Announcement of Start of Second Competition for "NEDO Challenge for BLUE ECONOMY"

The National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (hereinafter referred to as "NEDO") announced on Monday, June 29, 2026, the start of applications for the second competition of the "NEDO Prize-Winning Program / Development of Short-Duration Measurement and Observation Systems in Wide Shallow Sea Areas" (hereinafter referred to as "this project").

This project, under the "NEDO Challenge for BLUE ECONOMY" initiative, seeks to recruit diverse seeds and solutions that contribute to solving technological and societal challenges through a competition-style prize-based R&D approach. The aim is to discover seeds that can lead to future societal problem-solving and new industry creation at an early stage, and to promote opportunities for joint research, practical application, and commercialization.

The second competition will recruit new participants who will challenge the development of short-duration measurement and observation systems in wide shallow sea areas, in addition to the winners of the first competition.

Figure 1: Overview of the Competition

Application Overview

Item

Details

Application Name

NEDO Prize-Winning Program / Development of Short-Duration Measurement and Observation Systems in Wide Shallow Sea Areas "NEDO Challenge for BLUE ECONOMY" Second Competition

Application Period

Monday, June 29, 2026 - Friday, July 24, 2026, 13:00

Eligible Applicants

Applications are accepted from corporations, individuals, and groups. For corporations, eligible entities include private companies with legal status in Japan, universities, and public research institutions. For individual or group applications, applicants must be Japanese nationals. Additionally, applicants must meet other eligibility criteria, such as the ability to properly implement necessary measures for project management, not falling under anti-social forces, and not belonging to the same company or organization as the project management operator.

Reception Method

Apply via the application form on the official website

Background of the Competition

The "Development of Short-Duration Measurement and Observation Systems in Wide Shallow Sea Areas," one of the prize challenges set in this program, aims at extremely important technological development in Japan, where there are high expectations for the creation of the blue carbon industry and the revitalization of the marine industry through seaweed bed measurement from the perspective of sustainable oceans.

Water environments are characterized by rapid attenuation of all physical phenomena, and shallow sea areas are susceptible to disturbances such as light, waves, currents, and biological activity, making it difficult to accurately measure and observe targets over wide areas in a short time. This competition seeks ideas that contribute to solving these technological challenges.

Recruitment Themes

Theme 1: Grasping and Measuring the Growth Status of Large Seaweed We are seeking technologies to monitor the growth status of large seaweed with high accuracy and over wide areas for the cultivation and utilization of large seaweed with high CO2 fixation capacity.

Theme 2: Grasping Biofouling on Ship Hulls We are seeking technologies for mapping ship hull conditions and identifying biofouling to prevent the transboundary movement of organisms via ships and to automate ship hull inspection and cleaning.

Schedule for the Second Competition

Figure 2: Schedule for the Second Competition

How to Apply

To apply, please confirm the second competition application guidelines posted on the official website and submit the required documents via the application form. Applications that are not completed within the application period will not be accepted, so please complete the procedure with ample time.

Related Information

The first competition was held in May 2026 at Hirazawa Marine Center in Numazu City, Shizuoka Prefecture, where 26 organizations competed with their developed technologies. Winners were decided after a rigorous competition review (see Table 1). The second competition will recruit new participants in addition to the winners of the first competition, promoting further efforts to discover new measurement and observation systems and their social implementation.

Division 1: Disturbance Control for Underwater Robots

Rank

Proposal Name

Representative Organization/Representative Name

1st Place

Study on Control Methods for Stable Image Acquisition Under Disturbances in a Quadcopter-Type ROV

Kenshi Odaka

2nd Place

Development of Steering Assist Technology for Disturbance-Resistant Hybrid AUV Using AI Recognition and Control

BlueArch Inc.

3rd Place

Simplified Self-Positioning ASV-ROV Integrated System for Practical Application of Shallow Sea Blue Carbon Observation

Muso Kagaku Co., Ltd.

Division 2: Underwater Self-Positioning

Rank

Proposal Name

Representative Organization/Representative Name

1st Place

System Achieving High-Precision Self-Position Calculation and YAW Angle Calculation for Underwater Unmanned Vehicles Using New Acoustic Positioning Technology

YDK Technologies Co., Ltd.

2nd Place

Development of a Cost-Reduced Version of the Underwater Acoustic Positioning Device "Soko ni Iruka®" Capable of Positioning in Multi-Reflection Environments

Aomi Construction Co., Ltd.

3rd Place

High-Precision Position Measurement for ROVs Using Lightweight Unilateral LBL

Deep Rich Tech Co., Ltd.

3rd Place

Self-Positioning in Underwater Drones for Hybrid Air-Water Drones

KDDI Corporation

Division 3: Seaweed Measurement and Analysis Technology

Rank

Proposal Name

Representative Organization/Representative Name

1st Place

Measurement and Analysis of Large Seaweed Using Green Lasers and Drones (UAV)

Toyota Tsusho Corporation

2nd Place

Three-Body Collaboration / Seaweed Body 3D Integrated Measurement Method (UAV/ASV/AUV Simultaneous Point Cloud Fusion)

Eight Japan Technology Development Co., Ltd.

3rd Place

Development of an Automated Measurement System for Seaweed Farms Using Hybrid Operation of Amphibious Drones (USSV) and Aerial Drones (UAV)

Fukken Engineering Co., Ltd.

Division 4: Free Technology Division

Rank

Proposal Name

Representative Organization/Representative Name

1st Place

Efficient Measurement of Large Seaweed Using Adaptive AI Models and Drones Equipped with Omnidirectional Sonar

National University Corporation The University of Tokyo

2nd Place

Development of a Short-Duration, Wide-Area Observation System for Seaweed Beds and Sea Surface Aquaculture Facilities Using Drones and Artificial Satellites

School Corporation Kitasato Institute

3rd Place

Grasping the Growth Status of Large Seaweed Through Real-Time Transmission of Underwater UUV Video and Position Information via Underwater Radio Communication

National University Corporation Kyushu Institute of Technology

Division 5: Ship Bottom Mapping and Condition Assessment

Rank

Proposal Name

Representative Organization/Representative Name

1st Place

Development of a Ship Bottom Inspection Robot Capable of Navigating Confined Spaces

MizLinx Co., Ltd.

2nd Place

System Achieving High-Precision Self-Position Calculation and YAW Angle Calculation for Underwater Unmanned Vehicles Using New Acoustic Positioning Technology

YDK Technologies Co., Ltd.

3rd Place

Development of High-Precision Ship Bottom Inspection Algorithm

Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd.

Reference: Video of the First Competition

https://www.youtube.com/@nedo_channel/streams

Reference: Scene from the First Competition

Figure 3: Scene during the competition by Takenaka Civil Engineering Co., Ltd., Mizuryudo Co., Ltd., and Kitasato University

Figure 4: Equipment used by MizLinx Co., Ltd.

Inquiries

For inquiries regarding this project, please contact the NEDO Challenge for BLUE ECONOMY Operations Secretariat.

Email: [email protected]

Details on the project overview, application guidelines, and application methods are available on the following special website.

Special Website: https://blue-economy-challenge.nedo.go.jp/