Ocean Hackathon® 2026: discover the winning teams from around the world!
- From 16 to 18 October 2026, Ocean Hackathon® brought together participants around the world for 48 hours of non-stop innovation dedicated to the ocean.
From Europe to Asia and the Americas, teams worked together to develop innovative solutions based on marine data and address concrete challenges related to the marine and maritime world.
At the end of each local edition, one team was selected to represent its city at the Ocean Hackathon® International Grand Finale, which will take place on 10 December 2026 at Océanopolis in Brest.
Discover the winning projects of the 2026 local editions!
Brest - WindFleet Manager
Challenge BRE04 - Sail Smart, Profit Green, Rule the Seas!
Developed from a challenge proposed by D-ICE Engineering, WindFleet Manager is an online serious game dedicated to the decarbonisation of maritime transport.
Players step into the shoes of a shipowner responsible for building and managing a fleet in a rapidly changing maritime environment. Ship management, routes and contracts, fuel prices, environmental constraints and wind-assisted propulsion solutions all become strategic choices whose economic and environmental consequences must be considered.
Challenge owner: Alice Parnel - D-ICE Engineering
The WindFleet Manager team, winners of Ocean Hackathon® Brest 2026 Chennai - Ocean Sentinels
Challenge CHE05 - Tracking the Unseen
Ocean Sentinels aims to develop an underwater Acoustic Vector Sensor-based system for the real-time detection, localisation and tracking of underwater intruders, including unmanned underwater vehicles, surface vehicles, drones and gliders.
The solution combines passive acoustic sensing, Direction of Arrival, range estimation and AI-based target classification to improve maritime surveillance and underwater security.
Challenge owner: Bhagat Sanket Nanasaheb
The Ocean Sentinels team, winners of Ocean Hackathon® Chennai 2026 Cork - GroundingZero
Challenge ORK04 - An Under Keel Clearance Risk Map for Grounding Prevention
GroundingZero developed an interactive Under Keel Clearance (UKC) risk map designed to help prevent vessel groundings.
By combining bathymetric data with vessel draft information from AIS data or user inputs, the solution highlights safe, cautionary and high-risk areas. The result is an intuitive planning and decision-support tool designed to help mariners reduce grounding risks and navigate more safely.
Challenge owner: Natasya Habibah
The GroundingZero team, winners of Ocean Hackathon® Cork 2026 Galle - SplitWater
Challenge GAL02 - Using marine data to bring safe drinking water to coastal communities
SplitWater by Futuora is a solution designed for multi-day fishing vessels. Its compact marine reverse-osmosis unit can turn seawater into up to 60 litres of drinking water per hour.
Each unit also acts as a sensor connected to live dashboards. The solution combines clean water production with data related to weather, navigation, rescue and fishing, including a machine-learning fish map designed to help skippers plan their trips.
Challenge owner: Janitha Dissanayake - Futuora
The SplitWater team, winners of Ocean Hackathon® Galle 2026 Kuala Lumpur - RhizoLah!
Challenge KUL06 - Blue Carbon Sentinel: Autonomous Swarm-to-Satellite Edge AI Mangrove Restoration Network
RhizoLah! is an AI-powered solution designed to monitor mangrove restoration and improve seedling survival.
Combining satellite imagery, ground-based IoT sensors, predictive analytics and digital twin technology, the platform monitors mangrove health, identifies environmental risks and provides early warnings to support timely intervention.
The solution aims to help conservation organisations, government agencies and restoration partners ensure the long-term survival of restored mangroves while supporting transparent restoration reporting and future blue carbon monitoring.
Challenge owner: Thiriidev Kumar
The RhizoLah! team, winners of Ocean Hackathon® Kuala Lumpur 2026 Olhão - ShellGuru
Challenge OLH01 - From Seed to Market: Supporting Decision-Making in Shellfish Farming
ShellGuru is a decision-support application for oyster and clam farmers in the Ria Formosa. By combining biological information, environmental conditions and farming costs, the solution can project production and harvest scenarios.
It allows producers to explore different strategies, estimate shellfish growth and anticipate when stocks will reach market size, while assessing the costs and economic viability associated with each scenario.
Challenge owner: Marta Rocha - Cooperativa de Viveiristas da Ria Formosa
The ShellGuru team, winners of Ocean Hackathon® Olhão 2026 Peniche - Lagoa Risk Radar
Challenge PEN02 - Data-driven early warning for coastal lagoon health and local blue economy
Lagoa Risk Radar is a decision-support platform combining open marine data, weather, rainfall, tides, satellite indicators and official bivalve and water-quality information.
The solution generates an operational risk score for the lagoon to help municipalities, researchers, shellfish harvesters, tourism operators and local communities better understand when and why risk increases.
Challenge owner: Rafael Bugia
The Lagoa Risk Radar team, winners of Ocean Hackathon® Peniche 2026 Salvador
Information about the winning project will be available soon.
The winning team of Ocean Hackathon® Salvador 2026 Santa Cruz de Tenerife - Ocean Mannequin
Challenge SCT03 - Real-Time SAR Drift Prediction Using Live Sensor Data from an Instrumented Ocean Mannequin
Ocean Mannequin is an instrumented ocean mannequin designed to simulate the behaviour of a person drifting at sea.
The team developed a software prototype combining live or simulated sensor data from the mannequin with oceanographic information and drift models. The solution displays the mannequin's actual and predicted trajectory on an operational maritime map to help Search and Rescue teams reduce search areas, improve response times and make better-informed decisions during emergency operations.
Challenge owners: Miguel Díaz Escorihuela & José Ramón Díaz - JRMD LAB, S.L.
The Ocean Mannequin team, winners of Ocean Hackathon® Santa Cruz de Tenerife 2026 Toulon - SecurDive
Challenge TLN07
In the event of a nautical accident, emergency services need to quickly identify who is in difficulty, where they are located and under what circumstances, often with fragmented information.
SecurDive proposes an integrated solution combining a mobile application for users and clubs, a connected rescue station and a real-time server. An interactive marine map, combined with drift, routing and prioritisation algorithms, centralises and improves the reliability of information transmitted to emergency services.
Challenge owner: Brice Mouilloix
The SecurDive team, winners of Ocean Hackathon® Toulon 2026 Victoria - Sea Who's Calling
Information about the winning project will be available soon.
The Sea Who's Calling team, winners of Ocean Hackathon® Victoria 2026 Next stop: Brest for the International Grand Finale!
On stage, each team will have just a few minutes to pitch their project, convince the jury and, who knows, make it onto one of the three steps of the podium. A challenge in which the quality of the ideas must be matched by a genuine talent for communication.
Whether you are a sea enthusiast, curious about innovation, an entrepreneur, researcher, student or simply a lover of great collective stories, this international finale is made for you. You will be able to discover innovative projects driven by motivated teams, exchange with the key players of the data-and-sea ecosystem, and share the excitement alongside the finalists.
Come along in numbers to cheer on these teams from around the world!
Free entry, upon registration.
- Published on 11/03/2026
