🌟 SPEAKER SPOTLIGHT

Kristine Beese, Founder and CEO of Untangle Money, is redefining how women understand and engage with their finances.

Untangle Money helps women gain clarity and confidence about their finances through practical, non-judgmental guidance built for real life. Kristine launched the company after seeing how traditional financial tools overlooked middle-income women by default.

Built through deep iteration and constant learning, Untangle combines technology with human insight to create financial tools women genuinely understand and trust.

At Together Toronto, Kristine will share candid lessons on challenging assumptions, building for underserved users, and creating products with real impact.

What you will learn:

• How to identify flawed assumptions early

  Learn how hidden assumptions can derail product design, and how to uncover them before they become costly mistakes.

• How to build for underserved users

  Understand why designing for different lived experiences creates stronger, more resilient products.

• How to iterate toward product-market love

  Hear how Untangle evolved through experimentation, failure, and continuous learning.

• What it takes to build with purpose and resilience

  Gain perspective on navigating funding challenges, market skepticism, and long-term impact as a founder.

Together Toronto | January 12, 2026 6:00PM - 9:00PM

Every year begins with a reset.

New goals. New priorities. A quiet recalibration of how you want to show up.

Together Toronto is one of the few moments where Toronto’s tech community pauses and gathers to do that together.

On January 12, founders, operators, investors, and builders will meet at MaRS Discovery District for an evening of honest conversation and shared perspective. Not polished stories. Not rehearsed narratives. Just people speaking openly about what it actually takes to build.

This is a room shaped by curiosity, not performance.

By listening, not pitching.

By learning from each other’s experience.

Speakers:

• Benjamin Alarie, Founder & CEO of Blue J, on building AI infrastructure trusted by global firms

• Kristine Beese, Founder & CEO of Untangle Money, on designing financial systems that reflect real lived experiences

• Shirley Zhong, Co-Founder & COO of Xatoms, on building at the intersection of sustainability and technology

• Jason Ramsay, Founder of Nodalli, bringing a founder and finance perspective to scaling and decision-making

If you have been building quietly, questioning your next move, or simply wanting to learn from people who have been there, this is the kind of space that makes room for that.

Together Toronto often sets the tone for the months that follow. Not because of big announcements, but because of the conversations that continue long after the event ends.

Early Bird pricing is available until December 29.
TechTO members attend Together events for free.

If you plan to be part of Toronto’s tech community in 2026, this is a thoughtful place to begin.

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EVENT RECAP

Toronto Tech Week 2025

Toronto Tech Week 2025 was one of those weeks that reminded us why community matters in tech.

Not because of big headlines - but because of the rooms that filled up, the conversations that stayed honest, and the builders who kept showing up.

Throughout the week, TechTO helped shape the first-ever Toronto Tech Week by hosting 7 events across 5 venues, featuring 139 speakers and welcoming nearly 5,000 attendees (4,995) from across the ecosystem.

From early-morning Off the Record firesides to deep-dive Market Overviews, founder-focused stages, and community moments like the Summer Social, the goal stayed the same: create spaces where founders, operators, and investors could have real conversations about what it actually takes to build and scale.

👉 Subscribe to our event calendar to stay in the loop and be the first to know about the Toronto Tech Week 2026 edition:

CLIPS 📹️

We selected three standout conversations from Toronto Tech Week 2025 that capture what the week was really about: honest founder journeys, practical lessons, and long-term thinking.

1) Building, Scaling, and Exiting a Marketplace - Paul Arlin (Jiffy → Intact)

In this Toronto Tech Week conversation - powered by Interact - Paul Arlin, Co-Founder of Jiffy and now representing Intact Insurance, walks through the realities of building a two-sided home services marketplace — and successfully exiting to Canada’s largest home insurer.

Paul shares why discipline around unit economics, trust, and quality control mattered more than speed, how COVID tested the business, and why resisting early expansion pressure ultimately paid off. A must-watch for founders building marketplaces or navigating acquisition conversations.

2) Give First, Mentorship, and Building with Long-Term Intent - Brad Feld & Matt Golden

Recorded during Toronto Tech Week, TechTO hosted a sit-down between Brad Feld and Matt Golden of Golden Ventures to explore mentorship, founder generosity, and the ideas behind Brad’s book Give First.

This conversation is a reminder that strong ecosystems are built over time - through trust, shared learning, and founders who invest in others before they need something in return.

3) Building Fintech for Newcomers - Aditya Mhatre (Beacon)

In this Toronto Tech Week panel - powered by StartWell - Aditya Mhatre, Co-Founder and CPTO of Beacon, shares how his own immigration journey inspired a fintech platform designed to help newcomers build financial confidence and belonging in Canada.

From credit access challenges to product-led growth, Aditya unpacks how Beacon validates ideas through real human stories; and why timing, trust, and mission matter when building purpose-driven fintech.

🗓️ UPCOMING EVENTS

• Together Toronto: Monday, January 12 @ 6:00pm - REGISTER HERE

• Commerce Toronto: Wednesday, January 21 @ 5:30pm - EARLY-BIRD TICKETS HERE

• Sales Toronto 2026: Wednesday, February 09 @ 6:00pm - EARLY-BIRD TICKETS HERE

• Health Toronto 2026: Wednesday, February 25 @ 6:00pm - EARLY-BIRD TICKETS HERE

Don’t forget to lock in your year of TechTO! Subscribe to our full events calendar

🎤 Know Someone Who Should Be on the TechTO Stage?

We’re always looking to spotlight founders, operators, and builders with powerful stories; the kind that inspire, teach, and move the Canadian tech community forward.

If you know someone whose journey deserves the mic - from early stumbles to breakout momentum - we want to hear from you.

Help us bring fresh voices and new perspectives to future TechTO events and podcasts.

👀 OPPORTUNITIES TO WATCH

🎉 For a Limited Time: Get 20% Off TechTO Membership

If you have ever thought about joining TechTO, this is the moment.

For a short time, you can unlock 20% off annual Membership using the code RESOLUTION at checkout; your invitation to start 2026 surrounded by the founders, operators, and community shaping Canadian tech.

A TechTO Membership gives you:

• Complimentary access to all Together Toronto events

• Priority seating + members-only networking lounges

• Exclusive access to our Slack community of builders, investors & operators

• Opportunities to share your story in our 60K+ subscriber newsletter

• Job board posting access for hiring teams

• Early invitations to limited-capacity gatherings, workshops, and private sessions

If you are serious about building in tech, this is where you meet the people who accelerate your next step; whether that is a co-founder, a job lead, a partner, or a breakthrough idea.

The discount ends soon.

Lock it in now, and make 2026 the year you move with momentum.

Use code: RESOLUTION