Beneath the Waves, AI Learns to Watch the Wires

Europe tests AI tools to spot faults early and boost the reliability of its growing subsea cable networks

15 Oct 2025

Artificial intelligence is taking its first plunge beneath Europe’s seas. Across a handful of pilot projects, engineers are testing whether smart algorithms can help detect early signs of wear and damage in the undersea cables that carry both energy and data across the continent.

As offshore wind farms and data links multiply, companies like NextGeo and Nexans are experimenting with systems that analyze sonar or video data from underwater drones. The goal is to spot subtle shifts in the seabed or tiny abrasions on cables, issues that once demanded weeks of manual review but could soon be flagged in hours.

The timing feels urgent. Europe is rapidly laying new high-capacity routes and expanding renewable energy grids. AI is being cast as more than an efficiency fix; it could be a strategic safeguard, warning of trouble before it hits. Yet most systems remain in trial phases, and their real-world value has not been tested at scale.

NextGeo recently signed an eight-year agreement with German grid operator 50Hertz for seabed surveys, though there is no public confirmation that AI inspection forms part of that deal. Similarly, while Nexans is building a 99-kilometer cable between Malta and Sicily, reports of AI-assisted monitoring on that specific project remain unverified.

For now, the promise is mostly theoretical. Advocates suggest AI could cut inspection costs, reduce vessel time, and prevent costly outages, but the numbers are speculative. The hurdles are clear: subsea data is messy, conditions vary widely, and nations apply different rules and standards.

Still, the idea is hard to ignore. As Europe’s offshore infrastructure grows denser and more complex, smart monitoring could become a vital safety net. Whether these systems sink or swim will depend on the next few years of testing, data gathering, and trust building beneath the waves.