Marks of progress
Ten articles that follow SeaBrick from a research document in 2021 to the mineral-foam brick of 2026, written from the project's own records.
Mineral foam and fibre: where the material stands
The SeaBrick material is a light mineral foam inside a dense mineral shell, with organic fibre throughout that mineralizes into an internal scaffold. Here is the thinking.
An afternoon with a thousand bricks
On 13 June 2026 a small group of friends, advisors and one very focused four-year-old spent an afternoon building with about a thousand printed model bricks. It was the first time the whole family of shapes had been in one room.
The shape of a brick
Five years, more than twenty versions and a few thousand 3D prints: how the SeaBrick went from a square slab to a hexagonal system brick.
When the seaweed did not arrive
The year SeaBrick learned that a brilliant material is only as good as its supply chain, and found that flax and hemp could do the job the kelp had been doing.
A paper trail: SeaBrick's patent history
What has been filed, and when.
Keeping the water out
A floating brick lives or dies by what water does to it. The 2025 waterproofing study, a brick that turns to stone, and gel between the bricks are three answers to the same question.
A research year on two coasts
In 2024 the materials work moved to Perth, the brick's shape took a large step with the hinge-lock, and a small Ocean Supercluster grant brought the research back to Vancouver for 2025.
A spotlight, an accelerator and an Earthshot nomination
In 2023 the project joined the Third Derivative climate accelerator, won the Climate Spotlight Award at the Ocean Impact Pitchfest, and was nominated for the Earthshot Prize.
The UBC years: six students, a press and a block that floated
SeaBrick's first material was made at UBC: a Capstone team in 2022, a research agreement in 2023, and the kelp composite that came to be called Kelpstone.
Bricks are the means, not the end
SeaBrick Society was formed in February 2022. Here is what it is for, and why a brick needs a nonprofit.