CALGARY—Alberta’s tech startups are twice as likely to have a female founder than the Canadian average, a new study has found.

The province’s tech scene is also full of startups and local funding, showing a move toward diversifying Alberta’s economy.

According to the 2018 Alberta Technology Deal Flow Study, 30 per cent of tech companies in Alberta have a female founder or co-founder, compared to just 13 per cent across the country.

The study, which surveyed 208 companies, also found that 35 per cent of 1,238 Alberta-owned and operated technology companies were established since 2016, which means the sector is seeing a high rate of technology startups.

One such startup is FarCloser Travel, which was founded by Calgarian Natasha Spokes. Started in 2016, FarCloser Travel connects travellers with local tour operators around the world.

After being laid off from the oil and gas sector in 2017, Spokes decided to go full speed ahead with her company. She said she was excited to find a diverse set of industries in Calgary that had previously gone unnoticed, and an ecosystem of young startups as people realized the oil and gas sector wasn’t as secure as they had thought.

“I think it’s really exciting,” she said. “I think there’s a lot of ... organizations trying to provide support to that community.”

In 2017, her startup participated in the ATB X Accelerator, followed by Innovate Calgary’s The Inc., using a program called the CEO Roundtable to meet other tech founders and gain insight about the industry.

Accelerators and networking organizations such as Innovate Calgary and AccelerateAB help startups such as FarCloser Travel consult mentors as well as attract funding for their business ideas.

Eighty-one per cent of capital funding raised by Alberta tech companies comes from Calgary or Edmonton, showing strong local support of the technology sector. Many of the organizations that support these startups by connecting them with mentors and potential funders are female-led, such as Cynthia van Sundert, executive director of non-profit organization A100, which powers AccelerateAB.

Van Sundert said she has seen the Alberta tech scene change “drastically” since she joined it in 2006.

“Especially in the last few years, the presence of females in leadership … has drastically changed,” she said.

She said A100’s groups of mentors have seen a lot of startups with male-female founding teams, as more and more companies are recognizing the value of a “rounded” team.

Van Sundert characterized Alberta’s tech scene as emerging from the shadows of the oil and gas sector, shedding a “positive spotlight” on the province’s entrepreneurship opportunities.

“The idea of entrepreneurship, the idea of technology has become at the forefront of diversification of our province,” she said.

Spokes said she hopes the result of studies such as the Deal Flow survey will inspire more women to “take that leap.”

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“Opening up those options of entrepreneurship and becoming a founder, whether it’s tech or not … I think there’s a lot of potential there for women to do amazing things.”

Correction — March 4, 2019: This article was edited from a previous version that misstated the number of companies surveyed in the study.

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