Entrepreneur wins national award

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This article was published 20/07/2011 (5425 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Matthew Hudson is a prince among young entrepreneurs in Canada.

The River Heights resident, 27, was recently awarded the Canadian Youth Business Foundation’s National Best Business Award in Ottawa.

In addition to a $20,000 cash prize for the expansion of his business, the Kelvin High School alumnus landed a paid trip to Nice, France in the fall to attend the G20 Young Entrepreneur Summit.

In 2006, with the help of two friends, Hudson formed Invenia Technical Computing — a software company that uses specialized technology to reduce carbon dioxide emissions and increase the value of energy market operations.

The company has since grown to a staff of around 15 and forms part of the Eureka Project — a dynamic, start-up business community based at the Smartpark at the University of Manitoba.

Invenia works with the main players in the electricity market, including utilities such as Manitoba Hydro, as well as regulators and traders, Hudson said.

“We help utilities make renewable power sources like wind and solar power more efficient. We also help reduce the amount of CO2 emissions, which has a major impact on the global market,” Hudson said, noting Hydro’s two wind farms in southern Manitoba in St. Joseph and St. Leon play a key role.

“Wind is intermittent. Sometimes it blows and sometimes it doesn’t. We provide a more accurate forecast and a decision model where the software then takes over. It is called self-learning software.”

While in Ottawa, Hudson rubbed shoulders with British royalty. He had VIP seats at a welcoming ceremony at Rideau Hall, followed by a private reception for 100 young Canadians to meet Will and Kate — otherwise known as the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.

“It was very interesting. They were both warm, genuine people,” Hudson said.

“I ended up speaking with Prince William for about 10 minutes and he was very engaged. Considering how tired he must have been with all the travelling, it wasn’t just a handshake or a smile, it was a great conversation.”

He added that while many people surrounded the duchess, she made sure to engage everyone around her.

“And unlike some meet-and-greet politicians, their warmth really shone through,” he added.

On a related note, Hudson’s company is also in the semifinal round of the Prince’s Youth Business International Innovative Business of the Year.

Joelle Foster, director of CYBF Manitoba, Nunavut and Northwest Territories, said Hudson’s achievements mark a growing sense of progress in the province’s business community.

“The growing interest in entrepreneurial careers create significant opportunities … for the CYBF to begin to reverse the historic outward migration and cultivate future business leaders within the province,” Foster said.

Foster, a St. James resident, said the organization opened its Manitoba office on Portage Avenue last November.

Anyone aged between 18 and 34 looking to obtain low interest, no collateral financing and mentorship support to start a new business can visit www.cybf.ca or call 480-8481.

simon.fuller@canstarnews.com