Rocket space shuts down without ever opening its office in Calgary
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calga...472797?cmp=rss
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A tech accelerator once touted as proof Calgary can attract Silicon Valley talent has shut down, three years after it was announced that it would be opening its first Canadian headquarters in the city.
California-based tech accelerator RocketSpace pulled out of the UK in December 2019, and a message currently posted to the company's website states it is closing down entirely.
CEO Duncan Logan confirmed to CBC News that the company is closing down due to what he described as a partnership with Chinese investors that did not work out as hoped.
RocketSpace announced in May 2017 it was renovating a 75,000-square-foot office in the Edison building at 150 Ninth Avenue S.W., to create co-work space for up to 1,000 people hoping to grow their tech startups.
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An article on Calgary Economic Development's website at the time touted the company's decision to establish a Calgary HQ as a turning point for the city — CEO Mary Moran and Mayor Naheed Nenshi had publicly credited a trade mission to San Francisco as luring the company up north.
"This is our moment, Calgary," the June 2017 article read.
"So what does the RocketSpace win mean for Calgary? It means our strategy to put Calgary on the map in [Silicon Valley] is working. It means our instincts are right — we have all the ingredients (proximity, talent and inexpensive real estate) to court the big tech companies."
Calgary Economic Development did not respond to a request for comment.
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