Via Science Wins Startup Canada’s Innovation Award for Quebec Region

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Montreal, QC – September 13, 2017 – Via Science, Inc. accepted Startup Canada’s 2017 Innovation Award for the Quebec region. This award saw a highly competitive pool of candidates, due in large part to Quebec’s recent emergence as an innovation hub.

The award recognized Via Science’s leadership in using artificial intelligence to solve large-scale, high-stakes challenges across critical infrastructure, particularly in the energy industry. As a regional winner, Via Science will advance to the national awards, which will be announced during the Grand Finale in October.

Patrick Harrison of Intuit QuickBooks presented Via Science with the award and remarked that there was a “parallel between what [Via Science] does and what Intuit does on a daily basis, and that is that we try and use analytics, power of the cloud, and AI to help businesses make more informed decisions”.

Chief Scientific Officer Jeremy Taylor and Team Lead, Data Science Bruno Rousseau accepted this honor on Via Science’s behalf at the awards ceremony in Montreal hosted at Le Gare and Ubisoft.

In February, Via Science was a finalist for Techvibes’ Canadian Startup Awards Technology Innovation award.

Patrick Harrison of Intuit QuickBooks with Via Science’s Chief Scientific Officer, Jeremy Taylor and Team Lead, Data Science, Bruno Rousseau

About Via Science
Via Science creates software applications that identify and prioritize risks to critical infrastructure using a combination of artificial intelligence, high-performance computing, and causal analytics. Headquartered in Somerville, Massachusetts, Via Science has developed its risk assessment algorithms in conjunction with some of the world’s leading companies and government agencies in energy and security. The company has been featured in Wired Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, and Forbes for its expertise in causal analytics software applications. For more information, please visit www.viascience.com.

About Startup Canada
Startup Canada is the leading national social enterprise supporting and giving a voice to entrepreneurs through online programs, national awards, flagship events, partnerships with private sector and government to foster a community for startup and small business success across the country. Learn more at www.startupcan.ca.

Electrical Contractor Features CEO Colin Gounden

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Via Science CEO Colin Gounden was interviewed for the recent Electrical Contractor article “The Internet of Buildings: Connectivity, Data Collection and Monitoring”.

The article discusses the impact the Internet of Buildings could have on energy-conservation measures. Gounden suggests electrical contractors will need to become more computer and analytics savvy in the same way auto mechanics have in recent years: “With this increase in data from connected systems, we will start to see ‘autonomous buildings’ analogous to the autonomous vehicle revolution today with [artificial intelligence] software recommending to contractors equipment upgrades and suggestions of settings.”

CEO Colin Gounden Interviewed by The Denki Shimbun

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Via Science CEO Colin Gounden was interviewed by The Denki Shimbun, a Japanese energy newspaper, to discuss our joint initiative with TEPCO. The article was originally published in Japanese and we have translated a portion of it below.

The Denki Shimbun

TEPCO and Via Science announced a joint initiative using artificial intelligence (AI) to prevent failure of power transmission equipment. The proof of concept (PoC) will use Via Science’s technology to predict the deterioration of ACSRs and compression joint sleeves. These predictions will optimize TEPCO’s process of inspecting what equipment needs repairs, improving efficiency and reducing cost.

In this initiative, TEPCO will provide Via Science data related to equipment installation location and inspection history. Via Science will analyze the data to determine what factors may contribute to failure.

Although TEPCO has utilized AI in the past to assess risk across their infrastructure, the traditional “black box” systems made it difficult to understand the reasoning of AI decisions. TEPCO said Via Science’s technology provides “a clear causal relationship between data points, and it can be expected to expand the range of utilization.”

“We used AI to analyze equipment operation data and prioritize risk across equipment, which helps reduce cost,” said Gounden. “The results of this PoC could be applied across similar power transmission equipment globally.”

“Our partnership with TEPCO will give us great support as we expand our business across Asia, including Japan. We are excited to build a long-term relationship with TEPCO,” said Gounden.

TEPCO made a strategic investment in Via Science in November 2016 to gain experience with the company’s proprietary AI technology.

NOTE: We have stayed true to the original intent of the article and apologize for any mistranslations.

Via Science and TEPCO Partnership Featured in Engerati

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Engerati, a global network for energy professionals, featured Via Science’s partnership with TEPCO in their recent article: “Energy transition Japan: ‘We have to disrupt ourselves,’ says TEPCO”.

The article discusses how Japan’s energy retail industry is evolving as more companies invest in innovative technologies. TEPCO’s strategic investment in Via Science is highlighted as an example of this trend. In reference to the partnership, Hirokazu Yamaguchi, Head of Global Innovations for TEPCO, said: “Via Science’s direct experience with US energy agencies and their ability to support our challenges, such as high volumes of data, regulatory transparency requirements and very long-term risk planning needs for multi-billion dollar investments, made them the best match for TEPCO and our customers.”

Last month, Via Science announced its joint initiative with TEPCO, which will use “analytics and machine learning to predict and prevent power disruption due to failure of ACSRs and compression joint sleeves.” This application is the first of many related to risk assessment and predictive maintenance to come from the partnership.