According to a new survey conducted by ABI Research, maritime carriers at all levels of the supply chain will implement solutions oriented towards digital security, increased transport capacity and accurate cost models more and more over the next five years.

New digital solutions, such as big data, blockchain, automation, predictive technologies and robotics, allow maritime traffic to take advantage of approaches that completely change the rules of the game and eliminate activities that aren’t capable of adding value to the process.

Partnership, Cooperation and a Good Deal of Innovation Will Be Necessary

“Along with consolidation and pressures on profits, long-standing players must adapt and work with partners within and outside the industry, from startups to technology leaders in connectivity, AI, and more, including the competition, to align on much-needed standardization,” says Susan Beardslee, Principal Analyst at ABI Research. One of the recent examples is Wärtsilä’ s acquisition of Transas to support an intelligent maritime ecosystem and Artificial Intelligence (AI), as well as the deal between Orange Business Service’s and Cargotec for smart cargo handling.

A Little Bit of Economy

All maritime revenue is expected to rise from $166 billion last year to $205 billion in 2023.

The increase in both revenue and profit will be driven by technologies that will be efficiently utilized in maritime transport using advanced data and analysis, electrification, assisted and autonomous processes, drones and robotics and augmented and virtual reality. However, in this context, the costs of maritime cybersecurity, which is absolutely necessary to avert current security threats, will also rise to $1.7 billion by 2023.

Where Are the Technologies Already Used?

Beneficial Cargo Owners achieve better transparency of the entire supply chain and automation thanks to startups that are using technologies, such as predictive logistics services, real-time trekking, business intelligence and digital management platforms. Sigfox made its debut with a new real-time geolocation service for containers. IBM is working with Maersk Line on blockchain solutions and with CISCO on ports for intelligent connectivity. Microsoft and OOCL are developing artificial intelligence for the maritime transport sector.