Ocean City Labs opens its doors in Maroochydore

Technology hub Ocean City Labs has opened its doors in Maroochydore which will bring together local entrepreneurs to support their journey from inception to scaling globally.

Ocean City Labs provides entrepreneurs on the Sunshine Coast with access to programs and resources, including co-working spaces, and a dynamic entrepreneurial community powered by prominent Queensland tech hub, River City Labs.

Ocean City Labs is a partnership agreement between the ACS River City Labs and Alumni of River City Labs and emerging technology company Tablogs.

Ocean City Labs was opened by Mark Jamieson, mayor of Sunshine Coast Council, along with co-founder Declan Vanderhor and ACS director of innovation labs, Pauline Fetaui.

Mark Jamieson said the Coast was rapidly building a profile as the ideal location for start-ups and emerging technology.

“It’s great we are responding to that demand by having a presence for potential innovators and tech entrepreneurs to come to the heart of Maroochydore and enjoy the benefits of this facility.

“Ocean City Labs is a great example of the work being done to build our innovation ecosystem and ensure that our region remains a leading place to live, learn, work and play,” he said.

Declan Vanderhor, founder at Tablogs said he saw the opportunity to connect the community of technologists and entrepreneurs in the Sunshine Coast by partnering with River City Labs, with their established network of programs, resources, support for emerging technology companies.

River City Labs programs and services will be offered to all Ocean City Lab members digitally, providing access to critical networks and support to help companies grow.

"We already have a few tech businesses working in Ocean City Labs and we’ve only just opened. It’s exciting working in a space where we all get to learn from each other. We can’t wait to welcome other emerging businesses to Ocean City Labs”, Vanderhor said.

Pauline Fetaui at the ACS said, “It’s fantastic the Sunshine Coast’s growing ecosystem of entrepreneurs, investors, and technologists are creating a swirl of innovation and harnessing local talent in the local community.

“The Sunshine Coast has so much tech and industry talent innovating together, and we see Ocean City Labs as a great example of how communities around Australia can bring together that talent to connect into the national and global ecosystem of emerging technology whilst keeping it local.”

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