From Ships to Self-Driving Subs: Cable Care Goes High-Tech

Early demonstrations of AI-driven underwater drones hint at future role in safeguarding Asia-Pacific subsea cables.

30 Jun 2025

Asia-Pacific’s subsea internet cables, the critical backbone of regional and global connectivity, are attracting fresh interest from engineers exploring artificial intelligence and autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) for future maintenance. While the concept has generated attention, current activity is limited to early demonstrations and research projects rather than region-wide trials.

Interest in these systems is fueled by the region’s surging data demands, powered by AI adoption, cloud computing growth, and rising cross-border traffic. Today, cable inspections rely heavily on crewed ships or tethered remotely operated vehicles, typically deployed after faults are detected. Proponents of AI-enabled AUVs envision a more proactive model: unmanned craft able to map cable routes, capture high-resolution images, and, with machine learning support, identify early signs of damage or environmental shifts.

Distributed Acoustic Sensing (DAS) technology is already in operational use, allowing operators to detect disturbances such as anchor drags, trawling, or possible tampering by interpreting subtle vibrations along the cable. Combining such sensing with intelligent AUV inspections is seen as a potential step-change in reliability.

Analysts suggest that pairing these infrastructure upgrades with maturing AI-driven monitoring tools could improve uptime and extend cable lifespans.

However, the path from demonstration to deployment will be a long one. Challenges include navigating without GPS, managing limited battery life, and training AI models that can interpret diverse seabed conditions. For now, the technology remains firmly in the exploratory stage, with proof-of-concept missions informing future designs.

While fleets of autonomous drones patrolling the ocean floor are still years away, the industry’s growing interest signals a shift toward more predictive and preventive maintenance approaches. As research advances, these early steps could lay the foundation for a new era in subsea cable protection.