French deeptech company Cosma has raised €2.5 million (US$2.9 million) to develop its autonomous underwater robots for mapping deep-sea ecosystems.

The round was led by Wind and Ternel, with backing from 50 Partners, Caisse d’Épargne Côte d’Azur, IFREMER, and non-dilutive public funding.

Founded in 2022, Cosma uses swarms of robots to capture up to 100,000 seabed images per hectare. Clients include RWE, EGIS, WWF, and the French Navy.

The images are processed with 3D photogrammetry and AI to identify habitats and species, creating digital twins of benthic ecosystems.

The data supports scientific research, protects marine species, and monitors underwater infrastructure.

The new funds will help scale its drone fleet, enhance software and AI, and expand in Europe.

🔗 Source: Tech.eu

🧠 Food for thought

1️⃣ Mapping the ocean floor represents one of humanity’s last great exploration frontiers

Despite centuries of maritime history, our knowledge of the ocean floor remains remarkably limited. Only about 25% of the seafloor has been mapped with high precision, and less than 1% of marine species are currently documented 1.

This knowledge gap persists despite the ocean covering 71% of Earth’s surface, making Cosma’s mapping initiative part of a crucial scientific endeavor with global implications.

The evolution of seafloor mapping technologies reflects this challenge, from simple weighted lines used by early explorers to World War I-era sonar innovations, and now to autonomous robotic swarms that can capture unprecedented detail 2.

Cosma’s approach of collecting 100,000 images per hectare represents orders of magnitude more data than traditional mapping methods, potentially accelerating our understanding of these critical habitats.

The company joins a scientific lineage that includes breakthrough expeditions like the HMS Challenger (1872-1876), which discovered over 4,400 new species and established the foundations of modern oceanography 1.

2️⃣ Underwater robotics market experiencing rapid growth driven by diverse applications

The global underwater robotics industry is projected to grow from $4.7 billion in 2024 to $11.9 billion by 2033, with a CAGR of 10.26%, reflecting increasing demand across multiple sectors 3.