Tilray

Founded in 2013, Tilray was originally incorporated under the umbrella of Seattle-based Privateer Holdings and was one of Canada's first licensed producers. At the end of 2014, it secured the first institutional investment in the cannabis industry from Founders Fund, a San Francisco-based venture capital fund. In 2016, it became the first cannabis company to conduct a clinical trial approved by Health Canada. The trial evaluated the therapeutic potential of medical cannabis. In January 2017, Tilray was certified for good manufacturing practices.

By October 2018, the company had raised $1.1 billion. In July 2018, it became the first cannabis company to trade publicly on a major U.S. stock exchange, opening on the NASDAQ exchange at a price of $17 per share, which increased in September 2018 to $214 per share, and then descended to $29 per share by August 2019. The IPO raised US$153 million.

In September 2018, Tilray became the first Canadian cannabis company to legally export medical cannabis to the U.S. for a clinical trial. In December 2018, the company signed a deal with Novartis subsidiary Sandoz to sell, distribute and co-brand Tilray's non-smokeable/non-combustible medical cannabis products in legal markets worldwide. On June 19, 2018, Tilray announced the launch of High Park Company which operates in the adult recreational cannabis market to establish unique adult-use brands in Canada.

Since September 2022, Tilray has been licensed by the Polish and Italian Ministries of Health to import and distribute THC25 medical cannabis throughout Poland and Italy.

In August 2023, Tilray acquired eight beverage brands in addition to the breweries of the brands from Anheuser-Busch for $85 million.

In partnership with University of Sydney, NSW Government, Chris O'Brien Lifehouse, Tilray participated in a clinical trial testing the efficacy and tolerability of medical cannabis as a possible treatment for the side effects of chemotherapy. Led by The Hospital for Sick Children, in Toronto, Canada, Tilray provided a cannabidiol (CBD) oil product available in Canada to test the efficacy and tolerability of medical cannabis oil as a possible treatment for pediatric epilepsy (Dravet syndrome). In partnership with the University of British Columbia, Tilray provided medical cannabis products used to test medical cannabis as a possible treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. In partnership with the Grupo Español de Investigación en Neurooncología GEINO, in Spain, Tilray supplied medical cannabis products for the trial testing the efficacy and tolerability of medical cannabis as a possible treatment for glioblastoma.

In 2019, Tilray signed an agreement with Cannamedical Pharma GmbH to export $3.3 million worth of medical cannabis from its Portugal facility to Germany, marking Tilray's first export from Tilray Portugal Unipessoal, Lda. Tilray also has a research partnership with Coimbra University in Portugal.

In August 2019, Tilray announced a partnership with New York University to study the potential ability of CBD to treat alcohol use disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder. In partnership with New York University, Tilray supplied CBD for a clinical trial studying its possible efficacy for treating disorders caused by breast cancer treatments.

Strategic partnerships and acquisitions

In 2018, Tilray announced it had entered into global alliance with Sandoz, a division of Novartis to co-brand and distribute non-combustible medical cannabis products in global markets where it is legally authorized. The Globe and Mail dubbed this partnership as ‘big-pharma’s first foray into cannabis’.

Also in 2018, Tilray announced a $100-million joint venture with the world's largest brewer, AB InBev to research non-alcohol tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD)-infused beverages, through their respective subsidiaries, Labatt Breweries and High Park Company.

In 2019, Tilray signed a $250 million revenue-sharing deal with U.S. based brand company, Authentic Brands Group, to leverage ABG brand names, such as Juicy Couture, Greg Norman, and Nine West to create cannabis products. ABG has a portfolio of over 50 brands.

In February 2019, Tilray acquired Manitoba Harvest, a hemp foods manufacturer, for $317 million from Compass Diversified Holdings. The acquisition allowed Tilray to use Manitoba Harvest's retail distribution network to enter the U.S. CBD market. Manitoba Harvest's products are available in approximately 13,000 U.S. stores and 3,600 in Canada.