Canada’s Ocean Supercluster on Monday announced four new projects totaling $13 million, each involving companies or organizations based in the St. John’s region.

Based in Atlantic Canada, the Ocean Supercluster is a private-public organization established by the federal government and it is charged with developing the country’s ocean economy. Its goal is to quintuple the size of Canada’s ocean economy to $220 billion by 2035. It’s best known for helping to fund innovation-driven projects.

The largest initiative announcement Monday is the $7.7-million Ripple: AI for Ocean Platforms Project, led by Visual Defence of Richmond Hill, Ont. The other participants are Compusult Ltd. of Mount Pearl, NL, and AXYS Technologies of Sidney, B.C. The Supercluster will contribute $3 million, with the remainder coming from project partners.

Ripple will develop a customizable artificial-intelligence platform for ocean applications, including tools and hardware that enable edge AI – systems able to operate without server connectivity. The project will support real-time maritime monitoring and analytics and is expected to be applied in areas such as coastal surveillance, port operations, and inspection of underwater infrastructure in low-connectivity environments.

Three additional projects announced Monday are led by St. John's-area companies or organizations.

Genoa Design International of Mount Pearl will lead the $2.4-million Digital Ship Vessel Sustainment Project, undertaken in partnership with SSI of Victoria, BC. The Supercluster will put up $815,000 for this project. It aims to create a digital platform aimed at improving in-service support, the sustainment phase of a ship’s lifecycle. The partners say the platform is intended to improve the maintenance and operation of vessels and may also support improvements across ship design, construction, and lifecycle management.

Virtual Marine of Paradise, NL, will lead the $1.1-million Marine Human Performance Digital Thread Project, in partnership with Thales Canada of Quebec City. The Supercluster will provide $588,000.

The project will develop advanced simulation technology for training marine personnel. Using AI and machine-learning techniques, the simulators will be designed to detect and evaluate human performance during training exercises and adjust learning modules to the needs of individuals or teams.

The final project is the $1.7-million Atlantic Canada Aquaculture Innovation Studio, led by Oceans Advance of St. John’s in partnership with Hatch Blue of Cork, Ireland. The Supercluster will contribute $600,000, with additional contributions of $571,250 from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and $37,500 from the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador.

This initiative will implement Hatch Blue’s Aquaculture Innovation Studio program in Atlantic Canada. The program is intended to help address sector-level challenges by supporting startups developing technologies to improve operational efficiency, reduce environmental impact, and strengthen resilience in the aquaculture industry. The project will connect Canadian partners with entrepreneurs from several global aquaculture markets, including Europe and Asia.