"Government grants and funds prop up a large percentage of Canadian startups for the 5 years or so that they manage to survive." I used to work for one of thes

"Government grants and funds prop up a large percentage of Canadian startups for the 5 years or so that they manage to survive." I used to work for one of these. Being greentech is a great way to have a the government be your VC. I remember one of the "signs to leave" was when the CEO popped a champagne cork when we got a couple million in funding from the feds. The best part was that the CEO used to be senior aide to an environment minister. He popped a champagne cork because he best navigated the bureaucracy he helped setup. Any company that can get those funds can usually also get some kind of private funding, but why bother when the feds won't ask for equity? It really distorts things though, as VCs care about your company making money, whereas the government cares about you hiring as many people as possible.