Mr. Grant Courville reports

QNX LAUNCHPAD INTRODUCED TO HELP STARTUPS BUILD AND SCALE MISSION-CRITICAL PRODUCTS

QNX, a division of BlackBerry Ltd., has introduced QNX Launchpad, a new program designed to give start-ups and early stage companies the tools to more easily build commercial products for mission-critical environments from day 1. QNX Launchpad provides eligible companies with access to production-ready foundational software under startup-friendly costs, which may permit more of their early budget to be available to invest in their product, team and growth.

Physical AI (artificial intelligence) and software-defined systems such as autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), robotic arms and surgical robots are moving rapidly from research labs into real-world applications, with young, emerging companies helping transform countless industries seemingly virtually overnight. Amidst this backdrop, early software architectural decisions may be critical as they may have long-term implications on product safety, reliability, scalability and time to market. This is the trusted foundation that QNX has provided for nearly half a century across industries including automotive, industrial automation, robotics, medical devices, rail and more.

Start with the platform your product can scale with

Early stage teams may want to build on commercial-grade platforms, but upfront software costs may be difficult to justify while teams, budgets and revenues are still growing. QNX Launchpad helps lower that barrier by giving qualifying companies access to commercial QNX software development platform (SDP) 8.0, so architectural decisions may be guided by technical requirements rather than cost alone. With QNX Launchpad, teams can build on QNX from the start and continue using the same trusted technology foundation as their products mature from early stage development to commercial deployment.

Supporting the next generation of mission-critical products

"Too many promising companies are forced to make foundational software decisions based on short-term budget realities, rather than what their products will ultimately need to perform safely and reliably in the real world," said Grant Courville, senior vice-president of product and strategy at QNX. "QNX Launchpad changes that. It gives start-ups and emerging companies access to the same trusted technology foundation used in some of the world's most demanding systems, from the very beginning of their development journey. If a product is being built for commercial deployment, safety-critical environments or long-term scale, we believe the right foundation should not be something teams only reach for later. It should be there from day 1."

What QNX Launchpad includes

Qualifying companies receive access to QNX SDP development seats, QNX OS and QNX OS for Safety, QNX Hypervisor and QNX Hypervisor for Safety, QNX Sound, and other software from the QNX product portfolio for commercial use. Participants can also access QNX technical support, embedded engineering expertise, and an ecosystem of hardware support, software, tools and services to help ensure the success of their product program.

Who QNX Launchpad is for

QNX Launchpad is designed for qualifying start-ups, small and medium-sized businesses, with annual revenues of up to $10-million (U.S.) who are developing a product for commercial sale. Companies that are part of a recognized incubator or accelerator program are eligible for additional benefits.

QNX Launchpad complements the existing QNX Everywhere initiative, which provides free, non-commercial access for learning, evaluation and prototyping. Companies can apply for QNX Launchpad directly or after gaining experience through QNX Everywhere.

About BlackBerry Ltd.

BlackBerry provides enterprises and governments the intelligent software and services that power the world around us. Based in Waterloo, Ont., the company's high performance foundational software enables major automakers and industrial giants alike to unlock transformative applications, drive new revenue streams and launch innovative business models, all without sacrificing safety, security and reliability. With a deep heritage in secure communications, BlackBerry delivers operational resiliency with a comprehensive, highly secure, and extensively certified portfolio for mobile fortification, mission-critical communications and critical events management.

About QNX

QNX, a division of BlackBerry, provides the trusted foundation that software-defined and physical AI systems depend on to operate safely and predictably in the real world. For nearly half a century, QNX has powered safety-critical applications where failure is not an option. The business leads the way in delivering safe and secure operating systems, hypervisors, middleware, solutions and development tools, along with the support and services delivered by trusted embedded software experts. Today, QNX technology underpins hundreds of millions of vehicles on the road and a wide range of mission-critical systems across industrial controls, robotics, medical devices, commercial transportation, rail, and aerospace and defence. QNX is headquartered in Ottawa, Canada.