ESG management data software company Novisto has forged two new partnerships, with business management and strategy advisory firm Clearsum and the deep learning research centre Mila – Quebec AI Institute.

Montreal-based Novisto developed a platform that allows companies to streamline their ESG data and goals using AI-driven insights. Also included are industry-specific guidelines and advice, as well as support for several business-use cases depending on the stage of ESG maturity.

“We are thrilled to collaborate with Mila and harness their world-class AI expertise,” Charles Assaf, Novisto’s CEO, said in a statement.

“This partnership represents a significant step forward in our mission to empower businesses with comprehensive ESG data management solutions. Incorporating Mila’s AI learnings will enable us to deliver even more impactful and actionable insights for companies to make sustainability a permanent part of their success.”

Founded by professor Yoshua Bengio of the University of Montreal in 1993, Mila is an artificial intelligence research institute that brings together over 1,100 researchers specializing in machine learning.

Novisto and Clearsum

Clearsum, based in Montreal and Victoria, was founded in 2019 and focuses its expertise in climate change and quantitative risk management.

Novisto’s customers will have complimentary access to training sessions as well as the opportunity to acquire a suite of climate-related advisory and consulting services.

That includes decarbonization planning and target setting, qualitative to quantitative climate risk assessments (financial materiality-based), International Financial Reporting Standards S1 and S2, Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures-compliant disclosure support, scenario analysis and low-to-high maturity climate integration support.  

“Addressing climate change is a journey: as companies increase their climate maturity, so too does the sophistication of their requirements. We regularly observe the challenges faced by companies who wish to progress on this journey without an in-house team dedicated to climate,” Cedric B. Robert, Clearsum’s CEO, said in a statement.

“This partnership will help more companies embed climate change considerations at the core of their strategy, and enable them to better manage their climate data and develop disclosures in accordance with leading frameworks and standards.”

Novisto’s previous funding 

In June, Novisto secured $27.2 million in a Series B funding round led by Inovia Capital to accelerate its product development and market expansion.

It includes new investments from Portage and SCOR Ventures, and participation from existing investors White Star Capital and Diagram Ventures. The fundraising took place in late 2022.

"Obviously, many investors today integrate ESG considerations into their investment decision process. But more importantly, we've seen a rise of regulations, directives, initiatives across different jurisdictions, jurisdictions that are obviously pushing companies to make ESG reporting not just standardized, but audited and also digitized," Assaf previously told SustainableBiz.

"Obviously, as a result, corporate ESG disclosures have become a must, and Novisto is really super well positioned to capitalize on this massive opportunity.”

Novisto has over 100 employees in North America and Europe.