Mapping the Journey: Mappedin’s Path from Student Idea to Global Platform

The shortest route may be a straight line, but for Waterloo-based Mappedin, the journey has taken a few twists and turns. Originally created as a tool to help students at the University of Waterloo find their way around campus, co-founder and CEO Hongwei Liu quickly saw the potential for the idea to become a company. Mappedin was founded in 2011 with Liu’s personal savings and Conestoga Mall as its first customer.

From those early waypoints, Mappedin has grown to a team of over 100 people with customers around the world. You can find Mappedin technology powering indoor maps everywhere from Los Angeles International Airport and Calgary International Airport to sports stadiums and shopping centres.

Building off its Series A round in 2023, the company has continued to scale its operations as demand for its technology increases. While we’re only four months into the year, 2026 has already seen two major milestones for the Mappedin team. 

First, the company announced in April that it had closed a $24.5-million USD Series B round led by Edison Partners. The funding will be used to expand from mapping individual buildings to charting whole cities.

Second, tackling a major platform evolution means having all hands on deck. To better support its growth, Mappedin has moved its team into the David Johnston Research + Technology Park inside the 445 Wes Graham Way building. 

Mappedin had space at a local coworking facility that they loved, but were quickly growing out of, said Genny Orser, MappedIn’s Chief of Staff. They started to look at potential spaces across Waterloo Region, and 445 Wes Graham Way fit almost all of their needs — especially since it came furnished.

“This space was really attractive because it was all done,” said Orser. “We’ve moved Mappedin’s office many times over the years and this was by far the easiest one.” 

Even with the new space, Mappedin continues to operate as a hybrid company with its go-to-market team members working remotely. Mappedin’s R+T Park headquarters is home to its design, engineering, people, and part of the leadership team. It’s also where co-ops spend their work terms.

“Instead of our 100 person company being hybrid with some working at home three days a week, we decided that teams are either default in office or default remote,” Orser said.

Having its engineering team in the office right next door to the University of Waterloo was also a deciding factor in moving to the R+T Park. Both Liu and CTO Ed Wei are UWaterloo alumni and the company actively recruits co-ops and grads from the university’s engineering and computer science faculties. Orser added that many new grads are attracted to an in-office experience right out of school.

“We were finding that junior colleagues coming out of school were having challenges ramping up in a remote environment,” she said. “Many new grads want to be in an office because they see the benefits in the early parts of their career.”

Orser pointed out mentorships as being of those core benefits to an in-office experience for both senior and junior colleagues. 

“You’re able to have junior colleagues sit next to senior colleagues and overhear what they’re working on and the problems they’re solving. Natural mentorship happens in an environment like this,” she said.

It’s not just the technical mentorship that benefits junior employees.

“I think any junior colleague gets a leg up being in a physical space with others in the early part of their career. That doesn’t necessarily mean sitting at a desk in an office. It means being in an environment where you can hear and see what’s happening and how people handle situations and all the social dynamics that come with being in a physical workplace,” she said. “It’s amazing to see the change in some of those colleagues and the rest of us being in an office space like this.”

That sense of community extends beyond Mappedin’s own walls. Moving into the R+T Park has introduced the team to neighbours like the SAP and Qorsa and created a feeling Orser said echoes what they loved about their coworking space.

“In a coworking space, you form friendships with people who work in completely different businesses. The R+T park isn’t dissimilar. The SAP folks have come down to say hi. There’s a real sense of community, which is really nice.”

Chief of Staff, Genny Orser

“In a coworking space, you form friendships with people who work in completely different businesses,” she said. “The R+T park isn’t dissimilar. The SAP folks have come down to say hi. There’s a real sense of community, which is really nice.”

The practical considerations didn’t hurt either. The building is close to the R+T Park’s ION light rail station, a bonus for the many team members who commute, and ample parking handles the rest. 

For a company that has moved many times, the combination of a ready-made space, a collaborative atmosphere, and a front-row seat to the University of Waterloo talent pipeline makes the R+T Park feel less like a waypoint and more like a destination.

“We’re still at a point where this feels pretty swanky for us,” Orser laughed. “So far, we’re very happy here.”