CfAA shines in Singapore

Posted on Friday 8 May 2026

The first of the events was a roundtable, co-hosted with Lloyd’s Register Group, focused on the MASS Code Experience Building Phase (EBP). It continued and expanded on our previous industry work in this sector and brought together representatives from ship registries, classification societies, ship owners and operators, equipment manufacturers, research technical organisations, and maritime training institutions. During the roundtable attendees actively shared their operational needs, experiences, and expectations for maritime autonomy and the EBP. The combination of diverse participants and their experiences resulted in an open and constructive dialogue. The CfAA team, Professor John McDermid, Dr John Molloy and Dr Tian Gan, alongside Dipali Kuchekar, Global Director, Naval Autonomous Systems at Lloyd's Register Group, gained a comprehensive and uniquely holistic understanding of industry maturity, gaps in understanding, and priorities relating to the MASS Code and real-world autonomy use cases. The outcome of the roundtable will directly contribute to the CfAA’s preparation of submissions to MSC112.

Following this Professor John McDermid, Dr John Molloy, Dr Tian Gan, along with Dr Sinem Getir-Yaman participated in SMRC x MTEC/ICMASS Conference in Singapore, held as part of Singapore Maritime Week (SMW) 2026. 

The conference is a major international forum designed to “connect global thought leaders from academia and industry to present cutting-edge advancements in maritime technology, autonomous shipping, and port operations.” The CfAA’s participation provided a rare and highly valuable opportunity to engage directly with leading stakeholders shaping the future of maritime autonomy, assurance, and AI-enabled systems, taking our work on safety assurance to a global audience.

Further strategic value was demonstrated through CfAA’s participation in the Singapore–Norway Maritime Industry Forum—held in conjunction with the conference. This forum focused on key themes such as digitalisation, AI transformation, and autonomous maritime operations, bringing together senior representatives from government, industry, and research organisations. During the Forum the CfAA, and particularly Professor McDermid, were repeatedly acknowledged as global leaders in the technical and intellectual development of assurance approaches for maritime and autonomous systems. Such recognition not only reinforces the international standing of our work but also strengthens both CfAA and the UK’s influence in shaping emerging global standards and practices.

The visit also enabled direct engagement with high-level policymakers and international leaders, including Even Tronstad Sagebakken, Norwegian Minister for Oceans and Fisheries, the Ambassadors of Denmark and Finland, and senior officials from the Defence Science and Technology Agency (DSTA), Maritime and Port Authority (MPA), Singapore Maritime Institute (SMI) and Singapore Department of Transport. These interactions are of significant strategic importance, as they provide opportunities to influence policy directions, communicate the importance of assurance-led approaches to autonomy, and position on-going research within national and international maritime agendas.

This influence is evidenced by the explicit recognition of the CfAA’s work by Mr. Lau Peet Meng, Permanent Secretary at Singapore’s Ministry of Transport, who highlighted it, alongside only two other initiatives, as an example for the transformational rather than incremental work taking place in the maritime sector, during his address at the conference gala dinner. Such endorsement at the highest levels of government, in one of the leading centres of maritime autonomy development, underscores both the novelty and the impact of CfAA’s research, and validates the importance of continued international engagement.