Commits $2.5 million to support University of Toronto's Creative Destruction Lab Health Stream

Layer 6 to apply globally-recognized deep learning team to advance personalized treatment plans for people with diabetes

TORONTO, Oct. 11, 2018 /CNW/ - TD Bank Group (TD) today announced two initiatives as part of its commitment to invest in innovation and healthcare to create more equitable outcomes for Canadians.

Funding Healthcare Breakthroughs

Launched at the Rotman School in August 2012, University of Toronto's Creative Destruction Lab (CDL), aims to bring aspiring entrepreneurs and technological innovations to market. TD will become a Corporate Founding Member of the CDL Health Stream with a $2.5 million contribution over five years, operating out of the CDL-Toronto and CDL-West locations. The CDL's Health Stream focuses on biotechnology, bioinformatics, diagnostics and digital care for Canadians.

"The University of Toronto has a deep history of healthcare innovation, dating back to the discovery of insulin in 1921. Thanks to TD, the Creative Destruction Lab's Health Stream can accelerate its programming and continue to build on this legacy to bring a whole new generation of medical breakthroughs to life," says Sonia Sennik, Executive Director of the Creative Destruction Lab.

The CDL's emphasis on more equitable healthcare outcomes for Canadians aligns with TD's recent launch of The Ready Commitment, where the bank has targeted $1 billion for community giving in critical areas of need including better health and healthcare.

"We know that the long-term success of our business depends upon the resilience and health of the people we serve. We're thrilled to support the CDL with this contribution, which will help accelerate advances in healthcare through fresh thinking and entrepreneurship," says Andrea Barrack, TD's Vice President of Global Corporate Citizenship. "At TD, we have a history and meaningful purpose of helping to enrich the lives of customers, colleagues and communities."

Powering the Future of Personalized Healthcare

Layer 6, TD's global Artificial Intelligence (AI) thought leader and pioneer in the delivery of responsive, personalized and insight-driven experiences, was one of the first companies in the world to apply deep learning to solve today's banking and enterprise business challenges. As part of TD's acquisition of Layer 6, both organizations pledged to dedicate time and talent to put the power of AI to work for social good.

Layer 6 data scientists, are supporting a University of Toronto Computer Science Student working with University of Toronto Associate Professor Laura Rosella by developing advanced machine learning models to improve the health outcomes of people living with diabetes in Canada. The first research goal is to further sub-type patients identified with this highly prevalent chronic disease. The research will demonstrate opportunities for machine learning to enable more personalized and effective treatment, while providing more efficient use of health resources.

"Healthcare is one of the next frontiers for artificial intelligence to make a meaningful and positive impact on the lives of Canadians. It's also an opportunity for us to continue to lead the world in advancing Canadian AI talent and capabilities," says Tomi Poutanen, Co-Founder, Layer 6 and TD's Chief AI Officer. "The limitless potential for data to make personalized therapies, tailored approaches and early diagnosis accessible to all Canadians is what drives our team to push forward and continue to innovate."

TD's Investment in Healthcare

• Since 1998, TD has invested over $83.5 million (CAD) dollars in hospitals, healthcare programs, and children's health.
• Together with the Michael Garron Hospital, TD has helped fund research focusing on techniques to improve diabetes management and increase access to care for individuals living with Hepatitis C.
• TD helped Health Sciences North with a $250,000 contribution towards expanding their Learner's Simulation Laboratory. The lab replicates an emergency room, an intensive care unit and other medical settings to enhance staff training exercises.
• TD announced a $500,000 gift to the TD Women's and Children's Health Centre, supporting the development of a new pediatric oncology unit, as well as TD grants in Medical Excellence with designated funding to support nursing education.

About TD Bank Group

The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively known as TD Bank Group ("TD" or the "Bank"). TD is the sixth largest bank in North America by branches and serves more than 25 million customers in three key businesses operating in a number of locations in financial centres around the globe: Canadian Retail, including TD Canada Trust, TD Auto Finance Canada, TD Wealth (Canada), TD Direct Investing, and TD Insurance; U.S. Retail, including TD Bank, America's Most Convenient Bank®, TD Auto Finance U.S., TD Wealth (U.S.), and an investment in TD Ameritrade; and Wholesale Banking, including TD Securities. TD also ranks among the world's leading online financial services firms, with approximately 12 million active online and mobile customers. TD had CDN$1.3 trillion in assets on July 31, 2018. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades under the symbol "TD" on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges.

About the Creative Destruction Lab

The Creative Destruction Lab (CDL) is a seed-stage program for massively scalable, science-based companies. Its nine-month program pairs founders with experienced entrepreneurs and investors to set focused, measurable objectives with the goal of maximizing equity-value creation. Founded by Professor Ajay Agrawal in 2012 at the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto, the program has now expanded with locations in Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal, Halifax, and New York City.

Since its inception in 2012, companies that have participated in the CDL programs have created over $3 billion (CAD) in equity value. CDL Alumni include Thalmic Labs (Waterloo), Atomwise (San Francisco), Deep Genomics (Toronto), Nymi (Toronto), Automat (Montreal), Kyndi (Palo Alto), and Heuritech (Paris).

SOURCE TD Bank Group