Obituatry: Karl Kenny, Kraken Robotics Founder

Kraken Robotics announced the passing of Founder and former CEO, Karl Kenny on February 11, 2025, at the age of 64. Karl founded Kraken in 2012 and was instrumental in building the company into a leading player in subsea robotics over his 10-year tenure, before retiring in December 2022.

“An ideas man and a builder, Karl’s energy was as relentless as his passion to compete against the bigger industry players,” said Greg Reid, President and CEO of Kraken Robotics. “He was an incredible force that drove Kraken to success. On behalf of the Board of Directors, management and employees, he will be sorely missed.”

Karl grew up in a small fishing village in Newfoundland with a deep connection to the sea. Over his 45-year career in the marine technology industry, he led the development of a wide range of advanced marine technologies and products in Canada, the United States, and Europe.

Karl spent time as a maritime surface officer with the Canadian Navy and was always involved in high technology. In the 1980’s, he was a part of the Microsoft mouse project team and in the 1990’s he formed Telepix, a leader in photo e-commerce solutions. He co-founded Marport Deep Sea Technologies Inc. in July 2003 and served as its President and CEO until December 2011. In 2012, Karl founded Kraken to commercialize compact, lower-cost synthetic aperture sonar technology for unmanned systems.

“Karl’s strategic vision and entrepreneurial spirit enabled Kraken, a small start-up out of Newfoundland, to punch well above our weight and become recognized world-wide for our high-resolution synthetic aperture sonar technology,” said David Shea, Executive Vice President and CTO of Kraken Robotics. “We’re grateful for everything Karl contributed to Kraken and recognize that he leaves behind a legacy of innovation and excellence that we will continue to carry on in our work.”

Falmouth Scientific’s AquaPulseTM Hits Milestone

Falmouth Scientific, Inc. (FSI) said that its AquaPulse Acoustic System has exceeded 10 million shots in a recent survey without maintenance, failure, or any change in acoustic output, highlighting its reliability and consistency for marine geophysical surveys.

“AquaPulse’s ability to sustain repeatable acoustic performance over millions of shots without maintenance sets a new standard for reliability in marine surveys,” said Fred Hegg VP of Business Development at Falmouth Scientific.

AquaPulse delivers high-resolution, bubbleless acoustic pulses for sediment profiling. The high energy low frequency source output was able to produce acoustic images to depths of 1000m below the seabed in 10m water depth. The AquaPulse stands out among other acoustic sources in the survey space that also utilizes traditional seismic sources, such as sparkers, boomers, and air guns. These devices require tip replacement, source plate energy degradation and mechanical parts replacement, and rebuilds. The AquaPulse does not require any of these maintenance tasks to maintain a repeatable acoustic output signature. No specialized power source is required for vessel integration. The AquaPulse operates on a standard 120V/220V outlet with minimal energy consumption (1-2 kW). Pre- and post-project testing confirmed no change in the system’s acoustic signature after 10M shots, proving outstanding, consistent, repeatable performance.

£4 m to Boost Marine Robotics

The UK’s National Oceanography Center (NOC) has been awarded £4 million to bring next-generation sensing capabilities to its marine autonomous systems fleet for use in advancing sustainable ocean science. The funding, from the Natural Environment Research Council’s (NERC’s) Future Marine Research Infrastructure (FMRI) program, will support three projects by leading scientists and engineers at NOC to develop advanced sensors targeting 10 different biogeochemical essential ocean variables, from physics to nutrients and carbon. These will then be integrated on to autonomous underwater vehicles such as gliders and NOC’s Autosub Long Range (ALR). The funding will support sensor development projects, the integration of these sensors into autonomous platforms, enhancing data management systems and targeting comprehensive validation trials by summer 2026.

The three sensor projects are:

• Autonomous Sensors for fast In-situ Measurements of nutrient Ocean Variables (ASIMOV) – led by Dr Allison Schaap, will increase performance, speed, and reliability of nitrate and phosphate lab-on-chip sensors for use on Teledyne Slocum gliders.

• Marine Sensors for Carbon Observations (MaSCOt) – to advance and optimise for use on gliders high-accuracy and precision lab-on-chip sensors for the marine carbonate system.

• SixSense – led by Dr Andrew Morris, and as previously announced, will create a miniature multi-parameter sensor capable of measuring six key parameters covering biogeochemical, physical and environmental measurements (conductivity, temperature, dissolved oxygen, pressure, pH and Eh), to be integrated onto ALRs, gliders and other platforms, such as submersibles and profiling floats.

Next Ocean secures investment to scale offshore safety technology

Predicting ship motions wave by wave for safer and more efficient operations

Next Ocean, a pioneer in Vessel Motion Radar technology, has secured Seed Investment from Arches Capital to drive its expansion and enhance maritime safety worldwide. This funding will accelerate Next Ocean’s growth, enabling the company to scale production, expand into new markets, and further develop its predictive radar technology.

Over the past years, Next Ocean has successfully delivered numerous Vessel Motion Radar systems to leading companies in the Offshore Wind and Oil & Gas industries. The technology provides real-time insights into wave-induced vessel motions, enabling operators to anticipate conditions up to three minutes ahead. This precision allows for safer and more efficient offshore operations, minimizing operational risks and maximizing uptime, even in rough weather.

With this investment, Next Ocean will enhance its commercial reach and solidify its leadership in maritime safety technology. Partnering with Arches Capital and their network of successful former entrepreneurs brings strategic expertise to help Next Ocean expand its impact globally.

Teledyne inks Deal with Swedish Defense Material Administration

Teledyne Gavia ehf. announced the signature of a multi-year Framework Agreement for the delivery and support of GAVIA Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUV) for the Swedish Armed Forces (SwAF). The Gavia vehicles will be dedicated to Mine Counter Measures (MCM) applications.

The award of the Framework Agreement follows an international open tender last year with FMV selecting the GAVIA AUV with the highest meritorious score against their technical requirements.

Teledyne Gavia ehf offered its GAVIA AUV fitted with an EdgeTech 2205 side scan sonar and a Teledyne Flir Blackfly-S camera. Thanks to the GAVIA’s AUVs modularity, the Swedish Navy will also be able to add other payloads such as synthetic aperture sonar, magnetometers, or multibeams as mission requirements evolve.

The Framework Agreement will run over several years and has the option for extensions.

IHO Work Group Endorses Guide for Nautical Data 2.1

During a meeting on December 4, 2024, the International Hydrographic Organization Nautical Information Provision Work Group (IHO NIPWG) held a vote on the new Guide for Nautical Data 2.1. The guide was unanimously endorsed.

The guide has been written, with contributory input from International Harbor Masters Association (IHMA) members around the world, to support hydrographic offices and port authorities in the discharge of their collective responsibilities as per the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) Chapter V, Regulation 9: Hydrographic Services.

SOLAS sets out the minimum standards for the construction, equipment, and operation of ships, compatible with their safety. Specifically, Chapter V, Regulation 9 relates to the collection, compilation, maintenance and dissemination of information necessary for safe navigation.

It requires the undertaking of hydrographic surveys and the preparation and issue of a range of information such as nautical charts, sailing directions, lists of lights and tide tables. Under the regulation, hydrographic offices and port authorities are required to coordinate their activities as far as possible to ensure the timely, reliable production and circulation of unambiguous and uniform nautical publications.