Invest in Hamilton

As part of Invest in Hamilton’s Land and Launch series, we sat down with Yusuf Arslan, founder of ROZOR. In this feature, Yusuf shares how building a robotics company in the healthcare sector is more than just a business opportunity, and how his commitment to Hamilton is actively accelerating his company’s growth.

ROZOR is developing physical, AI-powered surface robotics designed specifically for healthcare environments. The company began with autonomous UV-C disinfection, carrying a broader vision to create a fleet of robots that can support hospitals with disinfection, indoor logistics, delivery, and cleaning.

The goal is simple: help hospitals become safer and more efficient.

Yusuf’s interest in healthcare robotics was sparked by his father’s experience following surgery. His father developed a serious infection that ultimately resulted in the loss of his leg.

This traumatic experience left Yusuf with a fundamental question: Why are hospitals still relying so heavily on humans to perform repetitive, risky, and critical cleaning and disinfection tasks when robotics and automation could help?

That single question became the foundation for his work in healthcare robotics.

When Yusuf began looking at where to establish ROZOR in Canada, the Startup Visa Program served as his initial entry point.

“We got three yeses,” Yusuf recalls, noting that ROZOR had interest from tech accelerators in other major Canadian cities. “But we picked Innovation Factory, and we decided to be in Hamilton.”

The decision came down to more than just one program or organization. It was the dense concentration of talent, academic institutions, potential partners, and the unparalleled support available in one community.

“The infrastructure for any startup in healthcare here is amazing,” he says, describing his choice of Hamilton as “one of the best decisions in my life.”

For Yusuf and his family, the ‘landing’ process began with a remarkably personal welcome. Gail Martin, one of Innovation Factory’s expert advisors, became an important guide as Yusuf began navigating Hamilton. She went well beyond traditional business advising, showing him around the city, helping him settle into everyday life in Canada, and connecting him with foundational partners like McMaster Innovation Park and Hamilton Health Sciences.

Those early connections quickly expanded into a broader network of support. Yusuf highlights local leaders including Alex Muggah from the Synapse Consortium, Rob McCann at the Hamilton Technology Centre, and Maria Koroleva from the Centre for Integrated Transportation and Mobility (CITM). Together, they continually made key introductions, shared opportunities, and pointed him toward the next valuable resource to explore.

In 2025, ROZOR officially established an office at McMaster Innovation Park (MIP), giving the company a physical presence in Hamilton’s premier research hub.

For Yusuf, that physical footprint has been about much more than having a place to work.

“When anyone receives an email from us and sees in our email signature that our office is established in MIP, it’s really huge,” he explains. “It’s a significant step to gain trust and credibility.”

For an international company entering a new North American market, being able to say that ROZOR is established in Hamilton helped turn a fresh venture into a recognized entity that is visibly part of the life sciences ecosystem.

While grounded in Hamilton, ROZOR’s roots and ambitions remain international.

The company boasts team members in Canada, Turkey, and China, alongside international angel investors. Yusuf brings extensive entrepreneurial experience from his previous company, which he founded and ran for eight years before exiting to shift his focus entirely to ROZOR.

He describes the move to Canada as a massive personal and financial commitment.

“There is a saying in my country, ‘I burned my ships,’ which means to make a defining decision,” he says. “That is what I did.” Yusuf invested the proceeds from his previous company directly into ROZOR, bringing that capital to Canada to build the new venture.

Yusuf’s strategic vision for the next few years focuses on three primary objectives:

• Ship from Hamilton: ROZOR aims to begin shipping robots from Hamilton into the Canadian and U.S. healthcare markets, targeting this major milestone for 2027.
• Move from a single robot to a fleet: ROZOR’s long-term vision involves a unified fleet of healthcare robots capable of seamlessly handling disinfection, cleaning, and indoor logistics. Rather than asking hospitals to make large capital investments in individual machines, the company is exploring a robotics-as-a-service (RaaS) model, allowing hospitals to start small and scale as needed.
• Build the evidence: Yusuf plans to leverage Hamilton’s world-class research and healthcare strengths to conduct meaningful testing alongside local industry and academic partners.

• Tap into the ecosystem early: Don’t wait until you urgently need funding, talent, or a partner. Start building relationships from day one.
• Explore the full network: For Yusuf, one introduction consistently led to another. He encourages founders to constantly ask what resources, programs, institutions, and people they have yet to discover.
• Commit to the city: “Hamilton gives back to founders who treat it as a home rather than a stopover,” Yusuf says.

For ROZOR, that commitment is already paying dividends. The company is actively investing capital, building a local team, establishing a physical presence, developing research relationships, and preparing to manufacture and ship directly from Hamilton.

The journey is still in its early stages, but Yusuf sees Hamilton as much more than just the place where ROZOR landed in Canada. It is where he intends to build his legacy, supporting hospitals across the globe.