In context
In September 2023, the push for autonomous data collection in harsh environments was gaining momentum, particularly for oceanic and climate research. Saildrone, a startup specializing in uncrewed surface vehicles (USVs), was at the forefront, leveraging edge AI to make long-duration, data-intensive missions feasible.
What was reported
Saildrone, based in the San Francisco Bay Area, develops autonomous USVs equipped with a wide range of sensors for studying weather, marine life, and ocean mapping. The vehicles have tracked hurricanes in the North Atlantic, discovered a 3,200-foot underwater mountain in the Pacific, and contributed to mapping the ocean floor. Data processing is handled on Nvidia Jetson modules for edge AI, with prototypes using the Nvidia DeepStream SDK for intelligent video analytics.
The company offers three USV models and a Mission Portal control center for near real-time monitoring. A recent 370-day voyage monitored carbon dioxide across the Atlantic, running mostly on solar and wind power. Energy-efficient computing is critical, as noted by VP Blythe Towal: “With solar power, being able to keep our compute load power efficiency lower than a typical computing platform running GPUs by implementing Nvidia Jetson is important for enabling us to do these kinds of missions.”
Saildrone has partnered with Seabed 2030 to map the world’s oceans by 2030. The University of Hawaii at Manoa is using three 23-foot Saildrone Explorers to study ocean acidification. The company has raised $190 million and is part of Nvidia Inception.
Why it mattered
Saildrone’s approach demonstrated how edge AI and autonomous platforms could enable cost-effective, long-duration environmental monitoring, reducing the need for crewed vessels and opening new possibilities for data collection in remote and hazardous conditions. This had implications for climate research, fisheries management, and maritime security, and highlighted the growing role of AI in industrial automation beyond factory floors.
“Saildrone’s vision is of a healthy ocean and a sustainable planet. A complete map of the ocean floor is fundamental to achieving that vision.”
Source: Robotics & Automation News (roboticsandautomationnews.com) · Published 2023-09-06 · “Sailing seas of data: Autonomous Saildrone vessel to study Earth’s oceans, weather and marine life”