“How inappropriate to call this planet Earth when it is quite clearly Ocean.”
This line by the famous futurist and science-fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke is a humbling reminder of just how vast our oceans truly are. Oceans are central to the stability of our planet, yet our ability to observe their health, dynamics, and pressures remains fragmented and uneven. At the same time, demands for ocean knowledge are increasing: from climate impacts and biodiversity loss to maritime security and the protection of critical underwater infrastructures.
Over recent months, in the context of the FUTURINNOV project developed with the European Innovation Council, and together with colleagues from Directorates-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries and Research and Innovation, we carried out a comprehensive technology foresight exercise on ocean observation. We relied on the collective intelligence of more than 30 external experts from academia, research-performing organisations, industry, and policymaking. The goal was straightforward but ambitious: to understand which emerging technologies and breakthrough innovations are most likely to shape how we observe the ocean in the years ahead.
What stood out from the discussions:
Eight observation technologies were highlighted, including:
- autonomous eDNA/eRNA samplers (see p. 4 of the report);
- lab-on-chip systems (see p. 5);
- cost-effective and modular sensors (see p. 6);
- distributed acoustic sensing (p.7);
- deep-learning-enabled imaging flow cytometry (p.8) and
- particle-based high-frequency observations of plankton (p.9).
Four enabling technology and innovation fields were pointed out as key for the advancement of this field:
- expanding in-situ observation;
- data interoperability and integration;
- autonomous surface and underwater vehicles; and
- Artificial Intelligence
| AI is becoming an important enabling technology for many ocean research and monitoring tasks. It helps collect, understand, and use data in smarter ways. AI can combine data from many sources to fill gaps and give a clearer picture of ocean changes. It can clean up noisy data and separate real signals, like whale sounds. AI also helps spot things such as oil spills or fish movements in large datasets. It supports pollution control, smarter resource management, and makes underwater vehicles and platforms more autonomous and safer. |
Participants also stressed the importance of contextual factors for the development and uptake of these technologies:
- from data standards and taxonomic expertise, to
- the tension between budget constraints and rising monitoring needs,
- accelerating environmental change requiring near-real-time detection, and
- geopolitical factors influencing cooperation and dual-use technologies.
| Dual-use technology is an increasingly important feature of ocean observation under current geopolitical tensions. Our report highlights that some technologies designed for environmental monitoring can also support security and defence purposes, particularly distributed acoustic sensing, which can help detect both wild-life and vessel activity, and autonomous surface/underwater vehicles, whose endurance, secure autonomy and coordinated sensing enable both scientific missions and situational awareness. The policy section notes this dual-use dynamic may accelerate investment but can also constrain access, deployment and international data sharing, shaping governance and partnerships. |
Overall, the message is clear: the future of ocean observation will not be driven by a single solution, but by convergence - technological and human. It will rely on integrating diverse sensors, autonomous platforms, and AI-enabled analytics. But importantly it also relies on the broad cooperation among engineers, scientists, local communities, and commercial operators, all working toward continuous, trusted, and policy-relevant observations in a rapidly changing ocean environment.
The publication comes at a timely moment, during the 2026 European Ocean Days, and shortly before President Ursula von der Leyen announces new initiatives to strengthen Europe’s ambition in ocean observation.
Because understanding the ocean better is no longer just a scientific challenge — it is a strategic necessity.
Read the full Observing the Future report
- Publication date
- 2 March 2026
- Author
- Joint Research Centre
- Departments
- Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency
- EU Policy Lab tags
