History

Impact was founded in 2004 by first-year University of Waterloo Software Engineering student Kunal Gupta. Along with five other founding members, the first Impact conference was formed as a one-day event in Kitchener, Ontario attracting 150 delegates. It featured keynote speaker Frank O'Dea (Founder of Second Cup).

In the following years, Impact experienced a rapid surge in growth by expanding its team size and scope of their programs. Not only did it double its conference size by extending it to two days and attracting 300 delegates, it also developed Impact Apprentice, Canada's first and only nationwide Apprentice-style student business competition. In addition, Impact hosted the Impact Expo conference to celebrate innovation and entrepreneurship that brought together 2,000 delegates from Waterloo, Ontario and surrounding areas one of Canada's hottest technology and entrepreneurial centres.

Today, Impact is an incorporated non-profit organization in Canada under the official name of the Impact Entrepreneurship Group. The group consists of over 100 young volunteers nationwide. Impacts headquarters are in Waterloo, Ontario. In 2008, Impact added its first satellite office by expanding to Vancouver, British Columbia.