Tony Van Marken

Managing Partner and Co-founder at First Ascent Ventures

📍 Toronto, Ontario, Canada🔄 Updated September 2026💼 6 investments📅 9 years investing🗓 Last invested Jun 2019
VC🌍 Canada
6
Total investments
0
Early stage
6
Mid stage
0
Late stage
9y
Years active

Portfolio

6 investments · sorted by recency
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Mid stage
Late stage
Board Observer
Jun 2019
Dialogue is a leading virtual care provider that empowers organizations to build healthier, happier, and more productive teams. Our high-touch health and well-being programs provide organizations and their members with tailored, measurable, and quality clinical care. Dialogues team of health professionals delivers exceptional experiences across the continuum of care, positively impacting millions worldwide. We foster thriving teams focused on health and well-being to improve culture, engagement, and productivity. Canada: • www.dialogue.co Programs: • Primary Care • Employee Assistance Program (EAP) • Mental Health+ • Wellness -- International: • www.dialogue.co/en-gb/ Programs: • Wellness • iCBT
Investor and Board Observer
Jun 2019
Dialogue is a leading virtual care provider that empowers organizations to build healthier, happier, and more productive teams. Our high-touch health and well-being programs provide organizations and their members with tailored, measurable, and quality clinical care. Dialogues team of health professionals delivers exceptional experiences across the continuum of care, positively impacting millions worldwide. We foster thriving teams focused on health and well-being to improve culture, engagement, and productivity. Canada: • www.dialogue.co Programs: • Primary Care • Employee Assistance Program (EAP) • Mental Health+ • Wellness -- International: • www.dialogue.co/en-gb/ Programs: • Wellness • iCBT
Investor and Board Observer
Jan 2018
Rubikloud is changing retail with intelligent decision automation using AI. Based in Toronto, Canada, our cloud-native AI platform and two flagship AI applications (Promotion Manager & Customer LifeCycle Manager) automate and improve mass promotional planning and loyalty driven marketing for large retailers and CPGs. We believe that AI should deliver business operational improvements and an immediate financial impact. Today we have multi-billion-dollar clients with retail brands operating in North America, Europe, and Asia. Operating with over 100 staff, Rubikloud has offices in Toronto, Texas, London, and Hong Kong. We are brilliant engineers and professionals that have come together to solve problems that are difficult or too challenging for others. Interested in joining us? Check out our Careers page.
Board Observer
Jan 2018
Rubikloud is changing retail with intelligent decision automation using AI. Based in Toronto, Canada, our cloud-native AI platform and two flagship AI applications (Promotion Manager & Customer LifeCycle Manager) automate and improve mass promotional planning and loyalty driven marketing for large retailers and CPGs. We believe that AI should deliver business operational improvements and an immediate financial impact. Today we have multi-billion-dollar clients with retail brands operating in North America, Europe, and Asia. Operating with over 100 staff, Rubikloud has offices in Toronto, Texas, London, and Hong Kong. We are brilliant engineers and professionals that have come together to solve problems that are difficult or too challenging for others. Interested in joining us? Check out our Careers page.
Investor and Board Observer
Mar 2017
Sensibill is the only customer data platform that enriches SKU-level data specifically for the financial services industry. The AI-powered platform combines ethically sourced first-party data with real-time, actionable insights, helping financial institutions drive personalization at scale while creating compelling digital experiences for their customers. More than 60 million users across over 150 financial institutions in North America and the U.K. leverage Sensibill’s platform today. Visit www.getsensibill.com for more, and check out our monthly Barcode Report for consumable and actionable insights based on consumer spending trends (www.getsensibill.com/barcode).
Board Observer
Mar 2017
Sensibill is the only customer data platform that enriches SKU-level data specifically for the financial services industry. The AI-powered platform combines ethically sourced first-party data with real-time, actionable insights, helping financial institutions drive personalization at scale while creating compelling digital experiences for their customers. More than 60 million users across over 150 financial institutions in North America and the U.K. leverage Sensibill’s platform today. Visit www.getsensibill.com for more, and check out our monthly Barcode Report for consumable and actionable insights based on consumer spending trends (www.getsensibill.com/barcode).
Experience · 14 entries
All (14)
Investments (6)
Founder (3)
Board (6)
2025
Advisor
Jan 2025
Citadelle Capital is a Montreal-based venture capital fund committed to unlocking the full potential of underrepresented entrepreneurs. With a disciplined approach to performance, our mission is to deliver first-quartile returns while expanding access to capital and increasing the productivity and diversification of the economy. We invest in early-growth B2B software high-potential companies across Canada and the U.S., with a focus on founders from underserved communities. Citadelle Capital is structured as a performance-driven growth fund and a long-term ecosystem builder that fosters mentorship, talent, and pipeline development. Led by Wils Théagène—former manager of a $250M pension-backed diversity fund —Citadelle Capital combines institutional-grade governance with impact-driven returns.
2019
Board Observer
Jun 2019
Dialogue is a leading virtual care provider that empowers organizations to build healthier, happier, and more productive teams. Our high-touch health and well-being programs provide organizations and their members with tailored, measurable, and quality clinical care. Dialogues team of health professionals delivers exceptional experiences across the continuum of care, positively impacting millions worldwide. We foster thriving teams focused on health and well-being to improve culture, engagement, and productivity. Canada: • www.dialogue.co Programs: • Primary Care • Employee Assistance Program (EAP) • Mental Health+ • Wellness -- International: • www.dialogue.co/en-gb/ Programs: • Wellness • iCBT
Investor and Board Observer
Jun 2019
Dialogue is a leading virtual care provider that empowers organizations to build healthier, happier, and more productive teams. Our high-touch health and well-being programs provide organizations and their members with tailored, measurable, and quality clinical care. Dialogues team of health professionals delivers exceptional experiences across the continuum of care, positively impacting millions worldwide. We foster thriving teams focused on health and well-being to improve culture, engagement, and productivity. Canada: • www.dialogue.co Programs: • Primary Care • Employee Assistance Program (EAP) • Mental Health+ • Wellness -- International: • www.dialogue.co/en-gb/ Programs: • Wellness • iCBT
2018
Mentor
Oct 2018
Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) is a nonprofit organization that delivers an objectives-based program for massively scalable, seed-stage, science- and technology-based companies. The nine-month program employs an objectives-based mentoring process to enhance the performance of technical founders who learn from the insights of experienced entrepreneurs, with the goal of maximizing equity-value creation. Founded by Professor Ajay Agrawal in 2012 at the University of Toronto’s Rotman School of Management, the program has expanded and now has 11 sites across six countries: Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal, Halifax, Paris, Madison, Seattle, Estonia, Berlin, and Melbourne. The program combines 5 elements to help companies transition from science projects to scalable and financeable companies: - An emphasis on objective-setting, helping companies focus on what’s most important to their business - Focused mentorship from experienced entrepreneurs who have founded, led, and sold significant tech companies - Technical advice from world-leading scientists, engineers, and economists - Hands-on support from top business students, who embed within the company to provide business support - Opportunities to raise capital, including angels and VCs from Europe and North America The successful commercialization of cutting-edge science and technology achieved through the program has led to the creation of over CAD $35 billion in equity value.
Investor and Board Observer
Jan 2018
Rubikloud is changing retail with intelligent decision automation using AI. Based in Toronto, Canada, our cloud-native AI platform and two flagship AI applications (Promotion Manager & Customer LifeCycle Manager) automate and improve mass promotional planning and loyalty driven marketing for large retailers and CPGs. We believe that AI should deliver business operational improvements and an immediate financial impact. Today we have multi-billion-dollar clients with retail brands operating in North America, Europe, and Asia. Operating with over 100 staff, Rubikloud has offices in Toronto, Texas, London, and Hong Kong. We are brilliant engineers and professionals that have come together to solve problems that are difficult or too challenging for others. Interested in joining us? Check out our Careers page.
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Investment activity
2017–2019 · 6 investments
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