Evaluating only OreDigital’s profile at its peak — without knowing the outcome — the model ranked Competition as the #1 likely cause. Documented cause: Unit economics.
Key Events Timeline
FOUNDING
OreDigital founded in Toronto to digitize ore grade management for gold miners.
FUNDING
Raised CAD 3.5M seed from BDC Capital and angel investors; onboarded 12 mining clients.
PIVOT
Dundee Ventures withdrew from Series A citing 78% NRR; company pivoted to ESG compliance tools.
SHUTDOWN
Remaining CAD 1.2M runway exhausted; OreDigital shut down without public announcement.
Full Analysis
Free · no account needed
Documented cause
OreDigital built a cloud-based ore grade management platform for mid-tier gold miners in Ontario and Quebec. Despite early traction with 12 paying clients, the company failed to close an anticipated Series A of CAD 8M in Q1 2021 after lead investor Dundee Ventures pulled out citing low NRR of 78%. Founder Marc Thibodeau attempted a pivot to environmental compliance SaaS but burned remaining CAD 1.2M runway by October 2021 and shut down quietly.
Lesson
“SaaS in traditional mining needs NRR above 100% before seeking Series A; miners churn fast.”