Autonomous shipping advancement faces regulatory and safety challenges, EU-funded program paves the way for industry evolution

A cargo ship successfully completed a 13-hour voyage last year, but it wasn’t an ordinary vessel. The journey was part of the EU-funded AUTOSHIP program aimed at developing new technologies for navigating large ships autonomously. This significant advancement in autonomous technology is still facing numerous obstacles before being ready to hit primetime shipping routes. One major hurdle that must be overcome is gaining customer trust and obtaining regulatory approval from maritime regulators across different countries. South Korean conglomerate Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) has also been making significant strides in this area, retrofitting one of its vessels with automated technology last year. The use of radar and sensor technologies allows for the automation process to take place without any human intervention on board. However, there are still many issues that need addressing before fully autonomous ships can be operational at sea, including context awareness when dealing with more significant volumes of maritime traffic or infrastructure such as offshore wind farms nearer land. The U.K.’s Hydrographic Office is currently working to develop standards for how machines will read its charts and graphs used in navigation. As the technology continues to evolve over time, R&D specialists will tackle many additional considerations including safety issues related to piracy or collisions at sea. While larger players like Kongsberg Maritime and Samsung Heavy Industries have taken a leading role in developing autonomous shipping technologies thus far, younger companies focused on optimizing domestic infrastructure through digitization and automation may also find opportunities for growth as the industry evolves over time. These businesses could contribute by providing tech such as sensors or AI to improve port efficiency once cargo vessels arrive at ports like Los Angeles (LA) or Newark.