First autonomous cargo ship faces test with 236-mile voyage

A cargo ship berths at the international cargo terminal at the port of Tokyo. The Nippon Foundation estimates that taking into account factors like AI, which should improve efficiencies, the development of unmanned ships will have a positive impact of about 1 trillion yen (RM37.61bil) for Japan’s economy in 2040. — AFP

In just two decades from now, half of all domestic ships plying Japan’s coastal waters may be piloting themselves.

That’s the ambitious goal of the Nippon Foundation, a public-interest organisation backing the country’s development of ocean-traversing autonomous ships. It aims to see crewless ships make up 50% of Japan’s local fleet by 2040.