Bedrock Ocean Raises $25M to Advance Robotic Seafloor Mapping
Despite oceans covering over 70% of Earth's surface, our maps of the seabed remain far less detailed than those of the moon. The difficulty stems from the ocean's obscured floor and the challenging environment that restricts human exploration. However, advancements in robotics are now enabling clearer and more extensive exploration of the deep sea.
Introducing Bedrock Ocean's Autonomous Seafloor Mapping
Several startups are competing to enhance ocean floor mapping, with Bedrock Ocean being the latest to secure significant funding. The company recently closed a $25 million Series A-2 funding round led by Primary Venture Partners and Northzone, including investments from Autopilot, Costanoa Ventures, Harmony Partners, Katapult, and Mana Ventures.
Bedrock Ocean has developed autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) capable of operating up to 12 hours on lithium-ion batteries. These AUVs employ sonar and magnetic sensors to extensively map the ocean floor efficiently and with minimal environmental impact.
Advantages Over Traditional Mapping Methods
Conventionally, dense and costly mapping is done by large ships that emit powerful sonar pulses. These ships consume considerable fuel, require human crews, and disrupt marine life. Bedrock Ocean's AUVs, although deployed from ships, operate independently once underwater. Two AUVs can cover the area of one traditional ship, and a single 40-foot vessel can deploy 10 to 12 of these vehicles, significantly increasing coverage and reducing operational costs.
The company designs and manufactures its own AUVs, with each unit costing under $1 million. Additionally, Bedrock develops proprietary software for vehicle operation and mapping processing. The AUVs collect and store data onboard, surfacing periodically to transmit information via Wi-Fi to the deployment ship. From there, a Starlink antenna sends data to the cloud, allowing remote monitoring.
High-Quality Data with Minimal Environmental Impact
Bedrock Ocean's AUVs navigate five to ten meters above the seafloor, utilizing low-power sonar at frequencies outside the typical auditory range of marine mammals. This approach minimizes environmental disruption compared to traditional sonar emitted from the ocean surface.
Their mapping accuracy is within one to two meters, somewhat less precise than sub-meter accuracy achievable from surface ships due to the AUVs' loss of GPS underwater, relying instead on inertial navigation systems.
However, Bedrock’s CEO, Brandon Mah, notes that many underwater operations do not require ultra-high precision and benefit more from faster, cheaper surveys. For example, offshore wind projects might use detailed surveys initially but rely on quicker, less detailed mapping for subsequent development stages.
Applications and Market Interest
Bedrock Ocean has conducted paid surveys recently for offshore wind development, oil and gas industries, and environmental assessments. The capability to quickly process and view survey data has also attracted interest from the U.S. Navy, which has been impressed by the technology's real-time monitoring and data quality.
DeepFounder AI Analysis
Why it matters
The advancement of autonomous underwater mapping marks a significant technological evolution that opens new avenues for exploring and utilizing marine environments. This shift from traditional ship-based surveying to robotic, autonomous systems indicates a broader move towards automation and efficiency in ocean science and related industries such as renewable energy, environmental monitoring, and defense.
Risks & opportunities
The use of AUVs presents opportunities to drastically reduce survey costs and environmental impact, enhancing data availability for sectors relying on seafloor mapping. However, risks include technology adoption hurdles, potential regulatory restrictions concerning underwater operations, and competition among numerous startups vying for market share. History shows that successful integration of autonomous systems often requires overcoming technology reliability and trust issues before widespread adoption.
Startup idea or application
An innovative startup idea would be a platform that integrates real-time data from multiple AUV providers, including Bedrock Ocean, to offer seamless, customized ocean floor mapping services. This service could provide clients with on-demand, tiered accuracy surveys tailored to specific industry needs such as offshore wind site assessment, subsea infrastructure planning, or marine environmental impact studies.
Ocean Mapping Robotics AUV Technology Environmental Tech Fundraising
Visit DeepFounder AI to learn how to start your own startup, validate your idea, and build it from scratch.
📚 Read more articles in our DeepFounder AI blog.