Sea.AI, a company that uses artificial intelligence technology to try and improve safety at sea through better situational awareness at the helm, premiered its Watchkeeper system this month at the Palm Beach International Boat Show.
Watchkeeper uses Sea.AI’s database of millions of annotated marine objects—floating debris, rafts, buoys, boats not equipped with AIS, and more—to help skippers and crew see hazards and avoid accidents. The idea behind Watchkeeper is to bring this kind of affordable, AI-powered collision-avoidance technology to more recreational boaters, including those who own powerboats and fishing boats of most sizes.
“Our goal with Watchkeeper is to bring advanced safety technology to more boaters, at a price point that makes sense for a broad range of applications,” Marcus Warrelmann, CEO of Sea.AI, stated in a press release. “Collisions are the first event in more than half of all boating accidents and injuries. With automated real-time alerts, Watchkeeper is your extra set of eyes on the water, working in all light conditions and sea states.”
The price point for Watchkeeper starts at $4,999. That includes a 4K low-light camera with an ultrawide field of view; built-in GPS; and Sea.AI software for object recognition. For boaters who need full night-vision capabilities, there’s also a version of the system with integrated long-wave infrared thermal cameras.
Watchkeeper adds to Sea.AI’s existing portfolio of products, which includes the flagship offering called Sentry for large yachts and commercial vessels. Sentry is a 360-degree, AI-powered perimeter surveillance system that provides real-time tracking of people who go overboard, floating hazards, unlit objects and unauthorized approaches, even in total darkness.
Sea.AI also makes products specifically for bluewater sailors, as well as products for racing sailors whose boats have rotating masts. The company’s goal with all of its products is to combine the latest camera technology with artificial intelligence, to give skippers and crewmembers better situational awareness and detection capability than conventional systems such as radar and AIS.
What else did Sea.AI display at the Palm Beach International Boat Show? The company also used the event to promote Brain, which is an add-on product that lets vessels upgrade existing thermal cameras to integrate AI-powered object detection and collision avoidance with automatic alarms. Brain detects small objects, including people who fall overboard, and has real-time alerts to improve situational awareness at the helm.
Take the next step: learn more about all this AI-augmented technology at sea.ai
