The battery-powered workboat has been exclusively designed for tasks like floating garbage collection, foam recovery, and oil spill response, particularly in congested inland and coastal waters, per Lloyd’s Register. It also shows the potential for managing water hyacinth infestations, carrying out bathymetric surveys, and cargo deliveries.

Image Credits: Clearbot/Twitter

Co-founders Utkarsh Goel and Sidhant Gupta launched the effort in 2019 upon realizing that manual operations were inadequate for getting garbage off Bali’s beaches.

In Bali, the final Clearbot prototype was created, built, and tested. The AI-driven bots navigate using sensors and lidar and analyze and post-process the rubbish they collect utilizing AI.

Image Credits: Clearbot/Twitter

The Clearbot team also envisions a range of applications for their technology globally, emphasizing adaptability to the potential impact on marine pollution and related services. LR has been tracking the Clearbot progress.