Underwater Drones and Aquaculture

Underwater Drones and Aquaculture: A New Frontier

When you sit down to enjoy fresh salmon, shrimp, or lobster, it’s easy to forget the complex world beneath the water that brought it to your plate. Aquaculture—the farming of fish, shellfish, and other

aquatic life—has become essential to global food supplies. But keeping track of what’s happening underwater has always been a challenge. Enter underwater drones, powered by AI, offering a new way to monitor, manage, and sustain aquatic food production.

Seeing What the Eye Can’t

Above ground, drones have transformed farming and ranching. Below the water’s surface, the challenge is even greater. Visibility is low, currents shift, and problems like disease or equipment failure can go unnoticed until it’s too late.

Real-world example: Companies like Blueye Robotics and OpenROV have developed compact underwater drones used by fish farmers to inspect pens, nets, and cages. Instead of sending divers for routine checks, drones can stream high-definition video and flag potential issues using AI image analysis.

Practical Benefits for Aquaculture

• Health Monitoring: AI can analyze fish behavior, spotting unusual swimming patterns or feeding activity that might signal disease.
• Infrastructure Checks: Underwater drones can scan nets for holes, ensuring fish stay in and predators stay out.
• Harvest Efficiency: Farmers can time harvests better by visually monitoring growth and density without physically handling fish until the right moment.

Imagine a small family-owned lobster business in Maine. Instead of making daily dives to check traps, their underwater drone patrols the area, reporting exactly which traps are full and which ones are empty. A text alert on their phone saves hours of guesswork and keeps their harvest efficient.

Beyond Farming: Fishing Applications

Underwater drones aren’t just for farms—they’re beginning to influence recreational and commercial fishing too. For the weekend angler, these drones can provide a new kind of “fish finder,” not only identifying safe spots in murky water but also giving a real-time visual of underwater structures and schools of fish. Instead of relying solely on instinct or sonar blips, anglers can make more informed choices about where to cast. This can turn a frustrating day on the water into a successful outing, especially in unfamiliar lakes or coastal areas.

Commercial fishing operations are also exploring drone technology for sustainability. AI-equipped drones can survey fish populations and migration patterns with greater precision than traditional methods, reducing the risk of overfishing. By assessing the density, size, and even species of fish in a given area, drones allow operators to make smarter decisions about when and where to deploy nets. This helps balance the demand for seafood with the long-term health of marine ecosystems.

Drones can play a role in safety. Fishing in deep waters or harsh environments carries risks, and sending human divers down to check nets or traps is costly and potentially dangerous. Underwater drones, however, can perform these tasks quickly and safely, reducing the need for hazardous dives while still ensuring equipment is functioning and catches are handled efficiently. This is particularly useful in lobster or crab fisheries where traps can be scattered across large, difficult-to-access areas.

Ultimately, this isn’t about “cheating”—it’s about better stewardship of aquatic resources. By combining centuries-old traditions of fishing with the precision of modern AI, we create a model where technology supports sustainability. Recreational anglers enjoy smarter, safer outings, and commercial fleets harvest responsibly, ensuring that the oceans, rivers, and lakes continue to provide nourishment for generations to come.

AI’s Creative Flair

AI doesn’t stop at surveillance. By combining underwater video with environmental sensors, AI can recommend optimal feeding schedules, track water quality, or even forecast algae blooms that could threaten entire stocks. This transforms aquaculture from reactive to proactive management—keeping food supplies steady and sustainable.

Final Thought

The sea has always been mysterious, but underwater drones are giving us a new set of eyes beneath the surface. They don’t replace the hard work of fishermen and aquaculture farmers—they empower it, making food production safer, more sustainable, and more efficient.

If you had an underwater drone, would you use it for farming, fishing, or simply exploring the hidden world below?