When innovation calls, geography stops mattering. This November, Alexander Dolnik, CTO of Mellivora Software, crossed continents to join some of the most forward-thinking founders and investors gathered at Calgary Innovation Week — the city’s annual festival of startups, tech, and ideas driving the future of business.
But Alexander didn’t come to Canada wearing just one hat. He represented both Mellivora Software, an Estonian-based IT service company known for building world-class development teams, and his new startup, Ampelus, which is exploring fresh frontiers in intelligent software solutions.
Together, those two perspectives — the builder and the innovator — perfectly matched the spirit of Calgary Innovation Week: a meeting ground for people who make technology work, not just talk about it.
A Global Event with Local Energy
Calgary Innovation Week has quickly grown into one of Western Canada’s most dynamic gatherings of entrepreneurs, technologists, and investors. It brings together hundreds of startups, scale-ups, and tech-driven enterprises around a simple idea: collaboration accelerates innovation.
Throughout the week, panels, networking sessions, and pitch events filled the city — from early-stage founders presenting their first prototypes to seasoned leaders debating how AI, energy tech, and digital transformation are reshaping global industries.
For Alexander, the event was more than a showcase; it was a strategic bridge between Europe’s thriving development ecosystem and North America’s fast-scaling startup culture.
“Innovation isn’t a location — it’s a mindset,” Alexander shared after the conference. “Being here in Calgary reminded me how global that mindset has become. You see AI, product design, and sustainability converging in real time.”
Representing Two Worlds: Mellivora Software and Ampelus
At Calgary Innovation Week, Alexander’s dual representation highlighted two complementary stories.
Mellivora Software is known for helping startups and tech companies build reliable engineering teams — delivering MVPs, scaling products, and strengthening early-stage execution through flexible outstaffing. For many founders he met in Calgary, that model struck a chord. North American startups often struggle to grow fast enough on local talent alone, while Mellivora’s distributed-team approach offers both cost efficiency and senior-level expertise.
On the other hand, Ampelus, Alexander’s new venture, embodies what’s next: developing intelligent systems that make software not just faster but smarter. While still early in its journey, Ampelus aims to blend the technical muscle of Mellivora’s development experience with new AI-driven product ideas that can scale globally from day one.
The combination positioned Alexander as more than a delegate — he became a connector between established delivery capabilities and fresh innovation energy.
Innovation, Collaboration, and the Human Element
Throughout the week, Alexander joined several discussions around AI adoption, product strategy, and global collaboration. A few themes kept coming up:
- AI democratization — how tools once reserved for large enterprises are now powering small startup prototypes.
- Cross-border collaboration — with distributed teams becoming the default, not the exception.
- Sustainable scaling — startups balancing fast growth with responsible development and real customer validation.
One of the highlights was the Startup Pitch Competition, where founders presented new ideas to investors and mentors. Watching dozens of teams showcase AI-driven, SaaS, and clean-tech products reaffirmed what Mellivora has believed for years: great tech starts with great teams, wherever those teams are based.
Lessons for Builders
Calgary Innovation Week wasn’t just a networking opportunity; it was a mirror of what’s changing across the global software industry.
- The rise of AI-native startups — Founders aren’t asking “should we use AI?” anymore. They’re asking “how soon can we deploy it?”
- Lean delivery is the new norm — Smaller teams, faster iteration cycles, and flexible partnerships are replacing old hiring models.
- Geography is irrelevant, trust is everything — Startups care less about where a team sits and more about how reliably it ships.
For Mellivora Software, these insights reinforce why its distributed-team model works — giving clients access to diverse talent, predictable delivery, and adaptability in volatile markets.
For Ampelus, it means designing products that anticipate how companies will work tomorrow — intelligent, automated, and deeply connected.
A Step Toward North America
Attending Calgary Innovation Week also marked Mellivora’s growing connection with the North American innovation ecosystem. The conversations Alexander had with founders and investors opened potential avenues for collaboration — from co-development opportunities to advisory partnerships.
Bringing Eastern European engineering talent into the North American startup scene offers a powerful mix: efficiency, quality, and shared ambition. As startups in Canada and the U.S. look to scale smarter, not just bigger, those bridges matter more than ever.
Looking Ahead
Alexander describes the week in Calgary as “a spark that will keep burning.” The exposure, the discussions, and the genuine openness of the North American tech community left a lasting impression.
For Mellivora Software, it’s a signal to continue expanding its global footprint — supporting startups wherever they build. For Ampelus, it’s motivation to transform ideas into products that can compete on the same global stage.
About the Companies
Mellivora Software is an IT service and outstaffing provider helping startups and growing tech companies build high-performing engineering teams. Headquartered in Estonia and working globally, Mellivora focuses on MVP development, scaling products, and flexible team augmentation.
Ampelus is a new startup co-founded by Alexander Dolnik, offering a cloud-based solution for production management in small manufacturing companies.
Final Thoughts
Calgary Innovation Week showed one thing above all — innovation is a global conversation, and it’s becoming borderless. Whether you’re in Dublin, Tallinn, or Calgary, the same principles apply: move fast, stay curious, and keep building.
And for Alexander Dolnik — balancing his role between Mellivora Software and Ampelus — it was proof that great ideas travel well when backed by the right expertise, network, and vision.
