Ottawa tech community builds AI tools through grassroots hackathons

An Ottawa-based community organization is helping tech entrepreneurs tap into artificial intelligence without requiring traditional coding expertise.

AGI Ventures Canada, launched two and a half years ago by tech entrepreneurs Hai Nghiem and Neilda Gagné, has grown to serve more than 2,000 people exploring innovative uses for AI. The organization hosts annual hackathons—one-day coding marathons where participants use AI-powered tools to build new software applications.

Because AI now allows people to write code using natural language prompts rather than traditional line-by-line programming, the barrier to entry has dropped dramatically. "We're kind of like a catalyst," Gagné said. "They'll find a problem, and they will find ways to solve it no matter what."

One concrete example: Parisa Zare, who moved to Ottawa in late 2022 and began working at Invest Ottawa as a program coordinator, attended her first AGI Ventures hackathon as an observer. Despite having no formal coding experience, she eventually entered a hackathon and co-created PitchPal with business partner Marc-Antoine Ruel—an AI-powered pitch coach that lets founders rehearse investor pitches and receive instant feedback.

Zare, who had attended a Invest Ottawa pitchfest three years ago and thought "there's no way I could ever do that," walked away from the 2026 version with the Crowd Favourite Award. PitchPal has now been used by hundreds of entrepreneurs. "You can practise your one-minute pitch or you can practise your 20-minute pitch that you are going to do in front of an investor for a variety of different environments and use cases," she explained.

Gagné and Nghiem say the community attracts "a very curious, playful and internally motivated bunch" from diverse backgrounds, united by a desire to quickly devise new uses for AI technology.