Subsea Surveillance Expands with Next-Gen Sonars & AI Operators

Norwegian technology group KONGSBERG has expanded its Aegir Subsea Situational Awareness family with two new sonars alongside an artificial intelligence virtual operator designed to protect critical maritime infrastructure and support navigation.

Building on 80 years of commercial sonar engineering, the full three-model lineup is now available to order, with the first commercial delivery scheduled for November. The release follows the initial commercial introduction of the Aegir SSA family and its baseline sensor, the Aegir57, at ONS 2026 in August. By adapting proven commercial production facilities and supply chains, the company has developed configurations tailored to different operational demands and budgets.

Tonny Algroy, Sales Director Subsea Awareness, KONGSBERG, said, “The market for subsea awareness is changing and the introduction of the Aegir SSA sonars responds to that. When we combine the performance and efficiencies of scale from the commercial sonars with modern AI-fuelled sonar operation, we truly have a unique offering.”

The newly unveiled Aegir17 provides 360-degree, long-range surveillance optimized for larger maritime platforms where performance is paramount. Designed with a lower acoustic frequency and a larger transducer, the system achieves greater detection range and definition than the Aegir57, providing operators with more time to assess subsea hazards and security threats.

To address localized observation and vessel handling, the second addition, the Aegir57N, functions as a compact matrix sonar combining security surveillance with forward-looking navigation. The sensor directs acoustic beams toward selected areas to produce higher definition imagery of both the seabed and the water column. Engineered to equal or exceed the range of comparable systems on the market, it aids obstacle detection in poorly charted waters and allows security operators to focus high-definition monitoring on specific approaches. Its small footprint and Ethernet interface facilitate installation on unmanned surface vessels, fixed structures, and other platforms where space is constrained.

These units complement the existing Aegir57, a compact omnidirectional sonar providing detection ranges up to 2,000 metres. Intended for buoys, small vessels, and fixed installations, the Aegir57 enables persistent underwater observation without the size, weight, and power demands typical of larger acoustic suites.

Alongside the sensor hardware, KONGSBERG is deepening its collaboration with Viam, a US-based physical AI and automation platform, to develop an automated virtual sonar operator for the Aegir SSA series. The initiative expands on the partners’ existing Sonar AI system, originally designed to detect fish and alert crews in real time on Simrad commercial systems.

Optimized for uncrewed vessels and remote monitoring installations, the virtual operator automates target detection and tracking to eliminate the need for around-the-clock human observation. Operators can utilize standard pre-trained models or deploy bespoke algorithms suited to specific marine environments and security parameters.

Eliot Horowitz, Founder and CEO of Viam, commented, “Fish-finding and infrastructure protection are very different applications, but the challenge is similar: turning the constant flow of data that sonar generates into clear, actionable information about what’s happening underwater. This will allow operators to oversee multiple remote installations and focus their attention on detections that require further investigation.”

The expanded Aegir SSA lineup reinforces KONGSBERG’s layered approach to critical infrastructure protection, which integrates subsea acoustics with coastal radar, satellite surveillance, drone detection, and passive acoustic systems. Fusing these domain streams provides operators with an integrated operational picture above and below the surface, while long-range HUGIN autonomous underwater vehicles supply complementary capabilities for dedicated subsea inspection and intervention.