Lab2Market Health: Validate Winter 2026
Please contact IP Officer Peter Shao if you are interested in applying
Lab2Market Health: Validate – Winter 2026 is a 4-month national commercialization program designed for Canadian health-focused research teams. Delivered virtually, this cohort gives graduate researchers and their faculty supervisors a structured environment to verify the business potential of their health-related innovations.
Application Link: Click here
Description
Lab2Market Health Validate is a 4-month, immersive program that provides research teams, consisting of a graduate student and their faculty supervisor, with the opportunity to evaluate the commercial potential of their technology through a structured, data-driven market research process. Participants gain valuable entrepreneurial skills, equipping them to successfully translate their innovations from the lab to the market.
The program facilitates rigorous market validation through a blend of mentor-led workshops, hands-on customer discovery and real-world commercial exercises. Hosted by the University of Toronto Health Innovation Hub (H2i), it’s tailored for innovations in pharmaceuticals, medical devices, med‑tech, health IT and related domains.
Program Summary
Deadlines:
- Internal Review Deadline (IP Officer): August 8, 2025, by noon EST
- L2M Application Deadline: August 22, 2025 by 11:59 p.m. EST
Funding: $10,000.00
Duration: January to May 2026
How to Apply:
- Consult with IP Officer, Peter Shao to discuss all three internal requirements.
- Submit the online L2M application by August 22, 2025 by 11:59 p.m. EST
Contact: Peter Shao
Ontario Tech Internal Requirements
All applicants must complete the following three internal requirements before starting their L2M online application.
- Invention Disclosure form – As per the Ontario Tech Intellectual Property Policy, L2M applicants (PI) must disclose to the University the intellectual property they wish to commercialize. You can find a copy of the IP disclosure form at the bottom of the page (see here).
- Disclose Conflict of Interest (COI) – To comply with our Conflict of Interest in Research Policy, L2M applications (PI) must disclose to the University any COI. In the event there is a COI, an approved management plan will be formulated to mitigate the COI.
- Enrollment into Brilliant Catalyst – To maximize the benefits of the L2M program, ELs will be required to enroll into the Brilliant Catalyst program to access additional support from the incubator.
L2M Program Eligibility
- Open to graduate researchers in health-related fields (Master’s, PhD and Postdoc) and their faculty supervisors from Canadian universities and colleges.
- Applicants must apply as a team: an Entrepreneurial Lead (EL) who works full-time on the project and a Technical Lead (TL) who supervises the research.
- EL is a full-time graduate (Masters or Ph.D.) student or postdoctoral fellow (service is under 5 years). Recent graduates must be within two years of graduation at the start of their project. The EL is expected to work on the project full-time (a minimum of 25 hours/week) over the duration of the program and must represent the team in all training sessions.
- TL is a faculty at Canadian universities must be eligible to hold Tri-Agency funds. The TL is expected to participate in select training sessions and assist the EL throughout the program.
Program Benefits
- $10,000 funding per team – provided as a Mitacs BSI stipend to support the Entrepreneurial Lead full-time through the 16-week program.
- Intensive entrepreneurial training – a structured mix of workshops and exercises designed to teach market validation, business model development and customer discovery.
- Hands‑on customer discovery & validation – carriers out 100+ stakeholder interviews to refine ideas and test product-market fit
- Mentorship from industry experts – access to experienced entrepreneurs, advisors and regional commercialization experts
- Strong entrepreneurial network – connect with a national hub including University of Toronto’s Health Innovation Hub, Mitacs and other university partners
- Clear commercialization readiness outcomes – develop a market assessment report, strategic customer insight and an informed decision on next steps (e.g., launch, license, pivot)