AI Fundamentals | Startup Fundamentals

Leave with a new outlook on AI and an adaptive prompt to stress test your idea. This 90-minute workshop is part of Invest Ottawa's Startup Fundamentals series, designed to help early-stage founders understand how AI is actually being used in business today — and how to start applying it to their own ideas. Most of our time together will focus on the thinking: where AI is showing up in real businesses right now, what it's good (and not good) at, and how founders can use it to move faster from idea to evidence. You'll leave with a practical AI prompt you can use on your own time to work through your biggest risks. Who This Is For • Idea-stage tech founders, especially first-time or non-technical • No prerequisites required — you don't need to have completed Build Your Lean Canvas or Customer Discovery beforehand (though both are great next steps) What You'll Learn • How AI is being used across businesses today, with real-world examples • Where AI fits into the early-stage founder journey • Practical ways to use AI as a thinking partner rather than just a tool What You'll Take Away • An AI prompt you can use after the session to pressure-test your assumptions and develop your idea, using your Lean Canvas and customer discovery Event Details • Duration: 1.5 hours • Format: Interactive, in-person workshop at Bayview Yards, 7 Bayview Station Rd.