Innovative Projects Realized

Advancing life cycle sustainability assessment for metal production from models to real-world impact

This project will create a new framework that combines process simulations with environmental, economic, and social life cycle assessments to evaluate the sustainability of metal production and recycling processes. By extending current methods beyond environmental analysis to also include costs and social impacts, the project will provide a more complete understanding of how new metallurgical technologies perform in real-world settings. The work will use magnesium extraction from dolomite as a test case and will benefit from close collaboration with Aalto University’s expertise and industry connections. Participating institutions will gain a cutting-edge tool that supports both academic research and industrial innovation, strengthens international collaboration between Canada and Finland, and positions them as leaders in developing practical solutions for more sustainable and responsible metal production.

Innovative 3D-Printed Hip Protection System

This research project aims to develop a next-generation hip protector insert for hip protector pants that is more hygienic, discreet, and wearable than current market options. Traditional foam-based insert/protectors are often bulky, uncomfortable, and visually unappealing; factors that reduce user compliance, especially among older cognitive adults. Our goal is to find a design for a pant insert that’s slim, low-profile and uses advanced 3D printing (FDM) with flexible materials, such as TPU, to create a lightweight structure that better manages impact forces from falls. Unlike conventional solutions, our design focuses equally on performance, comfort, and aesthetics, key factors for encouraging everyday use. The insert will undergo rigorous impact testing (drop tower) to validate its effectiveness under real-world fall conditions. Consistency and quality in manufacturing will be central, ensuring a scalable, high-performing product. For the partner organization, this project presents an opportunity to bring a truly innovative product to market, one that responds to a critical need with a modern solution. By combining biomechanical insight with additive manufacturing, we aim to position this product as a leading option in personal fall protection, ultimately supporting injury prevention, healthcare cost reduction, and improved quality of life for vulnerable populations.

Social Enterprise Exploration for Mi’kmaw Cultural Foundation

The Mi’kmaw Cultural Foundation Inc. (MCF) is a non-profit organization in Newfoundland and Labrador dedicated to preserving and revitalizing Mi’kmaw culture, language, and traditions through programs, education, and community events. To ensure long-term sustainability, MCF is creating a Business Development Department that will explore social enterprises aligned with Mi’kmaw cultural values, generating revenue while continuing to deliver cultural and community benefits. Since the Foundation currently depends heavily on external funding, this shift aims to strengthen financial stability and support future growth. Implementation of this requires student support and expertise in business strategy, social enterprise models, Indigenous-led development, and stakeholder engagement.

L2M-Commercialization of a Multiscale Computational Modeling Platform for Cellular Organelles and Membrane-Protein Systems

This project aims to commercialize a computational biotechnology platform that simulates the structure and dynamics of cellular organelles, such as the endoplasmic reticulum, at multiple scales. These systems play key roles in many cellular processes, and their malfunction is linked to diseases such as Alzheimer’s, ALS, and cancer. While experimental methods provide valuable insights, they are often limited in capturing how molecular-scale changes translate into large-scale structural outcomes.

The proposed innovation addresses this gap by transforming an advanced academic simulation framework into an industry-ready software tool. Through structured market discovery, customer validation, and business model development, the project will identify real-world applications for this technology in pharmaceutical research, synthetic biology, and biomaterials design. The intern will work closely with industry and academic mentors through the Lab2Market Launch program to refine commercialization pathways and define a sustainable go-to-market strategy.

By bridging the gap between academic research and industrial application, this project will contribute to Canada’s innovation ecosystem—accelerating research translation, supporting biotechnology development, and fostering new opportunities for scientific and economic growth.

Estimation des forces musculaire lors du pédalage à bras en concentrique et en excentrique

D’après de nombreuses études, le mode de pédalage excentrique (longueur du muscle augmente durant l’effort) semble être un mode de travail intéressant pour le bas du corps, l’objectif est donc d’éclaircir la voie pour ce qui est du haut du corps. L’analyse comparative des forces musculaires permettra d’avoir une idée plus précise des atouts de chaque mode de pédalage, au long terme, cela pourrait se traduire, par exemple, par des recommandations sur des types d’exercices de réadaptation.

Modèle de prévision dynamique du comportement des renouvellements de polices d’assurance

Le département de Prévision et Analytique de TD Assurance est actuellement en charge de prédire les ventes et les revenues des différents produits d’assurance sur une base annuelle et mensuelle. Prédire les revenues, et ceci de manière précise, est crucial pour l’entreprise et son bon fonctionnement. Les modèles jusqu’alors utilisés ont étés construits il y a un peu plus de dix ans et ont été implémentés avec le logiciel Excel. Ces modèles sont complexes et requièrent trop de manipulations manuelles, engendrant non seulement des erreurs potentielles mais également une perte de temps. Le but du présent projet est de développer de nouveaux modèles, tout aussi performant, sinon plus, de les automatiser et de les dynamiser, notamment grâce au logiciel SAS. Nous nous concentrons sur les modèles de renouvellements et d’annulation de polices d’assurance afin de généraliser le phénomène à l’ensemble des produits d’assurance. Ces deux modèles sont dynamiques car directement liés l’un à l’autre. L’utilisation de séries chronologiques est ici requise pour construire les dits modèles.

L2M – AI Chat Agent for Proposal Generation and Knowledge Reuse

This project is creating a smart chat assistant that uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) to help construction and engineering companies write accurate proposals, like bids for major jobs. The assistant is trained on the company’s successful past proposals, making it a secure, private expert. When a team uploads a new Request for Proposal (RFP), the assistant instantly finds and customizes the best text from their past work to match the new job’s requirements, helping them avoid repetitive, manual copying and pasting. The huge benefit for the partner organization is that they can save hundreds of hours of staff time on proposal writing, make sure all their proposals are high-quality and consistent, and ultimately win more contracts by speeding up the process and improving the final submission.

Machine Learning developer intern working within cross-functional teams to develop and commercialize AI-powered solutions in the Public Services sector – AltaML

The project comprises internships in a variety of technical and business roles within our organization and within our GovLab program. Within the organization, roles include associate machine learning developer, business development associate, communications associate and finance associate. Within GovLab specifically, roles include associate machine learning developer, associate business solutions consultant, and project delivery associate. The diff erence is mainly that in GovLab, there is a focus on public sector problems, whereas in AltaML overall, we work across sectors.
For the Machine Learning Developer intern listed on this particular application, Seyed Arshia Razavi (Arshia) will be working with the Government of Alberta – Primary and Preventative Health Services team as they look to pilot their use case (‘IHDA Public Health Data Navigator’). Albertans are challenged to know what data is available and the specifics of what they are looking for before starting their search, which results in significant eff ort for finding information and and lack of transparency and accessibility to public health information. The project aims to solve this by creating a conversational assistant that makes structured knowledge more accessible without requiring users to know exact dataset details.
? Value: the value of this project is multi-faceted, significantly benefiting the general public and Health Analysts. For the general public, the value is in improved accessibility and transparency of public health information, making it easier to find and retrieve data without prior knowledge. The benefit will be estimated by tracking site analytics, aiming for an increase in the number of visitors, a longer average session duration, and an increase in positive media mentions. For internal staff , particularly Health Analysts, the project is expected to decrease the staff analyst time spent generating insights from the data, reducing the current manual eff ort required for comparing and generating insights and analysis tools.
? Focus: the focus of the project is to apply machine learning, agentic workflows and natural language processing to change the way the public accesses health information.

Développement mécanique d’une plateforme d’entraînement à résistance active

L’évaluation et la rééducation musculaire rencontrent actuellement des défis importants en termes de précision, de personnalisation et d’objectivité. Les méthodes d’évaluation traditionnelles reposent principalement sur des tests subjectifs de force statique réalisés par le physiothérapeute. Ces approches présentent plusieurs limitations : elles ne fournissent pas de données quantitatives précises et évaluent le travail musculaire uniquement en tension statique et dans une seule amplitude de mouvement.

Il est aujourd’hui reconnu que le mode de contraction excentrique — durant lequel le muscle s’allonge tout en étant sous tension — est plus efficace que le mode concentrique — où le muscle se raccourcit sous tension — pour le renforcement musculaire. Cependant, sa mise en œuvre est plus complexe, car elle exige au préalable une contraction concentrique pour charger le muscle, avant de permettre son étirement contrôlé.

Le présent projet a pour objectif le développement mécanique d’une plateforme innovante permettant de réaliser plusieurs mouvements spécifiques, ciblant différents modes de contraction musculaire. Cette plateforme est conçue pour offrir une résistance venant du bas, et permettre une exécution fluide et contrôlée de ces mouvements. Elle sera équipée d’un système capable de récupérer en temps réel des données sur l’intensité et la qualité de la contraction musculaire, afin d’optimiser l’entraînement et la rééducation.

L2M –An energy efficient technology for enhancing indoor air quality

This project focuses on commercializing a novel heat-based air disinfection technology. It aims to validate market needs, assess customer segments, and develop a viable business model to bring an energy-efficient purification solution to market, improving public health and making air disinfection affordable.

Designing a culturally inclusive information system for Canadian universities to enhance international student recruitment

The number of Asian students getting their post-secondary education abroad has doubled over the past decade to around 2.5 million. In the same period, the number of agents in the admission business in China has increased ten times to nearly 400. High school students in China find it difficult to make informed decisions independently about application and admission to foreign universities because the western university websites and information sessions are not designed keeping their cultural practices in mind. This research project undertakes an iterative, user-centered design of an online, real time information session and related international student information web pages to make them culturally inclusive of prospective students from China. The benefits from such a system for the students could include higher efficiency and reduced time for information seeking and bypassing of third party agencies. The anticipated benefit to Canadian universities would be facilitation of international student recruitment and increase in the number of international student admissions.

L2M – Vision-Based Upper-Limb Assistive Devices

Upper-limb assistive devices remain hard to use because control often feels unnatural and tiring, which leads to abandonment. The intern’s M.Sc. project proposes a non-invasive, vision-based control layer that links what the user looks at to objects in the real-world 3D environment and predicts natural hand paths and joint actions. This approach is intended to lower mental effort, shorten training, and support embodiment so devices feel more like part of the body. Canadian prosthetic and exoskeleton teams can use the results to choose control features, define clear performance targets, and plan integration with existing hardware and software. Through Lab2Market, industry and clinical stakeholders will be engaged to identify adoption barriers, ethics and workflow needs, and pilot designs, creating a practical path to a validated, commercially viable product in Canada’s digital rehabilitation space.