Ocean Matcher

Ocean innovation initiatives operate within a globally distributed ecosystem of research institutions, startups, non-profits, and funding bodies. While significant activity exists, these actors often operate in fragmented networks, limiting visibility, collaboration, and access to resources.

Projects frequently struggle to communicate their readiness, impact potential, and funding needs in ways that enable meaningful engagement with partners. The initiative aimed to define a digital platform capable of structuring this ecosystem and supporting discovery, collaboration, and funding alignment at a global scale.

The work focused on defining a platform structure capable of supporting multiple stakeholder groups while maintaining clarity and usability.

Key priorities included:

• structuring how projects present impact, readiness, and collaboration needs
• enabling discovery and filtering across diverse ecosystem actors
• designing a matching logic between projects, funders, and partners
• creating a scalable product foundation supporting global participation

The approach balanced ecosystem complexity with the need for a clear and intuitive product experience.

The platform introduced a structured way for ocean initiatives to present their work, improving visibility and enabling more meaningful connections across the ecosystem.

By creating a shared framework for readiness, impact, and collaboration, the system supports more effective alignment between projects, funders, and partners.

The result is a scalable foundation for global ocean innovation — enabling initiatives to move from isolated efforts to connected, supported programs with greater potential for impact.