#10: of 12 Cannabis Innovators We’re Watching That Are Killing It In All Things Weed
From a community standpoint, the stigma of cannabis use and the fears regarding the implications of the legalization of cannabis are starting to diminish, thanks to an abundance of proper research, data collection , and information being widely shared.
We’d Share — Canada’s first free cannabis social network — sees this exchange of information as a means to further the understanding of cannabis, normalize its use and even assist with reducing the size of the cannabis black market.
Andrzej Swinarski, founder of We’d Share, saw the potential in Ontario’s cannabis industry back in 2017, when discussions around potential legalization were just starting. As the legalization of cannabis inched toward reality, massive amounts of capital were being invested in Licenced Producers (LPs) and the technologies that were in development to support industrial cultivation and to maximize yields. From the get-go, the Canadian Cannabis Act included one section allowing for home cultivation and the gifting of cannabis among adults. It was here where Swinarski saw an opportunity in what he anticipated could become a saturated market.
The concept was simple: an online community that focused on supporting legal home cultivation and facilitated the sharing of information, experience, education and the cannabis flower. In December 2018, that concept came to fruition and We’d Share was born. This online community enables all Canadians — from “newbies” and seasoned cultivation experts to professionals in the cannabis industry — to easily connect and communicate with each other about their common passion: growing quality cannabis. We’d Share’s technology connects the dots regarding home cultivation, and makes it easy for the cannabis community to educate themselves, explore new products, exchange information and gift cannabis to each other within the legal limits. We’d Share’s framework resembles Facebook’s social- engagement component in that it allows members to connect, ask questions and share experiences in a supportive environment. The platform is also gamified through the use of “Toke’ns,” which rewards community members based on the level of their engagement on the site and can be used to unlock access to free cannabis gifts that other members have posted for exchange.
We’d Share also features the first AI strain recommendation tool in the cannabis industry — a chatbot named Caiti (or Cannabis AI Technology Interface) that was developed in partnership with Durham College’s AI Hub. Caiti not only has the ability to offer cannabis strain recommendations based on a static data set, but over time its increase in accuracy will offer users even more chances to get better results from cultivation.
With the cannabis industry now in full swing, Swinarski has been concentrating on refining the platform’s user experience, with a focus on aesthetics, intuition and new technology — specifically working with fellow startup BlokSec on incorporating password-less authentication to provide stronger protection against identity theft and cyberattacks, as well as training its AI chatbot to expand the scope of its responses to strain-related questions. Most importantly, Swinarski is dedicated to attracting investors and accelerating the growth of We’d Share’s community while exploring industry partnerships in terms of subject matter experts and high-calibre products to further success in home cultivation for Canadians. The access to information and experience that We’d Share provides has already begun to churn smarter, more-educated decisions regarding cannabis use now and looking ahead.
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