Bobbie Racette

Post-pitch story

Bobbie Racette built Virtual Gurus into one of Canada's best-known startups led by an Indigenous woman: a virtual assistant platform that matched businesses with remote talent, with a special focus on people from underrepresented groups. Under her leadership, the company paid out more than $15 million in wages to that talent. 2025 brought big changes. In August, Racette stepped down as CEO to become founder and president, focusing on purpose and impact. Elliot Schneier, formerly of Zirtual and Startups.com, took over as CEO, and the company announced new funding to grow VG Connect, its AI-powered receptionist chatbot. Then, in November 2025, Zirtual acquired Virtual Gurus' virtual assistant business. Racette remains founder and president, and she has stayed a prominent voice for Indigenous and LGBTQ+ founders. It's a classic arc for the show: a founder with a mission builds a real business, brings in new leadership to scale it, and lands an exit for the core product. The AI chatbot side looks to be where the company is headed next, but the assistant business that started it all found a new home with a bigger player.