Ai2 and Global Fishing Watch unite to bring AI agents to ocean monitoring

Strategic partnership brings next-generation AI and satellite analytics to ocean monitoring, advancing responsible AI through transparency and human oversight

NEW YORK, NY, UNITED STATES, September 23, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ — Ai2, the nonprofit AI lab behind the Skylight maritime intelligence platform, and Global Fishing Watch, the international organization advancing ocean governance through transparency of human activity at sea, today announced a partnership to bring cutting-edge technology and AI agents to ocean monitoring and enforcement, giving authorities around the world new tools to detect, analyze and investigate activity at sea.

Announced at Climate Week NYC 2026, the collaboration pairs Ai2’s state-of-the-art AI models and Skylight’s enforcement-tailored detection capabilities with Global Fishing Watch’s mapping technology, ocean data and international experience supporting governments with fisheries monitoring and enforcement. Moving beyond complementary technologies to true co-development, the two organizations plan to integrate the latest satellite data, build new and real-time computer vision models and explore AI agents that fuse data sources to uncover patterns an analyst might otherwise miss.

“AI is fundamentally changing how we access information about our ocean and the human activity that takes place on it,” said Tony Long, chief executive officer of Global Fishing Watch. “But the technology’s real value lies in its ability to get timely and actionable insights to those who can drive beneficial impact.”

Both organizations already build AI and work directly with maritime authorities. By combining forces, the two organizations are now seeking to scale their impacts, moving from distinct efforts to a unified detection pipeline, jointly developed AI models and a shared pool of maritime expertise. Transparency and human oversight will remain central to that work, with AI designed to support rather than replace human judgment. The technology can surface patterns and potential risks, while people determine what those signals mean and how to act on them.

“We are at an inflection point in deciding how AI enters the ocean space,” said Namrata Kolla, Head of Skylight. “Our maritime partners have made it clear that they care about having purpose-built AI where they own their own data, leverage open models, and decide what is the ‘right’ answer. Each step we take is pushing toward that vision.”

Scaling what works: from AI innovation to ocean action

Global Fishing Watch and Ai2 have long collaborated, sharing data, building vessel registry resources together and working concertedly as part of the Joint Analytical Cell, a coalition that pools analysis to support fisheries enforcement. Most recently, in March 2026, Skylight’s Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer Suite, or VIIRS, went live on the Global Fishing Watch map, showing near-real-time detections of vessel lights at night and giving users a fuller picture of ocean use.

The next iteration of the partnership will co-develop AI agents like Shippy, Skylight’s AI agent, to support enhanced analysis delivery. Rather than manually navigating datasets and analytical tools, users will now be able to ask about a vessel’s history, activity or unusual patterns around a marine protected area or within a particular region. After the prompt, the agent will search the relevant data and return vessels, events and insights for further investigation.

“By combining Ai2’s technological expertise with our data, platforms and partnerships around the world, we can accelerate the journey from detection to decision,” Long continued. “This will give governments, civil society and ocean stewards faster, more powerful ways to understand what is happening at sea and protect the resources under their care.”

The technical collaboration also extends beyond Shippy. Ai2 will make OlmoEarth available to Global Fishing Watch to support data annotation and model development, while the organizations will jointly develop machine learning models that can extract vessel detections and other insights from satellite imagery. Together, these capabilities will hasten the transformation of enormous volumes of raw ocean data into useful intelligence and support Global Fishing Watch’s ambition to map all human activity across the ocean by 2030.

In addition, Global Fishing Watch super users will now be able to craft a more immediate picture of the ocean as real-time vessel detections generated through Ai2’s Skylight platform are integrated into the Global Fishing Watch marine manager portal. Faster access to ocean intelligence will help accelerate the monitoring, control and surveillance of suspected illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in marine protected areas and bolstering enforcement efforts.

Building responsible AI for people and planet

Against that backdrop, the two organizations will also inaugurate a series of in-depth conversations within the environment and technology communities to promote AI best practices. Rooted in principles of transparency and equitable access, and grounded in rigorous impact assessment, the conversations seek to ensure that open AI standards and shared tools remain trustworthy, accountable, and designed for the global public good.

“Our goal isn’t AI for AI’s sake. Our focus is on using technology to make the ocean more visible and give decision-makers the critical information they need to ultimately enable better decisions and drive impact,” added Namrata Kolla. “ If we can make the extraordinary advances taking place in AI work for the ocean in an open and responsible way and with human oversight and at global scale, we can fundamentally change our ability to protect our planet’s most valuable resource.”

Andrew Giacalone
Global Fishing Watch
andrew.giacalone@globalfishingwatch.org
+1 6462621437