Innovation alone does not create impact — commercialization does. COVE works with companies to move innovative technologies from development to deployment, ensuring they achieve operational and market success.
Across advanced technology sectors — from autonomous systems and robotics to AI-enabled sensing and dual-use defence applications — the greatest challenge isn’t invention; it’s deployment at a scale and reliability that enables commercialization. Moving from prototype to operational use requires validation under real-world conditions, alignment with regulatory requirements, and engagement with end users and buyers.
COVE helps companies bridge the gap from prototype to deployment by providing engineering support, real-world testing, and direct industry access to prove reliability, demonstrate value to buyers, and scale across complex sectors.
Real-World Testing That De-Risks Growth
For companies developing marine and dual-use technologies, demonstrating performance in realistic environments is critical. COVE resident company, RisingTide BioAcoustics, is one example of this approach in action. The company is developing a method of reducing underwater ship noise and used COVE’s Stella Maris Testing Solution to test their technology, using an enclosed floating generator to replicate shipboard machinery and structural noise. Their Active Noise Cancellation system successfully cancelled multiple harmonic tones in the low-frequency band, where most vessel acoustic energy is produced, achieving continuous noise reduction of more than 20 dB, equivalent to a 100-fold decrease in water-borne sound intensity, and positioning the technology for adoption on commercial and naval vessels.
“Access to COVE’s Stella Maris platform allowed our technology to be validated in a realistic environment while significantly reducing costs,” says Geoff Lebans, Founder of RisingTide BioAcoustics. “Without Stella Maris and the support and input of the COVE team, we would not have achieved the progress made to date.”
This testing demonstrates how controlled, realistic validation environments de-risk technology for buyers and investors, accelerating the path to commercialization.
An Ecosystem Built for Scale
Commercialization doesn’t happen in isolation. Companies need access to partners, capital, and customers to move from demonstration to deployment.
The Naval Technology Innovation Challenges, led by COVE in partnership with Thales Canada and supported by the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA), highlight COVE’s role in uniting industry, government, and innovators to achieve tangible commercialization outcomes.
In a recent challenge on Control Regimes Enabling Sustainable Additive Manufacturing for Ships, Precise Design Engineering Solutions collaborated with Tronos and NSCC/SEATAC to deliver a fully integrated solution. By combining advanced CAD modelling, material traceability, optimized workflows, post-processing, and rigorous quality inspection, the team enables the rapid production of high-precision ship components — critical for vessels operating in remote and demanding environments.
As Bruce Stover, President and CEO of Precise Design, explains:
“Our work demonstrates how additive manufacturing can address some of the Navy’s most pressing sustainment challenges. By controlling the full process, from CAD modeling through to testing, certification, and production inspection, we can deliver reliable, high-quality parts exactly when and where they are needed.”
This work demonstrates how integrated validation and industry collaboration can translate directly into deployable, revenue-generating solutions. Innovation challenges allow companies to validate technologies in alignment with operational requirements while connecting with partners who accelerate adoption.
From Demonstration to Deployment
Once validated, technologies can be translated into commercial and operational impact. Marble, a UK-based dual-use company and past participant in the COVE and Innovate UK: Ocean ScaleUp Accelerator Programme, as well as a current participant in the NATO DIANA Accelerator Programme, offers a strong example of this pathway in action. The company builds fast, lightweight maritime surveillance drones equipped with computer vision for fisheries enforcement, anti-piracy operations, and offshore infrastructure monitoring. A fly-by demonstration at COVE Demo Day 2025 allowed the company to showcase its solution to investors and operational stakeholders, turning technical achievement into investor interest, customer engagement, and defence procurement opportunities.
Commercialization Drives Impact
Across industries, the transition from innovation to deployment requires real-world testing, operational alignment, and strategic connections. Through COVE’s structured validation, industry collaborations, and targeted exposure, companies like RisingTide BioAcoustics, Precise Design Engineering Solutions, and Marble are transforming promising technologies into deployable solutions that generate measurable impact in dual-use markets.