Riipen FuturePath: The next-generation talent solution businesses can’t ignore.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Vancouver, BC – (April 30, 2025) – Canadian businesses are at a crossroads. As competition for skilled talent intensifies and global AI adoption accelerates, companies need a smarter, more sustainable way to access talent. Enter Riipen FuturePath—Canada’s bold new approach to early career hiring, designed to drive innovation, productivity, and economic resilience.

Riipen FuturePath is a next-generation platform giving growth and scale-up businesses fast, flexible access to emerging talent, fueling: innovation, AI adoption, productivity, job creation, and global competitiveness. Built upon Riipen's successful "Earn and Learn" model pioneered by the acclaimed Level UP program, Riipen FuturePath adopts a similar operating model while scaling impact through private sector investment in each student placement.

Robert Fournier, Co-Founder of Granularity, shares, "As a co-founder at a startup, Level UP helped us speed up the development of critical features for our technology around our AI models." He continues, "The student was able to cut timelines by 50%, while increasing model accuracy by 15%. This is a major success and win for our company."

A made-in-Canada solution for today’s talent challenges.

Too often, Canadian businesses turn to international platforms, exporting economic value, skills development, and job creation beyond our borders. Riipen FuturePath changes the game. Built to keep talent pipelines and innovation at home, Riipen FuturePath provides fast, flexible access to emerging talent—giving businesses the same agility and competitive edge but with the added benefit of building long-term workforce capacity.

Why businesses can’t afford to ignore Riipen FuturePath.

• Accelerates innovation – Riipen FuturePath fuels AI adoption, digital transformation, and workforce readiness by embedding students into real-world business challenges.
• Levels the playing field – By combining employer co-investment with government funding, Riipen FuturePath unlocks 60% more opportunities for the same public investment, delivering equity and economic impact.
• Retains & develops Canadian talent – Instead of sending work overseas, Riipen FuturePath ensures Canadian businesses benefit from Canadian talent, keeping skills development and job creation within our economy.

A public-private investment in Canada’s future.

Riipen FuturePath introduces Riipen’s employer co-investment model, where businesses invest alongside government funding to shape and develop high-potential talent. This approach doesn’t just create jobs—it aligns experiential learning with recruitment strategies, increases employer accountability, addresses the growing gap in entry-level job opportunities, and delivers high-performing, motivated talent to businesses when needed.

“At a time when businesses face unprecedented hiring challenges, Riipen FuturePath offers a Canadian-built solution that meets employers’ evolving needs,” says Dana Stephenson, Co-Founder and CEO of Riipen. “This program doesn’t just provide access to talent—it’s an investment in Canada’s workforce, economic resilience, and innovation leadership.”

The future of hiring starts now, with Riipen FuturePath. Canadian businesses can stop competing for talent—and start building it.

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About Riipen

On a mission to eliminate underemployment, Riipen has built a robust marketplace of over 700 higher education and training providers in 9 countries and 44,000 employers, delivering over 280,000 project-based learning experiences to help learners enhance their skills, build their professional network, and accelerate their path to a meaningful career. Using technology and marketplace dynamics to break down traditional barriers to education access, Riipen seeks to bring the Future of Work to diverse learners of all backgrounds.

To learn more, visit riipen.com or contact Bisola Ogamba, Senior Manager, Program Communications and Content, via email at: futurepath@riipen.com.

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This project is funded in part by the Government of Canada’s Innovative Work-Integrated Learning Initiative.