Digitalising seafarer credentials sounds straightforward, but replacing paper certificates with PDFs only solves part of the problem. In this episode of UnDocked, Nick Chubb and Raal Harris discuss new Thetius research into making crew qualifications more secure, interoperable and seafarer-friendly. They also cover Baltic maritime surveillance, GPS spoofing, a potential solution to shipping's 'sail fast and wait' problem and robotic hull cleaning.

CHAPTERS

• 05:52 – Thetius report: digital seafarer credentials
• 10:44 – Why scanned PDFs aren't enough
• 16:00 – The risks of paper certificates
• 21:44 – Creating a fake certificate with AI in 11 minutes
• 23:56 – Building trust in digital credentials
• 30:26 – Offline verification and interoperability
• 34:04 – Industry standards, seafarer rights and who pays
• 43:23 – Mysterious surveillance cameras in the Baltic
• 47:00 – Windward acquires Azimut AI
• 53:45 – GPS spoofing and navigational resilience
• 01:01:33 – StormGeo buys Portchain: fixing 'sail fast and wait'?
• 01:08:36 – Can MAGNETO clean your bottom?

Nick and Raal begin with Securing Trust: The Transition to Digital Seafarer Credentials, new research from Thetius commissioned by Maritime Passport.

The report examines how shipping can move beyond fragmented paper-based certification towards a system that allows qualifications to be securely issued, held and independently verified.

Nick recounts the experience of a master mariner carrying 4kg of certificates and demonstrates how he created a convincing fake training certificate using AI in just 11 minutes.

They discuss the importance of common standards, protecting personal information, offline verification and ensuring seafarers retain control over their credentials without having to pay for access to their right to work.

The conversation then moves to an unusual story from the Danish island of Bornholm, where a mysterious request to install coastal surveillance cameras eventually leads to Windward's acquisition of Azimut AI. Nick explains how computer vision could help track vessels operating without AIS.

Raal raises concerns about GPS interference, prompting a discussion about the vulnerability of interconnected bridge systems and whether traditional navigation skills, including celestial navigation, deserve renewed attention.

Next, StormGeo's acquisition of Portchain offers a potential route towards better coordination between vessel arrivals and terminal availability, tackling the persistent inefficiency of ships sailing at speed only to wait outside port.

Finally, Cargill's partnership with Neptune Robotics brings robotic hull cleaning into focus, with Nick and Raal considering the opportunities for safer maintenance and improved vessel efficiency.

Read the Thetius report:
https://thetius.com/securing-trust-the-transition-to-digital-seafarer-credentials/

EPISODE PARTNER

This episode is sponsored by Insight.

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Does keeping a human in the loop always produce better results? Heather Carroll, Chief Revenue Officer at Path Robotics, joins Nick Chubb and Raal Harris on UnDocked to explore how physical AI is changing robotic welding and what this could mean for shipbuilding, skilled workers and the future of maritime manufacturing.

CHAPTERS

00:00 – Heather's journey into robotic welding

02:53 – Robots, jobs and the shortage of welders

05:53 – How AI learns to weld through practice

09:07 – The origins of Path Robotics

16:01 – Why conventional automation struggles in shipyards

17:17 – Rove: the robot dog that can weld

19:16 – How automation could change skilled work

21:55 – The submarine welder's extraordinary working conditions

23:55 – Rebuilding American shipbuilding capacity

34:32 – HII, Path Robotics and the HYPR programme

41:58 – What tomorrow's shipyards could look like

48:09 – Weld quality, inspection and costly rework

53:23 – Could robotic maintenance eventually move onboard?

56:51 – Challenging the human-in-the-loop assumption

1:01:24 – How AI operates within welding standards

1:06:06 – NAVSEA, ABS and accepting robotic welding

1:09:31 – Resilience, reshoring and future shipbuilding

Heather's interest in welding is personal. Her husband operated a manufacturing business that struggled to find skilled welders, a problem that eventually contributed to his decision to sell it.

She explains how Path Robotics trains its Obsidian AI model using real-world welding data, why conventional industrial robots struggle with shipbuilding and how mobile systems such as Rove might offer new possibilities.

The discussion covers Path's collaboration with Saronic and its work with HII and GrayMatter Robotics. Heather also describes the working conditions faced by a submarine welder, raising difficult questions about safety and how skilled labour is used.

Later, the conversation turns to an assumption familiar across maritime AI: that a human should always remain in the loop. Heather makes the case for allowing trained models to adapt within approved welding procedures, while acknowledging where human involvement and technical oversight remain essential.

Nick and Raal also explore the potential for robotic maintenance at sea, the challenges of gaining technical acceptance and what a more automated shipbuilding industry could look like.

EPISODE PARTNER

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#UnDocked #Shipbuilding #PhysicalAI #MaritimeTechnology #Robotics

Recorded live at the Digital Ships Summit in Athens, Nick Chubb and Raal Harris debate whether shipping should prioritise efficiency or resilience as AI reshapes technology decisions.

From vendor dependence and workforce skills to governance and boardroom accountability, they ask how operators can embrace automation without surrendering control or flexibility.

CHAPTERS

• 00:20 IT's move from support to strategy
• 04:50 Episode partner: trusted fleet data
• 05:33 Efficiency or resilience?
• 09:42 Vendor lock-in and skills fade
• 15:14 Transforming organisations for AI
• 17:10 Leadership and AI governance
• 21:55 Measuring returns and building capability
• 27:11 Audience: data risks and shadow AI
• 32:29 Digital twins and human resilience

Live at the Digital Ships Summit in Athens, Nick and Raal begin with IT's move from back-office support to strategic decision-maker. What should shipping prioritise as technology becomes more central to operations?

Raal argues resilience must take priority over efficiency. Geopolitical disruption, recovery planning, vendor lock-in and skills fade can make efficient technology choices dangerously brittle. Nick calls this a false choice: resilience is unavoidable, while the bigger decision is how organisations transform for AI.

That requires informed leadership, practical governance, measurable returns and capabilities beyond IT. The audience confronts shadow AI, sensitive data and digital twins built from decades of institutional knowledge. They finish by considering how technology transformation can strengthen resilience rather than undermine it.

EPISODE PARTNER

Better decisions start with better data. But across maritime, fleet data is still fragmented, inconsistently standardised and uneven in quality.

A weak data foundation leads to unreliable decisions. The same is true for AI and analytics: they're only as good as the data they're fed. That's why getting the fundamentals right — data standards, structure and governance — has to come before scaling innovation.

When leaders trust the data, they move faster, invest with more confidence and turn digital ambition into measurable outcomes. Build trusted data foundations with insight. Follow the link in the episode description. Discover data solutions from Insight.