Vancouver-based DRIVE Hockey is building momentum in the emerging field of sports AI.
The sports tech startup, which is developing a smart arena network for hockey analytics, announced this week that it has secured a $100,000 grant from the National Research Council of Canada’s Industrial Research Assistance Program to help bring its Sports AI technology to market.
The latest milestone follows a recent spotlight moment for DRIVE, which was named one of three finalists in Web Summit Vancouver’s PITCH Competition last month. At the time, DRIVE was highlighted for bringing artificial intelligence to amateur sports through sensor-powered Smart Arenas designed to deliver NHL-level coaching and player development tools to younger and amateur athletes.
The new IRAP funding will support development of DRIVE’s Coach AI tool, an intelligent system designed to translate the performance data collected by the company’s tracking platform into personalized coaching recommendations for players and coaching staff.
DRIVE’s technology uses lightweight sensors mounted on player shoulder pads, combined with Smart Arena sensors, to capture fitness, skill, tactical, and positional data. The company says the goal is to bring NHL-calibre analytics to amateur hockey by giving athletes, coaches, and organizations access to performance insights that have traditionally been limited to elite levels of the game.
The company’s Sports AI initiative will be led by Krishant Akella, DRIVE’s lead applied data scientist. Akella is a multi-patent author whose work supports DRIVE’s proprietary tracking and performance analytics architecture.
DRIVE also announced the appointment of Kevin Martin as Chief Experience Officer. Martin will lead the design and delivery of the company’s next-generation athlete intelligence platform as DRIVE looks to turn its growing data science capabilities into a product experience for players and coaches.
Martin brings more than 25 years of experience building technology products, teams, and data-rich platforms across AI, mobile, and user experience. He previously served as VP Product at a growth-stage fintech company providing AI-powered financial and background verification services to the rental property sector, and earlier co-founded Pixel Tours, a Toronto-based design and development consultancy.
“DRIVE is capturing performance data that has not previously been available to athletes at this level,” said Martin. “My focus is to turn that intelligence into an experience that is intuitive, actionable, and motivating. Data alone is valuable, but paired with an exceptional user experience, it becomes a game changer.”
The announcements come as DRIVE reports rising adoption across amateur hockey. The company says it tracked more players by June 2026 than it did in all of 2025, reflecting growing demand from hockey families, leagues, and associations for performance data.
DRIVE’s hybrid infrastructure supports both portable event-based deployment and permanent arena installation, allowing the company to expand across new markets and age groups.
The company, which holds patents pending on its core tracking architecture in North America and Europe, says its system combines biomechanical and positioning sensor fusion with AI to capture performance data that video alone cannot see.
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