Canada is like a really good looking guy you want to date, but for some reason, he makes it really difficult for you to be with him.
That’s an analogy from Mai Trinh, a recent business graduate from Simon Fraser University who co-founded a startup valued at $34 million (US$25 million), before moving it to San Francisco to scale.
“You wake up one day, you realize your worth, and then you get out,” said Trinh.
The international student from Vietnam is a co-founder of Internet Backyard, a company that provides financial infrastructure for the computer economy by automating billing and financial software.
Using her own experience, Trinh is highlighting how difficult it is for Gen Z entrepreneurs to build and scale tech startups in Canada, and why many ultimately move south of the border.
“The most impressive people I’ve met in San Francisco so far are from Canada. It’s such a shame,” she said.
She said the country’s immigration rules, limited fintech infrastructure, and venture capital gaps are to blame.
Talent migration among STEM students has been high for years, according to a 2018 study titled Reversing the Brain Drain: Where is Canadian STEM Talent Going?.
The study reports that 80 per cent of graduates who relocate move to the U.S.. It also notes that approximately 66 per cent of software engineering students, 30 per cent of computer engineering students, and 30 per cent of computer science students leave Canada after graduation, citing better pay and larger companies as primary reasons.
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Long visa times and lack of infrastructure
For Trinh, there were two main reasons for relocating to the U.S.
One, is Canada’s lack of infrastructure to quickly launch and scale a fintech company.
After incorporating in Delaware, Internet Backyard closed a US$4.5 million funding round at a US$25 million post-money valuation in just one week.
By contrast, across all of Western Canada in the first quarter of 2025, total funding raised for all pre-seed rounds was just US$3 million.
Canada’s venture ecosystem struggles to compete with U.S. firms, she added.
“You have all these micro funds that really want to support first-time founders,” Trinh said. “But because they don’t have enough capital, it becomes very hard.”
The second issue is visa.
As an international student from Vietnam and her co-founder Gabriel Ravacci, from Brazil, Trinh explained the two would need to work for other employers to collect enough points under Canada’s Comprehensive Ranking System to qualify for permanent residency.
“Because the required score keeps rising, we couldn’t do that while building our company at the same time,” she said. “The Startup Visa Program in Canada currently has a 10-year wait time. It just doesn’t work for us.”
Trinh said she also took French classes while working full time to try to boost her CRS score.
What policy can help?
Streamlining visas for entrepreneurs would be a game changer, Trinh said.
Three weeks ago, Canada’s immigration department announced it would no longer accept new applications under the Start-Up Visa Program.
“Canadian students after they graduate just go directly to San Francisco or New York, because it’s so much easier to get a working visa there,” she said, citing H-1B and E visas in the U.S.
Canada has huge AI potential
Despite the challenges, Trinh said Canada still holds a major advantage in the data centre industry, with abundant land, water, and energy, as well as a naturally cooler climate.
Her startup has already launched two customer pilots in Vancouver.
“It’s a huge industry that can grow if the government is willing to support it,” she said, particularly when it comes to data centre energy management.
“If there’s a policy change I would love to come back.”
