LOOKNorth Centre of Excellence

What LOOKNorth Centre of Excellence does

LOOKNorth Centre of Excellence is a non-profit commercialization accelerator and Centre of Excellence for Commercialization and Research (CECR) operating under Canada's federal Networks of Centres of Excellence program, hosted by C-CORE in St. John's, Newfoundland. Its mandate is to commercialize Canadian remote sensing innovations — including satellite remote sensing, Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) with Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVLOS) capabilities, ground station infrastructure, and geospatial analytics — while building Northern community capacity in remote sensing services. The organization serves three primary constituencies: Canadian satellite remote sensing SMEs seeking commercialization pathways, Indigenous and Northern communities adapting remote sensing for climate, ice, and food-security use cases, and Canadian resource-sector operators deploying BVLOS-enabled monitoring.

LOOKNorth's technical portfolio spans upstream infrastructure (smallsat ground stations at Inuvik and Happy Valley-Goose Bay engineered for permafrost movement), data platforms (the Coresight service delivery platform co-developed with the European Space Agency for crowd-sourced Arctic drone data), AI-enabled applications (the Phyllis Detect and Avoid expert system built with Seamatica and Boeing Phantom Works as a plugin to Boeing's COMC2-GE system), and end-user products (PolarCode sea-ice app, SmartICE monitoring, river ice and land reclamation services, GHGSat methane monitoring). The organization also coordinates the Integrated Remote Sensing for the Arctic (IRSA) systems-of-systems architecture alongside Boeing's IRSA Development Group, integrating satellites, RPAS, and unmanned sea-surface vessels for maritime surveillance.

LOOKNorth's business model is built on federal program funding (NCE, NRC-IRAP, SDTC) and project-based co-investment rather than commercial product sales. Services to Canadian SMEs — including the RPAS Business Advance Service scoped at up to 25 hours of business advisory and up to 40 hours of data management advisory per engagement — are delivered free or subsidized and require participating firms to be NRC-IRAP clients. LOOKNorth's go-to-market is community-led through a 293-partner network spanning industry, academia (Memorial University, Aurora Research Institute), government bodies (Transport Canada, NAV Canada), and international collaborators (Boeing, ESA, Unmanned Systems Canada). According to its own metrics, the network has attracted $131M in investment, supported 425 positions, and developed 403 new products or services across 121 SMEs and 26 Northern communities.

Name

LOOKNorth Centre of Excellence

Legal name

LOOKNorth Centre of Excellence

Website

https://looknorth.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

LOOKNorth Centre of Excellence is a federally funded, C-CORE-hosted non-profit that commercializes Canadian remote sensing technologies and builds Northern community capacity through a 293-partner network spanning SMEs, academia, government, and international collaborators.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Remote Sensing Commercialization Services

NAICS

Scientific Research and Development Services (5417), Educational Support Services (61171), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Investors, Nec (6799)

akta.pro primary industry

Assessment, Certification & Qualifications Frameworks (BPADAKAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Safety, Security & Emergency Services (OSHA, Fire, EMS, Security CE) (EDAAALAK), Leak Detection, Emissions & LDAR Testing (OGI, methane, fugitive emissions) (EUAEAHAL)

Keywords

• Remote sensing commercialization
• Satellite ground station services
• RPAS BVLOS operations
• Arctic geospatial analytics
• SME business advisory services

Headquarters

HQ city

St. John's

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Federal Government Funding (NCE Program): LOOKNorth is established under the federal Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE) program, receiving government funding to support its operations and partner network. The organization also leverages funding from the National Research Council of Canada Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP) to support its business advisory services to SMEs.
2. Financial Support to SME Partners: LOOKNorth attracts investment and provides financial support to Canadian remote sensing SMEs and Northern community projects. The organization reports $131M in investment attracted by its partner network, with direct funding provided to projects including GHGSat ($113,000), SmartICE (over $200k), and $10M in project funding through $2.4M LOOKNorth investment.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

LOOKNorth Centre of Excellence is a federal Networks of Centres of Excellence (NCE) program entity hosted by C-CORE that enables commercialization of remote sensing innovation for Canadian SMEs and Northern communities. It provides technical expertise, business development advisory, financial support (grants/funding leverage), and operational infrastructure (ground stations, the Coresight platform) to help Canadian remote sensing and RPAS SMEs bring products to global markets.

Product overview

LOOKNorth Centre of Excellence operates as a commercialization and research organization that supports Canadian remote sensing innovations through multiple interconnected services. The portfolio includes satellite-based monitoring solutions (GHGSat emissions monitoring, SmartICE sea ice monitoring, PolarCode App), ground infrastructure services (Ground Stations, Coresight platform), and UAV/RPAS support services (RPAS Business Advance Service). These offerings work together within the IRSA system of systems framework to provide comprehensive maritime surveillance, environmental monitoring, and Northern community support capabilities.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• RPAS Business Advance Service Program of business support services including business advisory and data management for Canadian RPAS SMEs, with market strategy advice, proposal review, and funding opportunity identification. Offered to current or prospective NRC-IRAP clients.
• Coresight Service Delivery Platform LOOKNorth-developed platform that ingests, processes, and provides analytics for community/crowd-sourced drone data and field data supporting Arctic stakeholder needs, developed with the European Space Agency.
• PolarCode App Near real-time sea-ice information application for computer and mobile platforms, enabling ships to navigate Canada's north safely, with offline mode capability for areas with limited connectivity.
• Ground Station Services Small satellite ground station network that adjusts to permafrost-related ground movement, with locations in Inuvik and Happy Valley-Goose Bay supporting SAR satellite downlinks and remote sensing applications across Canada's East Coast and Eastern Arctic.
• River Ice Monitoring Service Service that downloads and processes SAR satellite imagery for hundreds of kilometers of rivers, providing ice condition data, flood risk assessment, and trend analysis via web portal.
• Water Monitoring Service Cloud computing-based algorithms enhancing satellite imagery to measure temperature, sediment, and other conditions in rivers and lakes for cost-effective inland water quality tracking via web interface portal.
• Land Reclamation Monitoring Satellite imagery-based service for cost-effective measurement of land reclamation status for oil fields, mines, and infrastructure projects, providing quantitative ranking for certification compliance.
• Data Management Advisory Services Data management advisory assistance for Canadian RPAS SMEs, covering data handling practices to support BVLOS operations, provided as part of LOOKNorth's RPAS Business Advance Service.

Quantifiable outcome

• $131M in investment attracted by partner network
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability9 records

Feature5 records

Partnerships

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

• InfostellarcoreTechnology or Integration · 18 January 2021LOOKNorth/C-CORE partnered with Infostellar to enable X-Band SAR data downlink at C-CORE's Happy Valley-Goose Bay Ground Station and real-time transfer to a European payload processing center in Germany via Infostellar's StellarStation platform. This enabled transition to operational phase with daily downlinks from European SAR satellites.
• SmartICEcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 December 2019LOOKNorth has supported SmartICE since 2017, funding over $200k to date. SmartICE is an award-winning innovation integrating Inuit knowledge with advanced data acquisition for sea ice monitoring. The SmartICE initiative is a $3M program aiming to implement their training platform in up to 10 communities by 2023. LOOKNorth committed over $1M to Northern projects in the past year.
• Seamatica AerospacecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 July 2019Since July 2019, Seamatica and LOOKNorth have collaborated to develop the Phyllis Detect and Avoid (DAA) expert system for autonomous aircraft as part of the IRSCA project. Seamatica contributes DAA solutions for both piloted and remotely piloted aircraft, including the GuardianEye airspace awareness system.
• Unmanned Systems CanadacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 3 May 2019LOOKNorth and Unmanned Systems Canada collaborate to advance a national RPAS BVLOS cluster. Activities include Transport Canada studies, national strategy workshops, development of a national testbed system, and support of 28 projects valued at $10M through $2.4M LOOKNorth investment. The partnership forecasts $500M annual economic impact and 1,000 new jobs for Canada's RPAS sector.
• Kognitiv SparkcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 23 January 2019LOOKNorth partnered with Kognitiv Spark to use RemoteSpark AR/MR software for improved UAV maintenance in remote Northern communities in Canada. The solution was demonstrated with Igutchaq UAV in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region and Gwich'in Settlement Area, saving equipment downtime and travel costs while delivering enhanced training.
• C-COREcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerC-CORE is the parent organization hosting LOOKNorth as its Centre of Excellence for Commercialization and Research under the NCE program. C-CORE develops technology solutions in remote sensing, oceans, and energy, and provides operational infrastructure including the Happy Valley-Goose Bay ground station, ISSF facilities, and staff including the LOOKNorth Managing Director Paul Adlakha.
• GHGSatcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLOOKNorth has partnered with GHGSat for several years supporting sensor validation of their first satellite mission, the development of a hybrid aircraft-satellite monitoring system expanding into Central Asia, and ground station support at Inuvik and Happy Valley-Goose Bay. LOOKNorth's $113k funding leveraged $358k additional funding from SDTC and Manitoba Hydro.
• Boeing (via IRSA Development Group)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBoeing facilitates the IRSA Development Group (IDG), a multi-national collaboration among Arctic nations for developing and commercializing the Integrated Remote Sensing for the Arctic (IRSA) solution. LOOKNorth participates through the IRSCA project with C-CORE and Boeing Phantom Works, integrating satellite platforms, RPAS, and unmanned sea-surface vessels for maritime surveillance.
• Periculum LabsmajorTechnology or IntegrationPericulum Labs of Ottawa ON implemented a risk model for the national BVLOS testbed system to validate the safety case for integrating BVLOS capabilities into national airspace. Flight and test data from operational trials supports evidence-based risk models for BVLOS flight regulations development.
• AirMarketmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLOOKNorth partnered with AirMarket for Arctic BVLOS flight trials using RPAS Traffic Management (RTM) services. The project delivered two integrated hardware/software drone tracking components certified for TELUS cellular network, consolidated 4G/LTE services with UTM platform software, and established reference architecture and technology roadmap.
• Igutchaq UAVmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerIgutchaq UAV is a professional UAV and GIS services company based in Inuvik NWT that trains and facilitates certification of UAV pilots from communities in the Inuvialuit Settlement Region and Gwich'in Settlement Area. LOOKNorth invested in building UAV capacity through this partner to support regional priorities including climate change effects, sovereignty, and food security.
• DNA (Delta North Alliance)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerDNA is a joint venture between the Gwich'in Development Corporation and the Inuvialuit Development Corporation, leading the development of a Northern Canadian Geospatial Innovation Centre (NCGIC) in Inuvik, NWT. The 25,000 sq. ft. indigenous-owned facility will provide R&D and operations support within the ISSF Cluster, supported by NRCan and Inuvik Satellite Station Facility.
• Aurora Research Institute (ARI)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Aurora Research Institute is proposing the use of Space-Based Earth Observation (SBEO) data to help Western Arctic communities collect environmental intelligence for climate change mitigation, transportation, and land use decision-making. LOOKNorth supports this initiative to overcome challenges of data collection in the vast and climatically extreme Western Arctic region.
• National Research Council of Canada - IRAPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLOOKNorth's RPAS Business Advance Service is supported in part by funding from NRC IRAP. LOOKNorth requires participating SMEs to be current NRC-IRAP clients or engage with NRC to become clients, using NRC IRAP as the primary pathway for accessing business advisory and data management services.
• European Space Agency (ESA)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLOOKNorth collaborated with the European Space Agency to develop its Arctic crowd-sourcing service that allows community-based drones to submit high-resolution data for integration with enhanced Earth Observation services for Arctic applications.
• Sky Pilot Unmanned Aerial SolutionsminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLOOKNorth supported Sky Pilot in validating BVLOS operations and automated data analytics based on AI for highway infrastructure monitoring, slope stability, search and rescue, wildlife monitoring and biodiversity mapping through RPAS-deployed sensors.
• Peraton CanadaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPeraton Canada is validating RPAS Traffic Management (RTM) to enable routine BVLOS operations. Testing performance data will be delivered to Transport Canada/NAV Canada. Four flight operations are planned: pipeline inspection, OLS detection, FOD detection, and runway marking analysis.
• Solace PowerminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLOOKNorth partnered with Newfoundland & Labrador-based Solace Power to develop a prototype wireless charging system (Equus) enabling autonomous UAV flight/BVLOS capacity. The 200W wireless charge system is ideal for SAR operations. Solace subsequently gained interest from India's Asteria Aerospace/Reliance Industries.
• Aurora AerialminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLOOKNorth collaborated with Manitoba's Aurora Aerial on integrating an optionally piloted aerial system for RPAS, pioneering BVLOS-enabling technologies for command and control, navigation and other capabilities through trials in downtown Toronto.
• Igutchaq UAVmajorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorIgutchaq UAV provides professional UAV and GIS services throughout the Inuvialuit Settlement Region and Gwich'in Settlement Area, with plans for a minimum of 5 enterprises under its umbrella organization. Services support regional priorities including climate change, sovereignty, and food security.
• Memorial University of NewfoundlandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLOOKNorth partners with Memorial University's Office of Public Engagement on the Sustainable Northern Coastal Communities (SNCC) initiative under the COASTS program, connecting university research capacity with community knowledge and public/private partners to address challenges facing Northern coastal regions.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Aurora Research Institute: The Aurora Research Institute is a Northwest Territories research organization supporting Western Arctic communities with environmental intelligence and remote sensing applications. It is a direct peer because LOOKNorth partners with ARI to apply Space-Based Earth Observation data for Arctic communities, serving overlapping Northern geography and stakeholder needs.
• Unmanned Systems Canada: Unmanned Systems Canada is the national industry association for the RPAS/UAV sector. It is a direct peer because LOOKNorth partners with Unmanned Systems Canada to advance the national RPAS BVLOS cluster, and both organizations seek to commercialize Canadian UAV capabilities for industry and Northern stakeholder use cases.
• Mitacs: Mitacs is a Canadian non-profit research and training organization that connects SMEs with academic researchers via grant-funded programs. It is a direct peer because it operates a similar SME-researcher-commercialization model with federal and provincial funding, even though it focuses broadly across industries rather than remote sensing.

Emerging players

• SmartICE: SmartICE is a Canadian sea ice monitoring platform that integrates Inuit knowledge with remote sensing technology for safe ice travel in Northern communities. It is an emerging player peer because it is a LOOKNorth partner SME commercializing remote sensing innovations for Northern stakeholders with overlapping community-engagement approaches.
• GHGSat: GHGSat is a Canadian satellite operator that launched the world's first satellites capable of measuring methane emissions directly from targeted industrial facilities. It is an emerging player peer because it is a LOOKNorth partner SME commercializing satellite remote sensing technology, with overlapping methane-monitoring AI capabilities.
• Seamatica Aerospace: Seamatica Aerospace is a Newfoundland-based RPAS technology company developing Detect and Avoid (DAA) systems including the Phyllis expert system and GuardianEye airspace awareness system. It is an emerging player peer because it is a LOOKNorth partner SME co-developing RPAS DAA capabilities for the IRSCA project with overlapping aviation-safety technology.

Regional players

• Alberta Innovates: Alberta Innovates is a provincially-funded innovation corporation supporting SME R&D and commercialization in Alberta. It is a regional peer because it operates a similar SME-commercialization model but is regionally focused on Alberta rather than Canada's North, with no direct geographic overlap with LOOKNorth.

Broad incumbents

• Canadian Space Agency: The Canadian Space Agency is the federal government agency responsible for Canada's civil space program. It is a broad incumbent because LOOKNorth collaborates with CSA via the ISSF cluster and Earth Observation initiatives, while CSA operates as a much larger institutional player with similar stakeholders.

Others

• C-CORE: C-CORE is LOOKNorth's parent organization and a Canadian research corporation specializing in remote sensing, oceans, and energy. It is an 'OTHERS' peer because it provides the operational infrastructure and staff for LOOKNorth, making it an enabling partner rather than a competitor.
• NRC IRAP (Industrial Research Assistance Program): NRC IRAP is the National Research Council's SME support program and a direct funding partner for LOOKNorth's RPAS Business Advance Service. It is an 'OTHERS' peer because LOOKNorth requires participating SMEs to be NRC-IRAP clients, making it a channel partner rather than a competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/LOOKNorthOrg
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/organization/2245872/admin/updates

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about LOOKNorth Centre of Excellence