Super excited to announce TSF’s Fund III today! With $41 million (US$30 million) to invest in the next frontier of computing and its applications, covering everything from deep-tech AI to protocols to semiconductors. With a bigger fund, we will lead, co-lead, and participate in.

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And of course, our @twosmallfishvc partner Dr. Albert Chen joined us. He is a graduate of Waterloo Engineering and knows a thing or two about semiconductors himself. Semiconductors brought us together that night. Tapeout was what we talked about, and we all loved it.

From the TSF portfolio side, we were thrilled to have Professor Doug Barlage of the University of Alberta and Professor Chris Eliasmith of the University of Waterloo, co-founders of Zinite and ABR, respectively.

Professor Tony Chan Carusone, now also CTO of Alphawave Semi and coauthor of the Sedra & Smith textbook starting with the 8th edition, brought both academic and commercial perspectives to the table.

Chris Yip, Dean of Engineering at the University of Toronto, and Deepa Kundur, current Chair of U of T’s Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering—continuing the legacy of leadership that Dr. Sedra once held in that position—also attended.

We were also joined by Ljubisa Bajic, former CEO of TensTorrent and now CEO of Taalas, who also spent part of his career at ATI, further adding to the thread that connected many of us.

Xerxes Wania, another one of my TAs from back in the day, went on to build and exit two semiconductor companies and added his voice to the conversation.

They are also co-founders of Hepzibah, a Two Small Fish portfolio company. (I still can’t help but sometimes call him Professor Snelgrove.).

This evening was also a chance to reconnect with those who shaped my own journey. Martin Snelgrove and Raymond Chik, my professor and TA respectively, were both there and are now serial entrepreneurs.

Adding even more depth to the evening, Benny was also once a student of Dr. Sedra. Two generations of engineers at the same table, both shaped by the same teacher.

When Eva worked at ATI, she had the chance to work closely with Benny. His presence brought our conversation full circle, from classroom to commercialization.

We were equally honoured to host Benny Lau, co-founder of ATI Technologies, whose legacy lives on in AMD’s GPUs to this day. AMD acquired ATI for $5.4 billion nearly 20 years ago, still one of the largest tech acquisitions in Canadian history.

I consider myself extraordinarily fortunate, not just to have learned from his book, but to have been his student more than 30 years ago at the University of Toronto. Few have had the privilege of learning directly from a legend.

Since 1982, his textbook has taught more than three-quarters of the world’s electrical engineers. It is hard to find someone in the field who has not studied from it.

We were incredibly honoured to have Dr. Adel Sedra, former Dean of Engineering at the University of Waterloo, join us. Recently appointed to the Order of Canada, Dr. Sedra is a towering figure in the world of electrical engineering.

Why? Because this was our “School of Fish – Legends of Semiconductors” dinner, hosted at our home, where your relationship with the Sedra & Smith textbook was the common thread. (I’m second edition, if you’re wondering.).

At most dinners, introductions start with your name and maybe what you do. At this one, we began with:.“Second edition.”.“Fourth edition.”

Our sporty robotic guest, the ENVGO NV1, a hydrofoiling all-electric watercraft, zipped across the lake. Its artistic counterpart from Acrylic Robotics wowed us with its ability to create expressive paintings, powered by a robot but championed by award-winning artists.

When you invite a robot to a party… they bring their robot friends. 🤖🎉. That’s exactly what happened at the geekiest gathering in Muskoka this past weekend!

60 was so last month. Now? 61. Enough said. #seed #deeptech #VC #investment