Quminex raises $1.5 million CAD pre-seed round for mineral exploration platform

Canadian exploration technology company Quminex raised $1.5 million CAD in pre-seed venture capital financing to develop its geological machine learning software, according to a report published by The Quantum Insider on October 14, 2026. Venture capital firm Quantacet led the investment round.

QAI Ventures and individual angel investors also participated in the transaction. Quminex will use the proceeds to accelerate growth and expand the technological capabilities of the Quminex Discovery Platform, an end-to-end exploration stack.

The platform processes complex geological datasets through machine learning models, data preparation tools, and feature selection workflows. It turns fragmented field data into explainable and testable targets for critical mineral deposits across Canadian jurisdictions.

By reducing geological uncertainty during early-stage field studies, the technology aims to improve success rates and lower the time required to identify promising ore sites. The platform helps mining businesses allocate exploration capital based on computational system models.

"This $1.5 million pre-seed investment is a critical milestone, accelerating the development of the Quminex Discovery Platform," said Marc Fassbender, CEO and Co-Founder of Quminex. "By transforming early-stage exploration into a repeatable, data-driven process, we are changing how ore deposits can be discovered. This capital will enable us to scale our proprietary platform to locate the critical mineral deposits essential for our society."

Commercial field testing

Prior to the financing round, Quminex completed commercial projects with two mining organizations to validate its technology in active field settings. The deployments included projects with Tech-X Resources Inc., a private exploration company based in British Columbia, alongside a mid-tier Canadian mining firm.

"Securing multiple commercial contracts with exploration companies confirms that our technology delivers immediate value," Fassbender said.

The commercial contracts provided test cases that allowed the company to refine its data processing features using real geological property data. The platform focuses on locating critical metal deposits required to support secure strategic supply chains.

"As a geoscientist by training, I know how much of exploration still depends on expert judgement applied to sparse and fragmented data," said Alexandra Beckstein, CEO and Founding Partner at QAI Ventures. "Quminex turns that uncertainty into explainable, data-driven targets. This aligns directly with QAI Ventures core thesis: investing in advanced computing that solves hard problems in strategic industries."

Beckstein said critical minerals are essential to the energy transition, and noted that QAI Ventures chose to invest because Quminex had already demonstrated traction with paying clients. Quantacet Partner Chloé Archambault noted that securing domestic access to critical metals remains important for Canada's long-term economic development.

The funding will go toward scaling computational tools on the Quminex Discovery Platform as the startup expands operations across Canadian mineral exploration sites.