AI is used in both manned and unmanned marine vehicles market to enhance the safety and control of vessels. AI technology helps automate and optimize speed, immediate-course, and whole-voyage-routing for fuel-efficiency; ultimately, cost-saving for vessel owners and fleet managers. It also helps provide real-time weather, current data, an automatic identification system (AIS), and sensor data paired with computer vision and modeling that helps set direction decisions and may help recognize whether to avoid or pursue any obstacle in the underwater environment. For instance, Marine AI Ltd, a UK-based company who create artificial intelligence to enhance maritime capabilities, offers AI products such as ‘Guardian System’ that makes use of AI technology while ensuring regulatory compliance, paired with advanced lidar sensors from partners Ouster.
The autonomous marine vehicles market is segmented by type into surface vehicle and underwater vehicle; by application into military and defense, archeological, exploration, oil and gas, environmental protection and monitoring, search and salvage operations, and oceanography; by technology into imaging, navigation, communication, and collision avoidance.
The rise in emerging technologies and overall technological advancements is a key trend gaining popularity in the autonomous marine vehicles market. Automation technology in maritime has seen traction in various aspects, such as partnering automated crane-equipped container ships with autonomous port vehicles to help with a faster and reliable transfer of containers from vessels to trucks and other inland transportation. This partnership would help increase the efficiency of smaller ports that face delays. Furthermore, specialized navigation technology is being developed for narrow and shallow channels of inland routes. This is done by employing echo-location through 3D sonar sensors, paired with sophisticated waterproof microphones, these microphones emit sound waves which produce echoes when they come into contact with another object, helping to avoid obstacles and proving to be a useful aid for the autonomous underwater vehicles market. Moreover, technologies have been developed for automatic water sampling and asset integrity monitoring. For instance, Clean Sea is a patented advanced robotic technology aimed at providing cost-effective solutions built around a unique concept of hybrid, modular, and low-logistics ROV/AUV (Automated Underwater Vehicle).
Asia Pacific has the largest share in the autonomous marine vehicles industry, accounting for 42.9% of the total in 2021. It is followed by North America and then the other regions. Going forward, the fastest-growing regions in the autonomous marine vehicles market will be Africa and Middle East where growth will be at CAGRs of 20.4% and 19.0% respectively. These will be followed by Asia Pacific, and Eastern Europe.
The global autonomous marine vehicles market size experienced a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 7.9% in 2021. The growth is mainly due to the companies resuming their operations and adapting to the new normal while recovering from the COVID-19 impact, which had earlier led to restrictive containment measures involving social distancing, remote working, and the closure of commercial activities that resulted in operational challenges. The autonomous marine vehicles market is expected to reach $5.1 billion in 2025 at a CAGR of 10.4%.
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