Design for Startups

Spring 2026

Over the course of 12 weeks, eleven student designers will work directly with the technical and business leads of eleven companies to apply design thinking in shaping product development, strategy, and innovation as part of Design for Startups.

Purposely helps companies design and run employee volunteering programs that are easy to manage, meaningful for employees, and impactful for nonprofits. Their platform connects corporate teams with vetted volunteer opportunities, automates coordination and reporting, and provides real-time insights into engagement and social impact.

Emilie Jingyi Liu will work with Purposely on improving the information architecture and usability of Purposely’s web platform, which helps companies manage employee volunteer programs.

OBD Experts license telematics software that companies use to track cars. OBD Experts software is used to talk to the embedded computers in a vehicle to read things like odometer, tire pressure, and seatbelt status.

Bahar Mousavi will work with OBD Experts on creating clear, engaging visual communication assets to explain OBD Experts’ automotive software solutions to non-technical audiences.

Tickit Heath builds human-first technology that bridges need to care for youth mental health. Powered by their Digital Empathy™ design framework, the Tickit Platform helps schools identify struggling students, engage parents with trusted next steps, and connect families to the right local or virtual supports. The platform’s Care Hub + Connection Engine generates qualified, privacy-safe referrals for community partners, while Tickit Advisor turns real-world data into insights that improve outcomes. Tickit Health operates in 750+ sites across North America and Australia with 500,000+ screenings completed—all at no cost to schools.

Leela Rao will work with Tickit Health to improve the Tickit Platform, which helps schools identify students struggling with mental health and connects parents to trusted support.

Tactus Therapy creates speech therapy software for adult medical speech-language pathologists and their patients. They have a range of iOS and Android apps, as well as a new SaaS product, the Virtual Rehab Center. The Virtual Rehab Center is an online platform for clinicians, offering dozens of interactive treatments and hundreds of resources in one place, with free homework for their patients.

Emily Qiang will work with Tactus Therapy on designing a progress visualization feature for their Virtual Rehab Center, a web platform used by speech-language clinicians.

joni is a Canadian B-Corp revolutionizing period care through sustainable products and smart dispensing technology that make menstrual care accessible wherever it’s needed—from schools and workplaces to airports and stadiums. Alongside their sustainable pads and tampons sold online and in stores, joni’s smart dispensers provide a scalable solution for busy public washrooms. They are developing an advanced software dashboard to help facilities remotely monitor and service dispensers, streamlining operations while advancing menstrual equity at scale. With every innovation, joni proves that technology can be a powerful driver of social impact and sustainability.

Srividya Suryanarayan will work with Joni on improving the dashboard for Joni’s smart dispenser platform to make the interface intuitive and empowering for janitorial staff and facility managers who manage multiple dispensers across large facilities.

The Growth Spark (TGS) is a women-founded and led, WBE-certified company focused on solving hiring pains for small- and medium-sized enterprises. As an advocate for sustainability, TGS proudly participates in the UN Global Compact and adheres to the Ten Principles to shape a sustainable future. Their hands-on industry experience, powered by AI-driven talent-matching technology and wraparound support, provisions the right skills tailored to your needs.

Chloe Jun will work with TGS on designing a marketplace feature for their HR platform that enables SME companies to share talent capacity across a network of companies.

Chart AI built an agentic AI designed around dentists with user-design forward design that’s effortless and intuitive. It fits right into existing workflows with nothing new to learn, even in high-pressure environments. ChartAI records the visit as it happens and instantly produces accurate, compliant, billable records, fully editable with human-in-the-loop oversight so clinics run faster, smoother, and with less after-hours labour.

Cancan Jiang will work with Chart AI on improving the user interface and information architecture of their AI-powered charting tool used by dental professionals.

Crystalyze is a mobile app that transforms the way people experience crystals, blending intuitive design with spiritual guidance to inspire personal growth, positivity, and self-discovery.

Hannah Mun will work with Crystalyze on improving the onboarding experience of their iOS mobile app to increase user engagement and retention.

Vayu by Prana Labs is a wellness technology company transforming how people manage stress through AI-driven, haptic-guided breathwork. Using Apple Watch biofeedback and personalized HRV-adaptive breathing, Vayu helps high-stress professionals restore calm and focus anytime, anywhere.

Terrence Ho will work with Prana Labs on improving the onboarding experience of Prana Labs’ iOS and watchOS breathwork application to enhance clarity, engagement, and user confidence.

Syris brings AI-powered decision guidance to frontline industrial process operators.

Yona Cha will work with Syris on improving the front-end experience of Syris’ AI-driven decision-support platform for mining operators to reduce cognitive overload and build trust in AI recommendations during high-pressure decision-making.

Soiltrackers is a BC-based clean-tech platform modernizing soil and fill management for the construction, agricultural, and municipal sectors. Their technology connects contractors, haulers, and regulators through real-time GPS tracking, compliance automation, and data analytics — ensuring that every truckload of soil is traced from source to destination. By turning a traditionally manual, paper-based process into a digital ecosystem, SoilTrackers helps reduce illegal dumping, cut emissions, and protect farmland while improving operational efficiency across the construction supply chain.

Avid Alamzadeh Harjandi will work with Soiltrackers on improving the “create a project” workflow within their compliance platform, used by contractors and site operators to manage soil movement projects.

This project is generously supported by the National Research Council of Canada’s Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC-IRAP) Fall 2024 – Spring 2026.