AusOcean

Name

AusOcean

Legal name

AusOcean

Website

https://ausocean.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Ocean Monitoring Technology

NAICS

Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical, and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing (334511)

SIC

Industrial Instruments For Measurement, Display, And Control (3823)

akta.pro primary industry

Marine Sensors, Instrumentation & IoT (Condition Monitoring) (IMAJAJAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Marine & Underwater Robotics (USVs/UUVs) (HDAAAIAH), Marine Automation, Control & PLC/SCADA Systems (IMAJAJAC)

Keywords

• Open source ocean technology
• Underwater monitoring systems
• Marine conservation hardware
• Sea surface platforms
• Citizen science programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Hove

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Donations: Tax-deductible donations to support ocean conservation projects and technology development. AusOcean is a registered charity with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC).

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

AusOcean (the Australian Ocean Lab) designs, builds and deploys open-source ocean technology for marine conservation. Its core offering is a modular low-cost underwater monitoring system comprising 'Rigs' (sea surface platforms) hosting custom peripherals — underwater cameras (FPUC), hydrophones, underwater speakers and environmental sensors — all controlled by a custom ESP32-based Rig Controller PCB. The organization also operates AusOceanTV, a live-streaming platform, and Open Fish, a machine-learning species-identification tool, with all hardware and software released under open-source licenses.

Product overview

AusOcean develops and deploys open-source ocean technology comprising hardware products (sea surface platforms called 'rigs' and underwater sensors including cameras, hydrophones, and speakers) and software platforms (AusOceanTV for live streaming, Open Fish for species identification). The core offering is a modular, low-cost underwater monitoring system where the Rig serves as the base platform supporting multiple sensors and peripherals, all controlled via the Rig Controller PCB. Software includes audio filtering tools and machine learning for species identification. All designs are open-source under GNU GPL and Creative Commons licenses.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• AusOceanTV: Open platform for live streaming underwater cameras and sharing underwater world footage for citizen science engagement.
• Network Blue

Products and services

• Rig (Sea Surface Platform) A low-cost sea surface platform (pontoon/buoy) for supporting ocean science in coastal waters. Custom lightweight modular construction designed for long-term deployments with flexible support for multiple sensors and peripherals.
• FPUC (Fluid-Filled Pressure-compensating Underwater Camera)

Quantifiable outcome

• Successfully restored extinct oyster reef ecosystem off Glenelg coast using sound attraction technology
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability5 records

Feature7 records

Partnerships

13 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• The University of AdelaidecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDeep collaboration with Professor Sean Connell (founding director of AusOcean) who is also a Professor of Ecology at the university. Joint research on oyster reef restoration using sound technology won the 2023 SA Science Awards Excellence in Science and Industry Collaboration. Supported research on soundscape enrichment for oyster reef restoration.
• The Nature ConservancycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in oyster reef restoration project off the coast of Adelaide that successfully revived an extinct oyster reef ecosystem.
• Department for Environment (South Australia)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in oyster reef restoration project contributing to the Excellence in Science and Industry Collaboration award at 2023 SA Science Awards.
• Kangaroo Island Landscape BoardcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLed the Kingscote artificial oyster reef project with AusOcean re-deploying its acoustic research buoy on the reef. Students from Kangaroo Island schools also participate in Network Blue program.
• Estuary Care FoundationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization sharing passion for ocean conservation and open-source technology.
• Marine Life Society of South AustraliaminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization in marine conservation efforts along South Australian coast.
• Whale and Dolphin ConservationminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization for marine mammal conservation and research.
• RecFish SAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborative partnership to monitor Murray cod in Happy Valley Reservoir. RecFish built the 'cod pod' underwater structure while AusOcean provided camera technology. Partnership aims to gather crucial data for conservation of this iconic Australian species.
• Sol Hus (Kangaroo Island)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerEco-tourism partnership with off-grid tiny homes at Sol Hus on Kangaroo Island. Supports AusOcean's work through funding from guest stays. Helps fund projects like restoring shellfish reefs and running Network Blue STEM education programs.
• Dr Sally-Ann Williams (Cicada Innovations)coreOthersCEO of Cicada Innovations (Australia's pioneering deep tech incubator) serves on AusOcean board, providing strategic guidance and connections to the deep tech ecosystem.
• Pembroke SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYear 9 students built a Rig to monitor endangered Murray cod in Happy Valley Reservoir as part of Network Blue program.
• Whyalla High SchoolcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYear 9 students built and monitored AusOcean's low-cost research buoy (rig) to document the giant Australian cuttlefish aggregation at Stony Point, Whyalla.
• Immanuel CollegecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStudents partnered with AusOcean to collect ocean data as part of Network Blue citizen science program.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Emerging players

• Blueye Robotics: Manufacturer of low-cost, compact underwater ROVs for inspection and observation. Shares AusOcean's low-cost underwater observation philosophy and accessibility focus, though commercial rather than open-source.
• Sofar Ocean: Commercial provider of low-cost ocean monitoring buoys (Spotter) and marine data services. Comparable to AusOcean in using cost-disruptive hardware to democratize marine data collection, though Sofar is a venture-backed commercial entity rather than an open-source non-profit.

Others

• OceanX: Non-profit ocean exploration organization combining research, media, and technology for marine discovery and conservation. Comparable to AusOcean in non-profit mission, content-driven public engagement (live streams), and use of technology to advance ocean science.
• Schmidt Ocean Institute: Non-profit ocean research organization operating research vessels and supporting open ocean exploration. Comparable to AusOcean as a non-profit advancing ocean science and technology, though at a vastly larger scale with dedicated ship-based research operations.
• Reef Restoration Initiative / Nature Conservancy Australia: Australian arm of The Nature Conservancy, which is itself an active AusOcean partner on the oyster reef restoration project. Directly comparable in mission and partner overlap as a non-profit executing marine habitat restoration and conservation in Australian waters.

Broad incumbents

• Sonardyne: Provider of underwater acoustic positioning, sensing, and monitoring equipment. Comparable to AusOcean's hydrophone and underwater acoustic work, particularly the oyster reef acoustic restoration project, though serving commercial offshore and defense markets.
• Teledyne Marine: Broad portfolio of oceanographic instruments including underwater cameras, sonar, hydrophones, and environmental sensors. Overlaps with AusOcean's camera, hydrophone, and sensor product lines but operates as a large commercial manufacturer rather than an open-source non-profit.
• Kongsberg Maritime: Major supplier of underwater sensors, sonars, hydroacoustic instruments, and marine automation systems. Comparable to AusOcean in marine instrumentation and underwater sensing, but as an established commercial defense and offshore player.

Direct peers

• Saildrone: Deploys autonomous, wind- and solar-powered unmanned surface vehicles for ocean data collection and monitoring. Directly comparable to AusOcean's Rig platform as both use autonomous surface platforms equipped with environmental sensors for continuous ocean monitoring.
• Liquid Robotics (Boeing): Operator of the Wave Glider, an autonomous wave- and solar-powered USV for persistent ocean monitoring. Comparable to AusOcean in deploying long-duration autonomous surface platforms for marine science and environmental monitoring applications.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ausocean
• YouTubeyoutube.com/c/ausocean
• Facebookfacebook.com/ausocean
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ausocean
• Instagraminstagram.com/ausocean

Compliance1 record

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

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 AusOcean