In a voyage lasting 40 days and conquering approximately 3 500 unmanned miles at sea, the Mayflower Autonomous Ship arrived in North America in Halifax, Nova Scotia on June 5, 2022. Following two years of design, construction and AI model training, the Mayflower Autonomous Ship (MAS) was officially launched in September 2020. Fast forward to 5 June 2022, and the ship completed an historic transatlantic voyage from Plymouth, UK to its North American arrival in Halifax, Nova Scotia. With no human captain or onboard crew, MAS is the first self-directed autonomous ship with technology that is scalable and extendible to traverse the Atlantic Ocean. MAS was designed and built by marine research non-profit ProMare with IBM acting as lead technology and science partner, with IBM automation, AI and edge computing technologies powering the ship's artificial intelligence (AI) captain to guide the vessel and make real-time decisions while at sea.

Another ship called the Mayflower is set to make its way across the Atlantic Ocean this week, but it won't be carrying English pilgrims -- or any people -- at all. When the Mayflower Autonomous Ship leaves its home port in Plymouth, England to attempt the world's first fully autonomous transatlantic voyage, it will have a highly trained "captain" and a "navigator" versed in the rules of avoiding collisions at sea on board, both controlled by artificial intelligence (AI). The ship's AI captain was developed by Marine AI and is guided by an expert system based on IBM technologies, including automation software widely used by the financial sector. The technology could someday help crewed vessels navigate difficult situations and facilitate low-cost exploration of the oceans that cover 70 percent of the Earth's surface. Over its roughly three-week trip, the Mayflower sea drone will sail through the Isles of Scilly and over the site of the lost Titanic to land in Plymouth, Massachusetts, as the colonists on the first Mayflower did more than 400 years ago.

The world's first fully autonomous ship is set to make its maiden voyage across the Atlantic next month. Inspired by the ship that brought the Pilgrims to North America, 'Mayflower 400' will be guided by artificial intelligence rather than a human crew. If all goes well, it will depart from Plymouth, England on May 15 and arrive at Plymouth, Massachusetts, about 3,000 miles and two weeks later. The original Mayflower, which transported 102 Pilgrims and other passengers, took 10 weeks to reach its destination in 1620. Mayflower 400 was set to embark on its transatlantic cruise last September for the Mayflower's 400th anniversary, but was delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic.

An autonomous version of the historical Mayflower ship that's powered by artificial intelligence (AI) is set to make is maiden voyage across the Atlantic next month. On April 19, Mayflower Autonomous Ship (MAS) will depart from Plymouth, England and arrive at Plymouth, Massachusetts about 3,000 miles and two weeks later. The original ship, which transported 102 passengers known as the Pilgrims, took 10 weeks to reach its destination in the autumn of 1620. The new 50-foot ship, which won't carry any human passengers or even crew, will roughly take the same route as its predecessor. When they set sail from Plymouth, England, on September 16, 1620, the Pilgrims were escaping religious persecution and sought to establish a settlement in the New World.

Sometime next April, a 50-foot-long autonomous ship will shake loose the digital bonds of its human controllers, scan the horizon with radar, and set a course westward across the Atlantic. The Mayflower Autonomous Ship won't be taking commands from a human captain like the first Mayflower did during its crossing back in 1620. Instead it will get orders from an "AI captain" built by programmers at IBM. The Mayflower's computing system processes data from 30 onboard sensors and six cameras to help the ship sail across the ocean, obey shipping rules (like how to pass other ships at sea), and control electrical and mechanical systems like the engine and rudder. There won't be anyone on board if something goes wrong, although it does have to send a daily report to a human operator back in the UK.

How does a ship chart its own course? The MAS's AI system, which uses 30 sensors and six AI cameras, is hinged on the latest computing technology – automation software, computer vision technology and the company's Red Hat Open Source software. Stanford-Clark explains that through computer learning, the ship's automated navigation system has been trained on thousands of images of things in the sea – "ships, seagulls, canoes, bits of wood, icebergs" – so it can recognize what's in front of and to the side of the ship. "That advises the AI captain to factor in things like the weather forecast, data from a radar and also the planned mission which it thinks it's going to go on, to then plot a course to obviously avoid ships, to steer away from storms," he says.

Whether human, or human-designed Artificial Intelligence, each represents a response to an era's big challenge. His ship leaked and was nearing the end of its useful life. He had but a few crude instruments to suggest, without much certainty, where he might be. And, with only wind and his sails to propel the craft, he had no way to fight through the howling storms of the North Atlantic. The voyage, which should have taken two to three weeks, ultimately took more than two months.