In this exclusive CanadianSME Small Business Magazine interview, François Tanguay, Co-Founder & CEO of Uno Platform, shares his journey as a serial tech innovator and product visionary. Known for building nventive into a pioneer of multiplatform app development and now driving the growth of Uno Platform, François champions open-source tools and creative solutions that help developers ship better products in less time. As he leads Uno through rapid expansion and .NET ecosystem leadership, François offers practical insight on scaling innovation, enabling teams, and harnessing the power of community and AI for the future of software development.
Francois now serves as CEO of Uno Platform, an open-source company that enables developers to build native mobile, web, and desktop applications from a single codebase. Under his leadership, Uno has also launched a low-code studio that’s setting the pace in the .NET multi-platform ecosystem. Francois continues to drive the company’s growth and innovation, with a bold vision of empowering developers to achieve 10X productivity.
Uno Platform originally started as an internal solution within Nventive before evolving into a global productivity platform. Could you share more about that journey and how it reflects the DNA of innovation at your company?
Absolutely. Uno Platform was born inside nventive, our former parent company, where we faced a very real challenge: delivering cross-platform applications for clients without rebuilding the same app multiple times for mobile, desktop, and web. To succeed, we needed to maximize developer productivity while still meeting enterprise-grade standards. The solution became Uno Platform (https://platform.uno) , which not only worked for our needs but also allowed us to achieve EBITDA margins far above what you’d expect from a typical consultancy.
What started as an internal framework quickly proved too valuable to keep in-house. We realized these challenges weren’t unique to us, they were universal to .NET developers. And with the power of open source, we could solve them together with thousands of contributors, not just our own team. That insight drove us to open-source Uno Platform and eventually spin it off as its own company, now building additional products like Uno Platform Studio on top of the open-source base.
This journey reflects our DNA of innovation: solving tough problems in practical, developer-first ways and then sharing those solutions broadly. Today, Uno is a global productivity platform helping thousands of developers build applications faster and better
Uno Platform has positioned itself as a leader in cross-platform .NET development, trusted by brands like Toyota and Microsoft. How is the adoption of Uno Platform progressing globally, and what factors do you believe are driving its momentum?
Adoption of Uno Platform has been accelerating globally, and what’s most exciting is the diversity of use cases we’re seeing. Large enterprises like Toyota and Kahua rely on Uno for mission-critical applications, while startups and independent developers choose it for speed and flexibility. We are growing fast: today Uno Platform has been downloaded over 140 million times on NuGet, contributed to by more than 300 developers worldwide, and trusted by clients on every continent.
The momentum is spreading largely through word of mouth. Developers who experience the productivity gains of Uno Platform, being able to share most of their code across all platforms and ship apps faster, become strong advocates and bring others along. That effect is amplified by our close partnership with Microsoft, which ensures Uno Platform stays aligned with the broader .NET roadmap and tooling. At the same time, our welcoming community of over 300 contributors and thousands of Discord members makes it easy for new developers to get started, find support, and shape the platform’s direction together.
As organizations increasingly prioritize speed, maintainability, and cost efficiency, we expect adoption to continue accelerating, positioning Uno as the go-to productivity platform for cross-platform .NET development.
With AI increasingly influencing developer workflows, how do you see generative AI and real-time visual editing shaping the future of software development productivity?
AI is already reshaping how developers work, and I believe the biggest impact will come from combining generative AI with real-time visual editing. Traditionally, software development has been a cycle of writing code, compiling, debugging, and iterating. That process can slow down creativity. Generative AI changes this by acting as a coding companion: it can scaffold projects, suggest code, or even generate user interfaces from natural language. This reduces the friction of starting from scratch and allows developers to focus on higher-level architecture and problem solving.
Now, when you add real-time visual editing into the mix, the productivity gains multiply. Imagine being able to pause a running app, visually adjust its interface or logic, and immediately resume without losing state. When combined with AI, those adjustments can be informed by intelligent suggestions, such as data bindings created automatically, layout optimizations proposed in real time, or even entire workflows scaffolded on the fly.
This synergy blurs the line between design and development. It empowers developers to move faster, experiment more, and collaborate seamlessly with designers and product teams. The result will be shorter development cycles, more intuitive user experiences, and ultimately a massive leap forward in software development productivity.
Uno Platform recently closed a $3.5M CAD seed funding round, bringing your total investment to $6.5M. How does this milestone impact your growth strategy, and what role does Canada’s innovation ecosystem play in supporting your vision?
This milestone allows us to move faster on our mission of making Uno Platform the most productive .NET platform for .NET developers. It accelerates our ability to double down on performance and developer experience in every release, while expanding Uno Platform Studio with richer tools in our premium suite.
We are also making a foray into Generative AI-assisted development, enabling developers to create maintainable, enterprise-grade applications with greater speed and confidence. At the same time, we are committed to growing our community presence, from local developer meetups to major industry events worldwide.
Expert guidance is another cornerstone of this next phase. We are formalizing a technical advisory board to help steer product direction with a sharp focus on professional .NET developers. We were particularly proud to welcome Scott Hanselman, Microsoft’s VP of Developer Community, as both an angel investor and advisor. His involvement, along with future appointments, strengthens our connection to the broader .NET ecosystem.
Equally important is where this round was raised. Canada’s innovation ecosystem has been instrumental in our journey. With investors such as AQC Capital, Desjardins Capital, and Oliva Capital, and an environment rich in talent, R&D support, and global ambition, we are well positioned to scale confidently worldwide.
Looking ahead, what is on Uno Platform’s roadmap, and what final advice would you give to small and medium-sized businesses seeking to embrace digital transformation while maintaining agility?
For small and medium-sized businesses, my advice is to rapidly explore AI solutions in their software development lifecycle. Give special consideration to platforms and tools that let you move fast without locking you in. Favor technologies that are open, extensible, and supported by strong communities. Use AI to rapidly prototype and explore new ideas, but be selective in adopting solutions that produce maintainable, production-ready code rather than throwaway experiments. Start small, validate quickly, and scale iteratively. With the right AI toolset, SMBs can be faster to market, reduce costs, and remain competitive while keeping flexibility at the core of their strategy. And of course, consider Uno Platform for your next project!
