Japan Underwater Drone Association Fully Launches Domestic Development of International STEM Education Program "SeaPerch"

The Japan Underwater Drone Association (Secretariat: Ueno, Taito-ku / Representative Director: Yasuhiro Kobayashi / Secretariat Operations: Space One Co., Ltd.) announces its plan to fully launch the "SeaPerch" international STEM education program utilizing underwater drones in Japan, in collaboration with the US non-profit organization RoboNation, aiming to hold the "SeaPerch Japan Challenge" within fiscal year 2026.

SeaPerch is an educational program where students design, build, test, and improve their own underwater drones, then participate in competitions and presentations. It is deployed worldwide as a comprehensive STEM education program that fosters not only science, technology, engineering, and mathematics but also teamwork, problem-solving skills, and communication abilities.

RoboNation Official Website Announces Release Regarding Japan Development

The Japan Underwater Drone Association announced the start of its collaboration with RoboNation in January 2026. Now, RoboNation's official website has also released a statement regarding the collaboration with the Japan Underwater Drone Association and the launch of the SeaPerch program in Japan.

RoboNation Official Website Release: https://robonation.org/robonation-partners-with-japan-underwater-drone-association-to-launch-seaperch-program-in-japan/

Japan Underwater Drone Association January 2026 Announcement Release: https://prtimes.jp/main/html/rd/p/000000418.000045277.html

Following this announcement, the Japan Underwater Drone Association will move the domestic deployment of SeaPerch into the execution preparation phase and proceed with roadmap development, considering domestic hosting and connection to international competitions.

Release Regarding Japan Development Posted on RoboNation Official Website

SeaPerch: Learning Beyond Just Building or Competing

In SeaPerch, students build underwater drones, identify reasons for malfunctions, and repeatedly test and improve them while preparing for competitions and presentations.

Through this process, they gain technical knowledge in areas such as buoyancy, propulsion, electrical circuits, and structural design, while also developing essential skills for society, including planning, role allocation, dialogue, trial and error, improvement from failure, and explaining concepts to others.

Furthermore, participating in the SeaPerch International Challenge, where they tackle the same themes as students worldwide, offers significant opportunities for international exchange and global experience.

Students assembling SeaPerch kits Teamwork to overcome challenges together

Aiming for Domestic Hosting in FY2026 and Connection to the 2027 International Competition

The Japan Underwater Drone Association aims to host the "SeaPerch Japan Challenge" within fiscal year 2026, proceeding with recruitment of participating schools, building cooperative structures, and preparing for domestic hosting.

Additionally, with the goal of sending a Japanese representative team to the 2027 SeaPerch International Challenge, they will consider connections to international competitions.

Details regarding the timing, venue, and participation requirements will be announced later after further discussions with relevant parties.

Recruiting Participating Schools, Municipalities, and Corporate Partners

To realize the SeaPerch Japan Challenge, the Japan Underwater Drone Association will pursue collaboration with a wide range of partners, including schools, municipalities, corporations, organizations, educators, sponsors, and operational volunteers.

Expected forms of cooperation include participation as a host school, regional and venue support, sponsorship, student workshops, training and technical support, judges, mentors, operational volunteers, and support for participating in international competitions.

This initiative is not merely an event but aims to be built as a sustainable program for nurturing the next generation of marine robotics talent.

Interaction between participants and sponsoring companies at the SeaPerch International Challenge venue

Comment from Yasuhiro Kobayashi, Representative Director of the Japan Underwater Drone Association

Yasuhiro Kobayashi, Representative Director of the Japan Underwater Drone Association (left)

RoboNation's SeaPerch is not just a program for building or competing with underwater drones. I feel it is a meticulously designed and highly effective educational program that fosters children's ability to connect with society through enjoyment, by encouraging them to think for themselves and engage in trial and error with their peers.

We want to spread this value in Japan and create a path for Japanese children to challenge themselves in international competitions in the future. We will carefully build this as a sustainable initiative in collaboration with schools, municipalities, corporations, and organizations.

Inquiries regarding this matter:

Japan Underwater Drone Association Secretariat Contact: Ohteyama TEL: 03-5812-4367 Email: [email protected] Web: https://japan-underwaterdrone.com/