Seeded With Purpose: Flora and Alberta’s Women Founders Raised $116M in 2024
Flora is the first individually-owned insurance solution for fertility and women’s health, offering affordable coverage for future fertility treatments including egg freezing, IUI, and IVF.
It’s been a milestone year for women entrepreneurs in Alberta. According to Start Alberta, female founders and co-founders raised $116 million across 14 funding rounds in 2024—an impressive show of strength, innovation, and ambition in sectors ranging from AI to health tech. But one of the most meaningful stories in this mix? The rise of Flora, a Calgary-based startup focused on reshaping reproductive care.
The Future of Fertility Starts with Flora
Founded by Laura McDonald (CEO) and Christy Lane (President), Flora Fertility closed a $1.5 million seed round this year to expand access to fertility diagnostics and care. Their approach is science-forward, accessible, and designed to empower individuals with more data and better options on their reproductive journey.
With fertility health often overlooked or underserved in traditional healthcare systems, Flora is filling an important gap—offering people tools to understand and manage fertility proactively, not reactively. In a sector dominated by reactive interventions and high costs, Flora’s preventative, user-first mindset is more than refreshing—it’s essential.
Part of a Powerful Cohort
Flora wasn’t the only company to make waves. Alberta’s women-led startups are proving they can raise meaningful capital—and build companies that matter. Among the standouts:
Orpyx Medical Technologies, led by Dr. Breanne Everett, secured a $20M growth equity round to advance diabetic foot ulcer prevention.
Artificial.Agency, co-founded by Alex Kearney, raised $16M to transform AI gaming.
CruxOCM, under CEO Vicki Knott, brought in $17M to optimize control room operations in the energy sector.
PayShepherd, with co-founder Jenn Hunter, landed $7M in seed funding to bring financial innovation to vendor management.
Wyvern, co-founded by Callie Lissinna and Kristen Cote, closed a $6M seed round for their space-tech startup using hyperspectral imaging.
And the list goes on—from Bōde’s push to reinvent real estate (via Lindsay Skabar) to Sylvester.ai’s pet-tech innovation led by Susan Groeneveld.
Why This Matters
Funding is fuel—and Alberta’s women founders are using it to build companies solving real-world problems, not just chasing trends. Whether it’s Flora Fertility helping people take control of their reproductive health or Nimble Science exploring the gut microbiome through ingestible tech, this year’s funding rounds reflect a clear message: when women build, they build with impact.
As we look ahead, Flora and its peers represent more than just success stories—they’re reminders that purpose and performance aren’t mutually exclusive.
Here’s to the future, fertilized by bold ideas and built by women.
Explore the full list of Alberta’s women-led funding rounds via Start Alberta
Listen to Basil Vetas with Scott Hartley on the Venture Everywhere podcast: More Leeway in Healthcare. Now on Apple & Spotify and check out all our past episodes here!
