Blue Action Canada has opened applications to participate in the second cohort of its Victoria accelerator for ocean technology startups.
Rupert Hayward,
âCanada has all the ingredients to lead the next wave of the global blue economy.â
Blue Action
The accelerator claims to be the first in Canada dedicated to the blue economy, which is structured around the use and development of Canadaâs ocean resources.
Through its second cohort, Blue Action intends to support up to eight early-stage Canadian oceantech businesses. Its areas of focus this time around include maritime and port innovation, coastal infrastructure and adaptation, nature and biodiversity, and defence or dual-use technologies.
It will coach startups on product development, operations, customer discovery, commercialization, and fundraising. It also intends to give them access to a network of investors, governments, ports, and industry partners that spans 10 countries to help them explore potential pilots and partnerships.
Victoria-based Centre for Ocean Applied Sustainable Technologies (COAST), London, UK venture studio Founders Factory, and Bahamas-based ocean hub Blue Action launched Blue Action Canada last year as a Canadian chapter of the original oceantech-focused Blue Action Accelerator that Blue Action and Founders Factory established in 2023.
Applications for Blue Action Canadaâs second cohort close February 15. The program will begin shortly thereafter and culminate in a residential program in May 2026, coinciding with Web Summit Vancouver.
In a statement, Blue Action president and chair Rupert Hayward said, âCanada has all the ingredients to lead the next wave of the global blue economyâworld-class research, deep maritime expertise, and an extraordinary coastline.â
Launched in 2021, COAST is backed by BCâs Ministry of Energy and Climate Solutions and federal regional economic development agency PacifiCan.
RELATED: New Blue Action Canada oceantech accelerator launches backed by COAST and Founders Factory
The 2026 edition of Blue Action Canada will be supported by the Government of Canadaâs Ocean Supercluster.
Companies that took part in the acceleratorâs inaugural, BC-focused cohortâa group that includes seawood acoustic panel innovator Seacork and Squamish, BC-based next-generation marine vessel developer Celerity Craft, among othersâhave used the connections gained to secure over $2 million in dilutive and non-dilutive funding from international investors, more than $1.7 million in pre-order sales from global markets, and industry pilots.
Feature image courtesy Unsplash. Photo by Negley Stockman.