UK Hydrographic Office Teams With AI Firm on Project to Teach Uncrewed Vessels to ‘Read’ Navigation Data

21st October 2025

Afloat.ie Team

It’s hoped that Marine AI’s GuardianAI software will be tested with ZeroUSV’s Oceanus12 on Plymouth’s waterways by spring 2026 Credit: ZeroUSV

A world-first project in the UK aims to teach autonomous vessels to ‘read’ and act upon navigation data previously only usable by human mariners.

The UK Hydrographic Office (UKHO) in Taunton, Somerset is working with Marine AI, a Plymouth-based maritime autonomy software firm, on the eight-month project that will see the latter fine-tune its GuardianAI large language model (LLM) on Admiralty Sailing Directions and Radio Navigation Warnings.

Currently this information is written in natural language for human interpretation. This data is heavy in unstructured text, often described with non-standard nautical terms and distributed via legacy systems.

The project aims to address these challenges for maritime autonomous surface ships (MASS) by developing AI agents to structure the data before it’s fed into GuardianAI’s ‘tactical engine’. The results could be a breakthrough for global shipping by allowing uncrewed vessels to make safe, real-time decisions with the same data used by professional mariners.

It’s hoped that the first live on-water testing will commence next spring, using ZeroUSV’s Oceanus12 vessel equipped with Marine AI's GuardianAI suite on Plymouth's waterways.

Oliver Thompson, technical director at Marine AI, says: "This is the first time anyone has attempted to process Admiralty Sailing Directions and Radio Navigation Warnings in a way that an autonomous control system can act upon.

“By proving this capability on the water, we are closing one of the biggest gaps in MASS autonomy and taking a major step toward safe, fully automated operations.”

Mark Casey, head of research, design and innovation at the UK Hydrographic Office adds: “Working with Marine AI allows us to push the boundaries of how autonomous systems can use official hydrographic information.

“The outcomes will not only support the safety of lives at sea but also feed directly into the development of the IHO’s S-100 framework, ensuring that UKHO data continues to set the global benchmark for safe navigation in both crewed and uncrewed vessels.”

Autonomous shipping is a key priority for the UK maritime sector, with Plymouth already established as a national testbed for MASS technology.

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