Mary Richardson felt overjoyed when her 2SLGBTQIA+-focused dating app, Bindr, received recognition at Montréal’s Startupfest in 2024. The event helped her connect with Vancouver’s Bradley Breton, who later invested in Bindr. She came back to Pennsylvania with both a prize and a new network from Canada.
In the year following, Richardson remained busy. With Breton and her co-founder, she established a marketing tool called ColdStart, another US company, which she claims has surpassed $1 million in revenue.
However, she noted that the US’s increasing anti-2SLGBTQIA+ sentiment and retreat from diversity initiatives have affected her progress. She’s contemplating relocating to Canada, which she views as more inclusive and financially appealing.
“At conferences, people laughed in my face. Investors would turn away when they realized anything related to queer issues,” Richardson said.
As the US, under President Donald Trump, targets diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs, some queer tech founders in the US are considering moving to Canada to better support their businesses and live openly.
Trump’s administration quickly moved to erase DEI mentions from the federal government through an executive order, described as “radical and wasteful,” affecting equity-related grants and contracts.
While corporate resistance to DEI was already rising, the executive order accelerated rollbacks, impacting many tech companies. Giants like Meta, Amazon, Google, and Accenture cut programs promoting equitable hiring.
Richardson told BetaKit that these political changes “directly impacted” her businesses, complicating their operations in America.
“We’ve faced mockery at conferences. Investors would avoid us as soon as they saw anything queer-related,” she shared.
Some ColdStart clients approached Richardson under the condition that they remove “anything Bindr-related” from their profiles. The company had to include clauses in contracts with fellow queer-led businesses, allowing nullification without repercussions if their operations were outlawed by the US for being 2SLGBTQIA+-focused.
Facing lost business opportunities and a difficult political climate, Richardson is considering relocating ColdStart’s leadership to Vancouver.
“Canada is where we’ve received the most acceptance as founders and individuals,” she stated.
She mentioned no opposition from Canadian investors regarding their startup for the queer community. After winning the $60,000 Startupfest prize in 2024, she returned as a judge for 2025’s 2SLGBTQIA+ Prize, with winnings increased to $100,000.
“It’s unfortunate that in our current climate… you must hide to protect yourself and your company,” said Naoufel Testaouni from QueerTech.
Another US queer founder in cleantech echoed the sentiment, seeing Canada as a more stable environment for their business. A federal layoff led to delays for their government contract. This concerns them, alongside worries over environmental regulation rollbacks and immigration crackdowns impacting their mainly immigrant team. Canada’s stable policies and acceptance of the queer community seem favorable.
Naoufel Testaouni shared that many US queer founders might hide their identities to protect their businesses.
“As a founder, your company and idea are your priorities. In this climate, it’s unfortunate you must hide to protect them,” Testaouni said.
**An opportunity, and a warning, for Canada**
Canada has an opportunity to attract talented queer founders from the US, according to Misfit Ventures, the country’s only 2SLGBTQIA+-focused venture capital firm. They’ve connected with US-based queer founders reluctant to speak out.
Mandy Potter, Misfit Ventures co-founder, sees this as a chance to draw tech talent to Canada.
Co-founder Doug Lui suggests Canada should capitalize on this “reverse brain drain” by easing visa requirements for 2SLGBTQIA+ founders seeking to move.
“Our diversity fuels innovation, and our commitment to values maintains our relevance. Allowing anti-DEI rhetoric or LGBTQ erasure to take hold means losing both,” said Dax Dasilva from Lightspeed Commerce.
Data from the US shows queer tech founders often outperform their cis and hetero peers, creating more jobs, generating more patents, and achieving more exits, despite receiving less funding. This kind of data is yet to be collected in Canada, but Misfit Ventures seeks collaboration to compile it.
Dax Dasilva from e-commerce firm Lightspeed emphasizes welcoming founders to Canada with clear visa pathways, business integration, and funding access.
“The opportunity is here; we need to remove barriers,” Dasilva said.
Despite being more favorable policy-wise for 2SLGBTQIA+ founders, Canada still faces challenges in its investment landscape.
“Our reliance on US investment makes us vulnerable to such shifts,” noted Richardson’s co-founder Breton. US investors are involved in many large Canadian deals, per a recent report.
Canadian tech recently examined its treatment of marginalized communities. Over 350 industry members signed a letter supporting diversity after some companies, like Shopify, halted