TD Labs, as well as acceptance into the Patents for Startups Program.

About TD Bank Group

The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively known as TD Bank Group ("TD" or the "Bank"). TD is the sixth largest bank in North America by branches and serves more than 25 million customers in three key businesses operating in a number of locations in financial centres around the globe: Canadian Retail, including TD Canada Trust, TD Auto Finance Canada, TD Wealth (Canada), TD Direct Investing, and TD Insurance; U.S. Retail, including TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank®, TD Auto Finance U.S., TD Wealth (U.S.), and an investment in TD Ameritrade; and Wholesale Banking, including TD Securities. TD also ranks among the world's leading online financial services firms, with approximately 12 million active online and mobile customers. TD had CDN$1.3 trillion in assets on July 31, 2018. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades under the symbol "TD" on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.

SOURCE TD Bank Group

Laura Butcher, TD Bank Group, 416-816-5759, [email protected]