Centre for Ocean Applied Sustainable Technologies

What Centre for Ocean Applied Sustainable Technologies does

COAST (Centre for Ocean Applied Sustainable Technologies) is a not-for-profit blue economy innovation hub founded in 2021 in Victoria, British Columbia, and operating as an initiative of the South Island Prosperity Partnership (SIPP). Its legal entity is YYJ Prosperity Association. COAST is not a product technology company; it functions as a regional ecosystem orchestrator that connects ocean-technology entrepreneurs, industry leaders, investors, government, and research institutions across Pacific Canada. Its core deliverables are programmatic: a tiered membership community (588 members, 150 organizations as of 2025), a 7,000 square foot Ocean Innovation Hub coworking and convening space, the Blue Action Canada accelerator (launched January 2025 with Founders Factory and Blue Action), the Blue Pathways training initiative, a Venture Mentorship program, the COAST Investor Network, the annual COAST Pitchfest, and the Ocean Tech Live: Demo Day showcase.

The organization's underlying platform is a curated community-and-programs architecture rather than a software stack. COAST coordinates access to physical workspace, subsidized testing and demonstration facilities (including the BC Marine Energy and Decarbonization Hub with the University of Victoria), discounted training courses through academic and college partners, expert mentorship, and curated investor introductions. It does not develop proprietary technology; its intellectual property is concentrated in programming design, partnership orchestration, and community curation. External recognition includes a second-place finish at the Global Ocean Hackathon 9 Grand Finale in France in December 2025, the only North American entrant in the competition, and the Ocean Startup Project award for the most awards brought to any single province in 2025.

COAST's business model is a hybrid of multi-year government and philanthropic grants, corporate sponsorships and membership fees, and event-related revenue. The organization is primarily funded by PacifiCan (catalyst phase 2022-2026), the BC Ministry of Energy and Climate Solutions, Canada's Ocean Supercluster, the RBC Foundation (2025-2028), and Coast Capital. Membership fees range from a free Individual tier to a $5,000/year Mobilizer corporate tier (with Crew at $250, Navigator at $1,000, and Ecosystem Champion at $300), providing recurring but supplementary revenue. The 7-person core team, supported by an advisory board, operates the hub, programs, events, and partnership pipeline across British Columbia and increasingly through international cohorts in the Blue Action Canada accelerator.

Name

Centre for Ocean Applied Sustainable Technologies

Legal name

COAST Centre for Ocean Applied Sustainable Technologies (a dba of YYJ Prosperity Association)

Website

https://canadacoast.ca

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

COAST is a not-for-profit blue economy innovation hub in Victoria, BC, offering coworking, accelerator programming, training, and investor connections to ocean-technology startups and enterprises across Pacific Canada.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Blue Economy Innovation Hub & Accelerator Services

NAICS

Other Support Activities for Water Transportation (48839), Management of Companies and Enterprises (55111)

SIC

Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

Entrepreneurship, Innovation & Venture Creation Centers (EDAHAHAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Oceans, Coastal & Marine Resource Management (BPADALAI), Marine & Offshore Wind BOP Construction (Foundations, Cables, Ports, Installation Support) (EUAMAFAI)

Keywords

• Blue economy hub
• Ocean technology accelerator
• Venture mentorship programs
• Blue economy membership
• Marine industry training

Headquarters

HQ city

Victoria

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Membership Fees: COAST generates revenue through tiered membership fees ranging from free Individual membership to $5,000/year for Mobilizer corporate members. These fees provide access to facilities, community, funding pathways, training, and special programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels7 records

Marketing channels13 records

Core offering

COAST operates Pacific Canada's first and only dedicated blue economy innovation hub, providing tiered memberships, subsidized coworking workspace, a four-month blue economy accelerator (Blue Action Canada), workforce training (Blue Pathways), venture mentorship, and an investor network to ocean technology startups, established maritime companies, and ecosystem partners. The organization is a not-for-profit initiative of the South Island Prosperity Partnership (SIPP), funded primarily by government grants and membership fees, and does not develop proprietary technology but rather curates access to workspace, training, testing facilities, capital, and global networks.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Blue Action Canada: Canada's first dedicated blue economy accelerator program for ocean ventures, delivered in partnership with Founders Factory and Blue Action.
• Blue Pathways
• COAST Ocean Innovation Hub
• COAST Pitchfest
• COAST Investor Network
• BC Marine Energy and Decarbonization Hub
• Ocean Tech Live: Demo Day

Products and services

• COAST Membership
• Blue Action Canada Accelerator
• COAST Ocean Innovation Hub
• Blue Pathways Training Initiative
• Venture Mentorship Program
• COAST Investor Network
• BC Marine Energy and Decarbonization Hub

Named customers20 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

14 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• University of Victoria (UVic)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 22 April 2025Partner in BC Marine Energy and Decarbonization Hub, along with ACET, PRIMED, and IESVic initiatives. Building Integrated Energy Laboratory at Marine Technology Centre.
• South Island Prosperity Partnership (SIPP)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2021COAST is an initiative of SIPP, Greater Victoria's economic development alliance. SIPP provides institutional support and is the parent organization of COAST.
• Ocean Startup ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLong-term partnership funneling COAST members into Canada's leading early-stage ocean programming. Helped bring 16 awards to 11 BC companies in 2025.
• Ocean Networks CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-host of first BC edition of Ocean Hackathon (October 2025). Provides ocean data resources and expertise for hackathon challenges and Blue Pathways training courses.
• Innovate BCcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDelivery partner for COAST Innovation Challenge through BC's Integrated Marketplace. Co-sponsor of COAST Pitchfest competition.
• SeaspancoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMobilizer member and presenting sponsor of COAST Pitchfest. Sponsor of Ocean Tech Live: Demo Day event.
• Founders FactorycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerGlobal startup investor and partner in Blue Action Canada accelerator, delivering four months of expert support across product development, operations, commercialization, data science, partnerships, and fundraising.
• Blue ActioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerClimate investor and partner in Blue Action Canada accelerator (Bahamas-based). Provides global ecosystem of government and industry partners including ports, shipping companies, and government agencies across multiple countries.
• Map the Gaps SocietymajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in producing Ocean Floor Explore conference in Victoria (October 2025), exploring innovative ways to map seabeds around the world.
• McCarthy TetraultminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNavigator member providing Blue Pathways training on IP law, AI, cybersecurity and privacy law for startups.
• Esri CanadaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMobilizer member providing geographic information systems expertise. ArcGIS StoryMaps training offered through Blue Pathways.
• Accelerating Community Energy Transformation (ACET)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMulti-partner initiative (University of Victoria-led) in BC Marine Energy and Decarbonization Hub, accelerating resilient clean energy solutions through community-based collaborations.
• Pacific Regional Institute for Marine Energy Discovery (PRIMED)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDivision of ACET specializing in marine renewable energy, driving innovation in wave, offshore wind and tidal energy technologies for coastal communities.
• Institute for Integrated Energy Systems (IESVic)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUVic interdisciplinary research center in BC Marine Energy and Decarbonization Hub, focusing on clean energy technologies and systems integration.

Scale indicators10 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Peers

• Creative Destruction Lab:

Direct peers

• Sustainable Ocean Alliance: Global ocean-focused accelerator and youth network that supports ocean startups through programming, mentorship, and an Ocean Solutions Accelerator. Highly comparable to COAST as a non-profit ocean venture hub — notably, COAST's Director of Strategic Engagement previously worked at Sustainable Ocean Alliance.
• Ocean Startup Project: Canadian-led ocean venture program and core COAST partner that funnels early-stage ocean companies into national programming. Directly comparable as a fellow Canadian ocean ecosystem builder and co-deliverer of the awards that brought 16 honors to 11 BC companies in 2025.
• Canada's Ocean Supercluster: Canada's national ocean industry-led innovation cluster providing funding and programming to ocean ventures. Directly comparable as a Canadian ocean innovation enabler and a key COAST partner funding Blue Action Canada.
• Founders Factory: Global accelerator and venture builder operating sector-specific programs including ocean/climate. Co-delivers the Blue Action Canada accelerator with COAST, making it both partner and a direct comparable in accelerator model design and global corporate venture building.
• Greentown Labs: Largest cleantech startup incubator in North America, operating a physical hub, accelerator programming, and corporate partnership model closely paralleling COAST's hub-plus-accelerator approach but in the broader cleantech space.
• Spring Activator: Vancouver-based impact venture accelerator that supports entrepreneurs tackling social and environmental challenges. Operates a comparable program-plus-hub model in British Columbia, making it a regional peer addressing the same entrepreneur base in the cleantech and impact space.
• Ocean Frontier Institute: Canadian research network focused on ocean science, including an Ocean Innovation Catalyst program supporting ocean ventures. Comparable as a Canadian ocean research-to-commercialization hub but anchored in Atlantic Canada rather than Pacific Canada.

Broad incumbents

• MaRS Discovery District: One of North America's largest urban innovation hubs providing coworking, programming, and venture services. A broader incumbent innovation hub model that COAST's Ocean Innovation Hub mirrors at smaller scale, focused on ocean rather than general tech.
• World Ocean Council: Global industry alliance for ocean sustainable development, with a Corporate Ocean Responsibility program and Smart Ocean-Smart Industries initiative. Comparable as a membership-based ocean industry connector, but operating as a global industry association rather than a regional venture hub.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CanadaCOAST1
• Facebookfacebook.com/CanadaCOAST1
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/canadacoast

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles7 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments1 record

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Centre for Ocean Applied Sustainable Technologies