Fully autonomous surface ships (MASS) : challenges, opportunities, and the path toward sustainable and secure operations

Vakili, Seyedvahid, Turnock, Stephen, Prince, Martyn and Raja, Nikhil (2026) Fully autonomous surface ships (MASS) : challenges, opportunities, and the path toward sustainable and secure operations. Collette, Matthew, Quail, Bridget and Sulkowski, Brendan (eds.) In Proceedings of the 16th International Symposium on Practical Design of Ships and Other Floating Structures. (doi:10.7302/dspace/29928).

Abstract

Crewless ships offer the prospect of reduced operational costs, reduced risk of onboard harm and an alternative approach to ship design without the need for accommodation and other physical spaces used by the crew. The degree of autonomy that would be required by such ships is an open question with there still being areas of the world’s ocean with limited access to data at the necessary bandwidth. This study explores the challenges and opportunities associated with deploying fully autonomous commercial vessels, examining societal, legal, security, and operational dimensions. Key findings indicate that societal acceptance is hindered by ethical concerns and workforce displacement. Legally, existing international and national frameworks, require adaptations to accommodate autonomous systems. Operational risks, particularly cybersecurity vulnerabilities, underscore the need for robust threat detection and secure communication protocols. Environmental analysis reveals that MASS has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through green technologies and route optimization. However, the operational and environmental implications of integrating autonomous systems in with crewed vessels remain underexplored. The timeline for full deployment is contingent on technological advancements, regulatory reform, and the development of a skilled workforce. This study highlights the milestones, including incremental deployment of semi-autonomous systems and international collaboration for standardization. While MASS promises enhanced operational flexibility and safety, challenges such as emergency response in uncrewed scenarios and the ethical considerations of fully autonomous systems persist. Successful adoption will rely on addressing barriers through interdisciplinary collaboration, regulatory adaptation, and ongoing innovation. As always with ship design it will be the cost effectiveness of MASS solutions that will ultimately answer the question as to whether fully autonomous ships will operate and up to what physical scale. Various scenarios and associated timescales will be explore examining the likely workload for shore-based crew alongside the development challenges and the capital costs for the technologies considered.

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Contributors

Author: Seyedvahid Vakili

Author: Stephen Turnock

Author: Martyn Prince

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