Squarehead Technology has been named the winner of the Blue Maritime Innovation Award 2026, recognised for demonstrating how cross-disciplinary collaboration and technology transfer can drive innovation across the maritime industry.
Squarehead Technology is a member of Ocean Autonomy Cluster and an incubator company at FI Ocean Space Incubator in Trondheim.
The jury faced a difficult task choosing between three strong finalists. In its citation, the jury highlights how this year's winner demonstrates the value of bringing companies, technologies and expertise together:
“This year's winner is a strong example of how several companies and technologies need to work together to drive innovation in the cluster. The company demonstrates how interdisciplinary collaboration across segments and industries can bring new solutions into forward-looking projects that strengthen the cluster's international position.”
The jury also highlights how technology originally developed for one industry can give the wider maritime cluster an advantage in an entirely different field.
Peter A. Brønlund, General Manager, Squarehead Technology. Photo: GCE Blue Maritime
Squarehead Technology has developed a solution that can detect sounds that the human ear cannot pick up, enabling it to alert crew and shore-based organisations to potential problems long before an anomaly develops into a serious incident.
The technology has applications in predictive maintenance, but the jury sees an equally important role in the development of remotely operated and autonomous vessels.
“This makes it not only an innovation that can enable predictive maintenance, but also a tool that can lead the way for future remotely operated and autonomous ships, where fewer people on board place even greater demands on systems to detect what previously required a trained ear.”
The solution has already been tested in operation on ferries along the Norwegian coast. This autumn, it will be deployed on the four new autonomous ferries operating on the Sognefjord.
The award highlights how technologies and expertise from different industries can come together to address new challenges in maritime operations, with potential applications ranging from predictive maintenance to autonomous vessel operations.
Congratulations to Squarehead Technology, winner of the Blue Maritime Innovation Award 2026!