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When artificial intelligence (AI) and digitalization are discussed in maritime, attention still gravitates toward autonomous ships. Yet the market is not about de-crewing but, rather, applying vessel and shore data to make operations safer, more fuel-efficient, and easier to maintain.As of 2024, the maritime AI market stood at $4.13 billion, with a projected five-year CAGR of 23%. Market-size estimates should be treated cautiously, but the direction is hard to miss – AI solutions have advanced from trials into voyage planning, machinery monitoring, bridge decision support, port coordination, and digital assurance.

Accelerating demand for subsea power and telecoms cable network construction is fuelling major expansion of the world fleet of purpose-designed cable laying, maintenance and repair vessels.Driven by the growth of the offshore renewables sector and its advance into deeper waters, as well as by widening investment in cables connecting electrical grids in different countries, emergent generations of cable ship are distinguished by scale, productivity, and technological intensity.  Ongoing geopolitical tensions are also giving a fillip to the development of subsea cable infrastructure

Norwegian maritime technology company Kongsberg Maritime has unveiled the Arctic Hunter USV, a new class of uncrewed surface vessels designed for rapid integration and deployment into Hybrid Fleets.In response to the UK Royal Navy’s development of its hybrid fleet of crewed and uncrewed assets, the Arctic Hunter USV combines commercial ship design with Kongsberg Maritime’s remote and autonomous technologies to deliver anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capability in the High North.Kongsberg Maritime has selected one of its Arctic commercial vessel designs to adapt and optimize for the Royal Navy’s Type 92 ASW requirement.

Ethanol could be used to fuel a growing fleet of methanol-capable ships with limited modifications to existing dual-fuel engines and bunkering infrastructure, offering an alternative as supplies of low-emission methanol remain constrained, according to a new industry study.The study, published by the Maritime Ethanol & Methanol Alliance (MEMA), a platform of the Global Centre for Green Fuels (GCGF), found that ethanol could support more than 300 methanol-capable vessels currently in service or on order, either independently or blended with methanol.The United States has approximately 2 billion gallons of spare annual ethanol production capacity, with plants capable of producing 18.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) has opened applications for licenses to operate up to two liquefied natural gas (LNG) floating storage units (FSUs) in Singapore anchorages, aiming to expand LNG bunkering capacity and strengthen supply resilience.The initiative follows the award of eight new LNG bunker supplier licences in July 2026 and is intended to diversify LNG storage and reloading options.Applications are open to existing LNG bunker licensees, which may partner with third-party terminal operators to provide storage and operational expertise.