Founder Fridays - powered by Alberta's Regional Innovation Networks

Do you struggle to keep up with best practices in business?

Join us for Founder Fridays, where we take a deep dive into key takeaways from authors.

These fireside chats dig right into key concepts from the book, page numbers to reference back to, and a chance to get a copy of their book for free if you are currently living in Canada.

On the first Friday of October and November of 2025, as well as February through May 2026, from 12-1pm MST, Brandy Old and Craig Elias host a live fireside chat with a featured author. Every session gets recorded and sent out to all registrants.

Want to catch up on previous chats? Hit the “FIRESIDE CHAT” link in the Past Sessions section below or on FounderFridays.ca.

Founder Fridays is more than a series-it’s a launchpad for Alberta’s founders, mentors, investors, and ecosystem builders. It’s about upskilling, building connections, and accelerating startups through every stage. Powered by Alberta's Regional Innovation Network and Alberta Innovates, Founder Fridays expects to welcome guest speakers from across Alberta.

Register now, and let’s make this Friday one for the books!

Do you have a book or author that should be on our radar? Text or call Craig Elias at +1.403.874.2998. If it’s a fit, we’ll see what we can make happen.

Upcoming Sessions

1. December 5, 2025: Fireside chat with our surprise guest author of the renewed series.
2. Feb 6, 2025: Fireside chat with our surprise guest author of the renewed series.
3. March 6, 2025: Fireside chat with David Spiegelhalter, The Art of Uncertainty: How to Navigate Chance, Ignorance, Risk, and Luck
4. April 3, 2025: Fireside chat with our surprise guest author of the renewed series.
5. May 8, 2025: Fireside chat with our surprise guest author of the renewed series.

*You'll want to register for each session directly via this page, just scan to the date you're wanting to join on and select the free ticket. Do this for each date you're planning to participate in.

These exciting Friday sessions give you the chance to register for the fireside chat with an author where the last 15 minutes is an audience Q & A session with the participants, and a link is provided so those from Canada can request a free copy of the author’s book.

​Founder Fridays are designed to support Alberta’s entrepreneurs, mentors, investors, ecosystem builders, and service providers by:

• ​Upskilling entrepreneurs, mentors, ecosystem builders, and service providers
• ​Developing entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship support in and around post-secondary institutions
• ​Helping startups grow faster and develop the expertise and traction required to attract capital
• ​Working with existing entrepreneurship support organizations to expand their mentor network
• Increasing the volume of startups and the velocity at which they progress through the Startup Commons stages

​Created by Brandy Old and Craig Elias, Founder Fridays is made possible by the generous support of Alberta Innovates and Alberta's Regional Innovation Networks.

Recordings of past sessions are available at http://FounderFridays.ca

Call or text Craig Elias (+1.403.874.2998) if you have any questions or suggestions for future authors and their books.

You can also email inquiries to albertainnovationnetwork@gmail.com