1.44M dispersed to 825 startups across BC and The North
AccelerateIP, as part of the national ElevateIP program, continues to provide education and funding support for startups and Business Accelerators and Incubators (BAIs) across British Columbia, Yukon, and the Northwest Territories.
In our third year of the program—alongside our dedicated network of partner and collaborator organizations, we have delivered critical IP education, mentorship, and funding supports to more than 825 startups. The industries that have been most supported through Streams 1, 2, and 3 of AccelerateIP programming have been in the Life Sciences, Cleantech, and Digital Media and Telecommunications sectors.
Companies supported are solving systematic problems in many sectors, ranging from animal health, skincare, travel care, mine waste, sustainable farming, housing, health, metabolic support, and more.
Stream 1: Building Foundational IP Knowledge
The AccelerateIP Education stream offers in-person, online, intensive, and asynchronous programming to meet the needs of a diverse group of startups and business mentors. This past year, our educational offerings supported over 730 startups and 24 BAIs.
- 12 IP Certification Program cohorts served 120 startups and 5 BAIs.
- 25 IP seminars and workshops delivered in-person and in hybrid formats, training 530+ startups and 17 BAIs.
- 145 startups received 1:1 direct support and application guidance through office hours.
- 107 startups and 2 BAIs served through our online, self-guided IP Education Program.
“I didn’t originally plan to protect my brand and products with IP. But after attending three trade shows, I realized it is very important not just for protection, but for marketing, credibility, and signalling strength in the industry. This program helped me understand that my instinct was right. It gave me the knowledge to shape and adjust my IP strategy in a way that supports the direction I want to take my business.”
– Complete Elixir Skincare Inc., Surrey
Stream 2: Developing IP Strategy
In the Strategy stream, startups either work with an expert business mentor to bridge the gap between business strategy and IP commercialization strategy, or work with a legal service provider to receive legal IP strategy services.
- 79 startups received up to 8 hours of 1:1 IP mentorship.
- 43 startups received a total of $597,939.33 support to execute their IP strategy projects with registered service providers.
- 88% of participants successfully developed a new, formal IP strategy through the program.
“The IP Certification Level 2 Program has been an incredible learning experience, building on the strong foundation I gained from Level 1…It equipped me with in-depth knowledge to implement a robust IP strategy tailored to our Agritech, data-driven focus. I learned how to unlock commercial value from IP and data to better position our innovation efforts for growth, partnerships, and investment opportunities.”
– Naya Innovations Inc., Victoria
Stream 3: Implementing IP Strategy
Our implementation track provides direct funding support to help startups work with registered legal service providers to implement their IP strategies through activities such as patent and trademark filings.
- 32 startups received $837,328.81 in funding support for their IP Implementation projects.
- 91% of Stream 3 participants filed for IP protection as a result of the program.
“AccelerateIP has helped us formalize and execute a strong IP protection strategy at a key stage of growth, including direct support for patent drafting and application filing. The program strengthened how we position our proprietary technology in investor and partner discussions, improved our commercialization readiness, and gave us greater confidence that our core innovations at EyeCareX are being protected in a way that supports long-term scale.”
– EyecareX, Vancouver
