The National Science Foundation (NSF) has awarded MBARI $5 million for Ocean Vision AI, a new program that leverages artificial intelligence and machine learning to accelerate processing of—and access to—ocean video and imagery to enable effective marine stewardship.

Ocean Vision AI combines the expertise of MBARI, the Central and Northern California Ocean Observing System (CeNCOOS), Climate Change AI, CVision AI, Ocean Discovery League, and the University of California, Santa Cruz, to create a machine-learning platform that will aid the processing of underwater visual data with a globally integrated network of services, tools, and diverse community of users. Ocean Vision AI’s scope goes beyond data aggregation and processing pipelines. This project will also develop a video game to cultivate a community of ocean enthusiasts that can help improve machine-learning models.

“MBARI and our collaborators are excited to leverage the power of artificial intelligence, community science, and gaming to accelerate the analysis of ocean data. Together, we’re developing tools that are urgently needed to help us better understand and protect our blue planet,” said Kakani Katija, a principal engineer at MBARI and the lead principal investigator for Ocean Vision AI.

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