AI DRONES are being deployed over the seas to spot sharks lurking close to shore in a new bid to protect beachgoers from the apex predators.
University of California’s Benioff Ocean Science Laboratory (BOSL) has launched the new plan dubbed “SharkEye”, which identifies the beasts before alerting beach authorities.
Drones are flown over the water off Santa Barbara along the California coast, capturing footage of an area where great white sharks could be present.
AI “machine learning models” then scan the video, detecting sharks seen in the footage.
An alert is then sent to those who have signed up to notifications, including lifeguards, surf shop staff and parents of kids taking lessons.
Other than protecting people from getting mauled alive, SharkEye is also a research project.
The information garnered will be added to a database to help marine scientists understand when and where great whites are gathering.
The AI technology was developed by software company Salesforce.
In a video posted by BOSL to YouTube, Salesforce product management boss Michael Jones said they developed a “special” model.
“With this particularly project, we’re using two different technologies available.
“We’ve taken the field service lightning platform and we’ve coupled it with Einstein vision.
“We’ve built a special model – a special AI model – that understands sharks, specifically great white sharks and their sizes.”
It means the drones can spot any creature close to the surface.
Santa Barbara County aquatics supervisor Jon Menzies praised the technology.
He said: “We can have current, up-to-the-minute information hopefully, and make a really educated assessment on whether this is a good day to swim or not.
Surf instructor Sam Holcombe said he was getting texts everyday informing him of possible predators in the water.
He said: “We can use AI to identify and educate us on the movements and the sizes and the activity of some of these juvenile great white sharks.
“We all communicate with other surf camps and instructors on the beach.
“It’s just better educational information that lets us., in theory, get a step ahead.”
There were 10 fatal shark attacks across the world in 2023, with four of those occurring in Australia.
