CANADA, (Tuesday, July 9, 2024) ‒ The Ocean Startup Project is excited to announce that applications are now open for the fifth cohort of Lab2Market Oceans, a unique opportunity for Master’s and PhD students, postdocs, and recent graduates of Canadian universities conducting ocean-related research to gain entrepreneurial skill sets and explore commercialization opportunities in the sector.  Lab2Market Oceans / Validate is an eight-week, full-time program that welcomes virtual participation from eligible students and recent graduates nationwide. Participants will receive $15,000 in funding, provided they are eligible for the Mitacs Business Strategy Internship (BSI) program.   

The 2024-2025 cohort will kick off in January 2025 and run for eight weeks with the application period ending Tuesday, September 3, 2024 at 11:59pm PDT.     Lab2Market Oceans, part of the Ocean Startup Project, is hosted by Memorial University in collaboration with the University of Victoria and supported by the Government of Canada through the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), Canada’s Ocean Supercluster, Mitacs, and Springboard Atlantic.  

“Lab2Market Oceans has experienced incredible growth and success, supporting emerging innovators and entrepreneurs from Canadian universities as they tackle challenges and seize opportunities in the ocean sector,” said Dr. Paula Mendonça, Executive Director at the Ocean Startup Project.   

“Participants are not only enhancing their professional networks and exploring new business ventures, but they are also deepening their understanding of the ocean ecosystem. Many of our alumni have gone on to participate in other oceans-focused programs like our Idea Challenge and Ocean Startup Challenge, scaling their ventures to global markets with the skills they’ve gained here. It’s truly inspiring to see such brilliant minds addressing critical international issues like ocean health and sustainability. This program is more than a stepping stone for personal growth; it’s a catalyst for impactful ocean-related innovations,” Mendonça said.   

Since its inception in 2020, Lab2Market Oceans / Validate has supported 75 teams, who have conducted 3,309 customer interviews and raised more than $1.020,000 in funds. The program has empowered more than 33 teams to continue their journey in entrepreneurship, commercialization, or further accelerator/incubator programs.  

Student and postdoc participants form teams with their supervisor or a faculty member as the team’s technical lead. They also receive guidance from industry mentors and experts on entrepreneurial methodologies and business best practices, covering topics such as customer discovery, market sizing, stakeholder engagement, intellectual property, regulatory processes, revenue stream, cost structure, and more.  

Prospective applicants are encouraged to attend one of our upcoming information sessions, taking place on the following dates and times: 

• Wednesday, July 17, 2024

• Wednesday, July 31, 2024

• Wednesday, August 14, 2024  

• Wednesday, August 28, 2024 

  Register for one of our information sessions here. Those interested in learning more and applying should visit oceanstartupproject.ca/lab2market-validate. A Program Info Package is also available at this link.