Oceanic Collective Intelligence: Unveiling How Information Enables Coordinated Sensing by Whales and Robots in Earth’s Largest Living Space

The oceans cover most of Earth’s habitable habitat, yet they remain largely unexplored. The project team is investigating how marine animals exchange information, organize themselves, and find food in this vast, dynamic environment.

To this end, scientists from the fields of biology, oceanography, and computer science are working closely together. Using blue whales and sperm whales as examples, they are investigating how these endangered large animals use social information to track down prey in vast oceanic regions. The project team uses observation platforms, artificial intelligence, and high-resolution measurement techniques to monitor the marine mammals.

The goal of the project is to gain new insights into the collective perception and intelligence of marine animals while simultaneously developing modern tools for the protection and sustainable use of marine ecosystems. The methods developed are also intended to be applied in the future to other challenges in marine conservation and in new marine fields of application.