OUR STORY
Bringing Canadian Innovation to the World
Our story begins in the mid-2000s. Canadian geophysicist Brian Powell (then working for Cameco) was exploring the rugged Athabasca Basin in the Canadian Shield. He had learned about muon tomography from a documentary, as the science had been used since the 1950s to image tunnels, the Great Pyramids of Giza, and volcanoes.
Inspired by the unique capabilities of the technique, Brian wondered whether it could be used for mineral exploration as well. He took his idea to the team at Canada’s national particle physics laboratory, TRIUMF, located in our backyard in Vancouver, British Columbia.
2010s
Following years of research and development at TRIUMF, a success proof-of-concept study was conducted at Nyrstar’s Myra Falls mine on Vancouver Island, mapping the polymetallic VMS deposit in 3D. This is the first known application of muon tomography for subsurface mineral exploration.
The first production muon detectors were large (nearly the size of a small sedan), heavy, and required significant logistical effort to transport and deploy on-site.
Successful blind field trials were then conducted at Teck’s Pend Oreille mine (polymetallic MVT) in Washington, USA, and Orano’s McArthur River mine (compact high-grade uranium) in Saskatchewan, Canada.
CRM Geotomography Technologies Inc. was founded in 2013, spinning out of TRIUMF to advance the imaging solution towards commercialization.
2020
Building early momentum with one the world’s largest mining companies, the team engaged BHP for a blind field trial to image a nickel deposit in Western Australia. Just after the deployment, the global pandemic struck.
In May 2020, Gary Agnew took the helm as Co-Founder & CEO. CRM Geotomography Technologies Inc. rebranded to Ideon Technologies and closed CAD$1.3 million in seed funding a few months later.
2021-2023
In 2021, the team successfully miniaturized the original muon detector by 50x, and deployed the world’s first borehole-compatible muon detector at Orano’s McClean Lake mine in Saskatchewan. Later that year, the Digital Technology Supercluster — an initiative established by the Government of Canada to accelerate technologies that drive positive change — launched the Earth X-Ray for Low-Impact Mining project. Ideon led the consortium in partnership with Simon Fraser University, Dias Geophysical, Microsoft, Fireweed Metals, BHP, and Mitacs.
2022 was highlighted by a US$16 million/C$21 million Series A funding round, led by Silicon Valley deep-tech VC Playground Global. Ideon also announced its active deployment on Oak Island, Nova Scotia as part of the History Channel’s long-running reality series, The Curse of Oak Island.
In 2023, Ideon received the Governor General’s Innovation Award, which is awarded to transformational Canadian innovations creating a positive impact in Canada and beyond.
2024 and beyond
Building on early validation and the trust built with key mining partners, the Ideon REVEAL™ platform was launched to translate a proprietary tech stack into solutions that address key challenges across the mining lifecycle.
This period is defined not just by growth in reach, but also the evolution of capabilities. Ideon is expanding with purpose — integrating new datasets, sensor modalities, and strategic partnerships to unlock subsurface intelligence at a global scale.
