Canadian International Ventures Inc. ("CI Ventures," "we," "us," or "our") respects your privacy and is committed to protecting the personal information you share with us. This policy explains what we collect, why we collect it, how we use and share it, how long we keep it, how we protect it, and the choices and rights you have. It applies to information we collect through our website, our intake and application processes, and our programs.
We handle personal information in accordance with Canada's Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) and applicable provincial privacy laws.
§ 01Information we collect
What we collect depends on how you interact with us.
1.1 Information you provide directly. When you express interest or apply through our website, we collect the information you enter — typically your name, email address, your role, where you're based, your startup's name and a description of it, its stage and sector, the pathway you're interested in, your timeline, how you heard about us, and anything else you choose to share.
If you go on to take part in a CI Ventures program, we collect more detailed information about you, your team, and your startup. Depending on your pathway, this may include immigration-related information (where your pathway involves an immigration program) and, as part of program participation, cognitive and behavioural assessment information.
1.2 Information we collect automatically. When you visit our website, we use Google Analytics 4 to understand how the site is used. This collects information such as the pages you visit, your approximate location (city or region, derived from a truncated IP address), your device and browser type, the source that referred you, and your interactions with the site. Google Analytics 4 anonymizes IP addresses by default. We use this information only in aggregate, and only after you have consented to analytics cookies — see Section 12.
1.3 Information from third parties. We do not routinely collect information about you from third parties.
§ 02Why we collect it
We collect personal information only for purposes a reasonable person would consider appropriate, and we identify those purposes when we collect it. We use your information to:
- assess whether a CI Ventures program is a fit for you and your startup;
- deliver our programs, including matching you with mentors and support;
- support your immigration application where your pathway involves an immigration program, including providing required information to the relevant immigration authorities;
- measure progress and outcomes during and after your participation;
- conduct research and produce de-identified, aggregate insights and publications (see Section 7);
- communicate with you and respond to your inquiries;
- meet our legal, regulatory, and contractual obligations; and
- operate, maintain, and improve our website.
§ 03Consent
We collect, use, and disclose your personal information with your consent, except where the law permits or requires otherwise.
The form of consent depends on the sensitivity of the information. For most information, your consent is implied when you provide it to us for an identified purpose. For sensitive information — including immigration-related information and any cognitive or behavioural assessment information — we rely on your express, opt-in consent, and we tell you specifically what we are collecting and why.
You can withdraw your consent at any time, subject to legal and contractual limits and reasonable notice. Withdrawing consent for certain information may mean we can no longer provide some or all of our services to you. To withdraw consent, contact us using the details in Section 14.
§ 04How we use your information
We use your information for the purposes described in Section 2 and for the duration of our relationship with you. We do not sell your personal information. We do not use your personal information for automated decision-making that produces legal or similarly significant effects without human involvement.
§ 05When we share your information
We share personal information only where necessary, and only with the following categories of recipients:
- Immigration authorities. Where your pathway involves an immigration program, we provide the information required to support your application to the relevant authorities, including IRCC. We share only what is necessary for that purpose.
- Program partners. We share information with the partners who deliver and support your program, which may include our investor partner network, assigned mentors, and co-investors. We share only what each partner needs for their role.
- Service providers. We use trusted third-party providers to operate our systems. These currently include Google (website analytics), Notion (our intake forms and information management), and Fireflies (our meeting transcription service). These providers process information on our behalf, under contract, and only for the purposes we specify.
- Legal and regulatory disclosure. We may disclose information where required by law, regulation, or legal process, or to protect our rights, safety, or property, or those of others.
Except as described in this policy, we do not disclose your personal information to third parties without your consent.
§ 06Sensitive information: immigration and assessment data
Some of the information we handle is particularly sensitive, and we treat it with additional care.
Immigration information. Where your pathway involves an immigration program, we collect and share immigration-related information as necessary to support your application. We collect it with your express consent and limit access to those who need it.
§ 07Research use of your information
Research is integral to CI Ventures' programs. Studying how early-stage startups develop is part of the purpose of our programs, and the insights and publications we produce depend on the information generated through participation. Because of this, the research use of your information is part of taking part in a CI Ventures program — it is not a separate, optional add-on, and enrolling in a program includes your consent to it. We tell you this clearly before you apply or enroll, so you can make an informed decision.
When we use your information for research:
- We use de-identified information — information from which direct identifiers (such as your name, your venture's name, and your contact details) have been removed.
- We use it to produce aggregate insights and publications.
- Our published research will not identify you or your startup personally without your separate, specific consent. Being individually named in a publication is always optional, requires a separate opt-in, and declining it does not affect your participation.
- You keep your right to access and correct your information, and to request deletion of your identifiable information after your participation ends, subject to the retention limits in Section 9. To support long-term research, we may retain a coded record of your participation, one in which direct identifiers have been removed and replaced with a code, alongside our aggregate research dataset. Where your information has already been incorporated into published or aggregate research, we may be unable to remove it.
If you do not wish your information to be used for research as described here, a CI Ventures program is not the right fit, but this does not affect your use of our website or your ability to contact us.
§ 08International data transfers
Some of our service providers store or process information outside Canada, including in the United States — for example, Google (analytics), Notion (intake forms and information management), and Fireflies (meeting transcription). When information is held in another country, it may be subject to the laws of that country, including lawful access by courts, law enforcement, and government authorities. We take reasonable steps to ensure that any service provider handling your information provides a comparable level of protection. You can contact us (Section 14) for more information about our service providers and where information is processed.
§ 09How long we keep your information
We keep personal information only as long as necessary for the purposes described in this policy, or as required by law. How long that is depends on the type of information and our relationship with you:
- Expression-of-interest information. If you submit an intake or interest form but do not go on to join a program, we keep your information for 24 months so we can follow up about current or future programs, after which we securely delete or de-identify it. You can ask to be removed sooner by contacting us.
- Program participation records. If you join a CI Ventures program, we keep your identifiable program records for the duration of your participation and for 24 months afterward, to administer the program, meet our obligations, and support you as an alumnus.
- Immigration-related records. Where your pathway involves an immigration program, we may need to retain certain records for a defined period to meet legal and program requirements. This will depend on the particular immigration program.
- Coded research records. As described in Section 7, research is integral to our programs. To support long-term research, we retain a coded research record, one in which direct identifiers have been removed and replaced with a code, on a longer-term basis, separately from the key that could re-link it to you (see Section 10). This record is kept beyond the retention periods above because it no longer functions as ordinary contact or program information, and removing a single record from aggregate research is often not possible.
When information reaches the end of its retention period, we securely delete or de-identify it. Information that has already been incorporated into published or aggregate research cannot be withdrawn.
§ 10How we protect your information
We take reasonable steps to protect personal information against loss, theft, and unauthorized access, use, or disclosure, using safeguards appropriate to its sensitivity. These include:
- Access controls. We limit access to personal information to the people who need it to carry out their work, using the access and permission settings available in the tools we rely on.
- Encryption in transit. Information submitted through our website and held in our service providers' systems is protected by encryption in transit. For example, our website is served over HTTPS, and the cloud services we use encrypt data in transit by default.
- Reputable service providers. We operate our systems using established service providers and rely on the security measures and data-protection commitments set out in their terms. We choose providers that maintain appropriate safeguards.
- Internal handling practices. We collect only the information we need, limit how it is shared internally, and securely delete or de-identify information when it is no longer required.
- Protecting coded research information. Where we hold information in coded form for research, we keep any key that could re-link it to you separately from the coded data, and restrict access to that key.
No system is perfectly secure, and we cannot guarantee absolute security. But we take reasonable steps to protect your information and to respond appropriately if a security incident occurs.
§ 11Your rights and choices
You have the right to:
- Access the personal information we hold about you, and an explanation of how it has been used and to whom it has been disclosed;
- Correct information that is inaccurate or incomplete;
- Withdraw consent to our collection, use, or disclosure of your information, subject to legal and contractual limits;
- Opt out of being individually identified in published research (Section 7); and
- Request deletion of your information, subject to the limits in Section 9 and any legal retention obligations.
To exercise any of these rights, contact us using the details in Section 14. We will respond within the timeframes required by law, and we may need to verify your identity first.
§ 12Cookies and analytics
We use cookies and similar technologies for two purposes: to make our website work, and to understand how it is used.
For analytics, we use Google Analytics 4. When you first visit, we ask for your consent before any analytics cookies are set. Until you accept, analytics are disabled — we use Google Consent Mode, which keeps analytics storage set to "denied" by default until you choose to allow it. You can change or withdraw your choice at any time.
Google Analytics collects the information described in Section 1.2. That data is processed by Google and may be stored in the United States (see Section 8). Google Analytics 4 anonymizes IP addresses by default. We do not use advertising cookies, and we do not track you across other websites.
§ 13Other terms
Third-party links. Our website may link to third-party sites we don't control. This policy doesn't apply to those sites; we encourage you to review their privacy policies.
Children's privacy. Our services are directed at founders and partners and are not intended for children. We do not knowingly collect personal information from children.
Changes to this policy. We may update this policy from time to time. We'll post the updated version here with a revised "Last updated" date, and where changes are significant, we'll take reasonable steps to notify you.
§ 14Contact us
If you have questions about this policy, want to exercise your rights, or wish to make a complaint, contact:
If you are not satisfied with our response, you have the right to contact the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (OPC) at priv.gc.ca.