Aqua Quest International

What Aqua Quest International does

Aqua Quest International, Inc. is a privately held maritime services firm headquartered in Tarpon Springs, Florida, founded by Captain Bob Mayne in the late 1980s and operationally active since 1994. The company specializes in underwater archaeological recovery, ocean research and exploration, and archaeological diving education, deploying a multidisciplinary team of Registered Professional Archaeologists, historians, side-scan sonar specialists, archivists, and divers to locate, document, and recover artifacts and cultural material submerged in oceans, rivers, and other bodies of water. Field operations are executed from the purpose-built 65-foot R/V Aqua Quest vessel using a remote sensing stack that combines magnetometry, side-scan sonar, and sub-bottom profiling to detect and map submerged sites prior to physical recovery.

The company's revenue model is primarily project-based professional services, quote-priced per engagement and delivered to government agencies, research institutions, and private sector clients requiring compliance archaeology, salvage, and exploration services across the Caribbean, Central America, and the broader Atlantic. Ancillary revenue comes from two specialty physical product lines: Aqua Quest Wood (reclaimed 300-year-old river hardwoods recovered from Nicaragua's Moskito Coast under a humanitarian community-employment model) and OceanOre (high-grade copper ore salvaged from a 1924 shipwreck at 120 feet), plus a small branded merchandise line (T-shirts at $25 per unit) with proceeds supporting the Miskito Tribe. Distribution combines direct enterprise sales for services and a Squarespace-hosted e-commerce storefront for products.

The company's go-to-market is sales-led and relationship-driven, with project pipeline built on the CEO and COO's decades-long track record, country-specific government permits (Dominican Republic, Nicaragua, Bahamas, Cuba, Venezuela), and a documented humanitarian operating model that hires and trains locals in project geographies. The team has completed over 200 archaeological projects, identified over 100 shipwrecks worldwide, and planted over 13,000 mahogany trees as part of the Nicaragua reclamation initiative. Headcount sits at 11-50 employees and the firm carries no disclosed outside funding or institutional investors.

Name

Aqua Quest International

Legal name

Aqua Quest International Inc.

Website

https://aquaquestinternational.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1987

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Aqua Quest International is a privately held Tarpon Springs, Florida maritime firm providing project-based underwater archaeological recovery, ocean research, and exploration services to government agencies, research institutions, and private clients across the Caribbean, Central America, and the Atlantic.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Maritime Archaeology Services

NAICS

Support Activities for Water Transportation (4883)

akta.pro primary industry

Underwater Salvage & Diving Operations (UWILD, Cutting, Welding) (IMAJANAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Salvage Diving & Underwater Recovery (Cargo/Equipment) (TLAHAIAD)

Keywords

• Underwater archaeology
• Maritime exploration
• Shipwreck recovery
• Remote sensing surveys
• Reclaimed river wood

Headquarters

HQ city

Tarpon Springs

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Archaeological Recovery Services: Project-based archaeological recovery services for locating, salvaging, and documenting historical artifacts submerged in oceans, rivers, and other bodies of water. Includes compliance archaeology and preservation services.
2. Ocean Research and Exploration: Research and exploration services for government agencies and private sector clients, including remote sensing investigations and survey work.
3. Archaeological Diving Education: Training and education services for individuals in archaeological diving techniques and underwater exploration methods.
4. Reclaimed Wood Products: Sale of reclaimed old-growth river logs and wood products recovered from Nicaraguan rivers, marketed as environmentally responsible alternatives to freshly cut timber.
5. OceanOre Copper Products: Sale of salvaged copper ore recovered from a 1924 shipwreck, branded as OceanOre for creating unique products with maritime provenance.
6. Merchandise Sales: Sale of branded merchandise including Aqua Quest Wood T-shirts at $25.00 per unit, with portion of proceeds supporting indigenous Miskito Tribe in Nicaragua.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Aqua Quest International provides professional underwater archaeological recovery, ocean research and exploration, and archaeological diving education services from its purpose-built R/V Aqua Quest vessel, locating, salvaging, and documenting submerged cultural resources for government, research, and private clients. The company complements these services with salvage-driven product lines — reclaimed old-growth river wood from Nicaragua and OceanOre copper ore from a 1924 shipwreck — and a humanitarian model that hires and trains local community members.

Product overview

Aqua Quest International operates as a service-based company offering multiple interconnected offerings. The core business provides archaeological recovery, ocean research and exploration, and archaeological diving education services. Ancillary to these operations, the company runs sustainable product lines including Reclaimed River Wood (recovered hardwoods from Nicaragua) and OceanOre Copper Ore (salvaged from a 1924 shipwreck). The humanitarian arm employs locals and supports indigenous communities including the Miskito Tribe. Merchandise (Aqua Quest Wood T-shirts) generates additional support for community initiatives. The R/V Aqua Quest vessel serves as the primary platform for field operations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Aqua Quest Wood: Reclaimed river wood products from Nicaragua project featuring sustainable hardwoods from the Moskito Coast.

Products and services

• Archaeological Recovery Services Professional archaeological recovery, exploration, and documentation services for locating, salvaging, and preserving historical artifacts buried beneath oceans, rivers, or other bodies of water. Delivered for government agencies, research institutions, and private sector clients with respect to environment, culture, and archaeology of each project.
• Ocean Research and Exploration World-class ocean research and exploration services delivered by archaeologists, historians, side-scan sonar specialists, archivists, and divers for government agencies and private clients, including remote sensing investigations and survey work.
• Archaeological Diving Education Education and training services for archaeological diving that teach individuals and team members the skills required to work safely in underwater project environments, including training of local community members on project sites.

Quantifiable outcome

• 13,000 mahogany trees planted as part of environmental restoration efforts
• +1 more outcomes

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Donjon Marine: Major U.S. marine salvage, heavy-lift, and dredging company. Shares the underwater-recovery domain with AQI but serves a commercial heavy-marine customer base; useful as a size and capability benchmark for the broader salvage market.
• Fugro: Global geo-data specialist providing marine site characterization, hydrographic survey, and remote-sensing services to offshore energy and infrastructure clients. Comparable use of side-scan sonar and sub-bottom profiling technology, but at enterprise scale across multiple end markets.
• Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution: Premier independent oceanographic research institution operating deep-submergence vehicles and marine archaeology programs. Comparable in deep-water archaeological mission and technology stack, but operates as a non-profit research entity rather than a commercial services firm.
• Titan Salvage: Large commercial marine salvage, wreck removal, and emergency response operator. Overlaps with AQI's marine salvage capabilities but at vastly greater scale, serving commercial shipping, insurers, and governments rather than archaeological clients.

Others

• Klein Marine Systems: Leading manufacturer of side-scan sonar and acoustic imaging systems used in hydrographic survey, mine countermeasures, and wreck search. A key enabler/equipment supplier to AQI and the broader marine search and recovery peer set rather than a direct competitor.

Direct peers

• Endurance Exploration Group: US-listed company focused on the location, identification, and recovery of historic shipwrecks. Closely aligned business model to AQI — project-based revenue from deep-water archaeological recovery with monetization of recovered cargo — making it a useful direct benchmark.
• Sub Sea Research: Underwater exploration and shipwreck recovery firm operating research vessels off the U.S. East Coast. Comparable use of purpose-built platforms and remote-sensing equipment for commercial and archaeological wreck investigation.
• Odyssey Marine Exploration: Publicly traded shipwreck recovery and ocean exploration company. Most directly comparable to Aqua Quest — both locate, recover, and document deep-water historic wrecks and monetize cargo and artifacts; Odyssey's scale and public-market access bracket the upper bound of the peer set.
• Deep Ocean Search: UK-based deep-sea search and recovery firm specializing in locating and documenting historic shipwrecks using side-scan sonar, magnetometry, and ROVs. Directly comparable technology stack and service offering for archaeological and commercial wreck recovery.
• Blue Water Recoveries: British deep-sea search and archaeological recovery consultancy with a track record of locating wrecks including HMS Edinburgh. Comparable niche maritime archaeology service provider with similar client base of governments, museums, and insurers.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/aquaquestfilms
• Facebookfacebook.com/AquaquestInternational

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles18 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Aqua Quest International