Ocean Vision AI: Scaling up visual observations of life in the ocean

Summary: Here we propose to establish Ocean Vision AI, which will engage researchers and innovators across sectors (e.g., academic, government, non-profit, for-profit) to advance our observational capabilities of marine life. Ocean Vision AI will provide a central hub for incubating groups conducting research that use imaging, AI, open data, and hardware/software; create data pipelines from existing image and video data repositories; provide project tools for coordination; leverage public participation and engagement via game development; and create data products that are shared with researchers as well as other open data repositories. These efforts will result in novel intellectual pursuits in fields as diverse as marine biology, fisheries, biological oceanography, underwater optics and computer vision, artificial intelligence, ocean engineering, biomechanics, environmental biology, human-computer interaction, game-based education, and community contributions to science. Ocean Vision AI will provide opportunities to diversify an ocean data science workforce and public engagement through community science portals and game-based education initiatives, thereby supporting a growing Blue Economy. These efforts will broaden participation beyond traditional undergraduate and graduate student researchers and include contributions from the general public and video game players. Together, Ocean Vision AI will be used to directly accelerate the automated analysis of underwater visual data to enable scientists, explorers, policymakers, storytellers, and the public, to learn, understand, and care more about the life that inhabits our ocean.

Sector: Academia, NGO
Organization: Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute
POC: Kakani Katija, kakani@mbari.org
Other Contacts: Henry Ruhl, hruhl@mbari.org; Eric Orenstein, eorenstein@mbari.org;
Katy Croff Bell, katy@oceandiscoveryleague.org; Benjamin Woodward,
Benjamin.woodward@cvision.com