Chwnnai, Sep 18: Indian Institute of Technology Madras Ocean Engineering students have won the 2026 Njord Challenge, an international competition in Norway that tests autonomous surface vessels in real-world maritime conditions.
The victory by Team Aritra marks a significant achievement for IIT Madras’ growing programme in marine autonomous systems. It also builds on the Departments’ earlier success at the competition, where a different cohort of Team Aritra students finished third globally and won the Sustainability Award in 2023.
Prof. V. Kamakoti, Director, IIT Madras, met the students of Team Aritra and congratulated them on their victorius performance. He also encouraged them to not stop here but to take forward their work and ensure their expertise benefits the country.
Autonomous surface vessels have potential applications in coastal and harbour surveillance, port and strategic infrastructure monitoring, environmental and oceanographic data collection, hydrographic surveys and other persistent maritime operations where reducing the need for continuous human presence can improve safety and operational efficiency.
Organised by NTNU, the Njord Challenge gives students hands-on experience in developing and deploying autonomous vessels under realistic maritime conditions. Held in Trondheim, Norway, from 10th to 14th August 2026, the competition brought together 23 teams filled with 150 participants from nine countries including India, Turkiye, Norway, Poland, Canada, Japan, Spain, Croatia and Scotland.
Dr. Abhilash Sharma Somayajula, Associate Professor, Department of Ocean Engineering, IIT Madras, mentored the team with Prof. M.A. Atmanand. Dr. Prabhakaran Jay and senior members of the Marine Autonomous Vessels Laboratory, IIT Madras, also supported the students in development, testing and deployment.
Congratulating the students, Faculty Advisor Dr. Abhilash Sharma Somayajula, Associate Professor, Department of Ocean Engineering, IIT Madras, said,
“The success of Team Aritra is a testament to what students can achieve when they are given the freedom to explore, experiment and build. Our vision at the Marine Autonomous Vessels Laboratory is to help build the capabilities that India will need as marine autonomy becomes increasingly important. At the same time, we want the laboratory to be an environment where the next generation of marine roboticists can pursue their curiosity, express their creativity and learn by tackling real engineering problems. We hope that projects such as Team Aritra will excite more students to explore marine robotics and give them the confidence to pursue ideas that may not have obvious answers, but are worth exploring.”
Extensive testing at the wave basin in IIT Madras’ Department of Ocean Engineering and the institute’s campus lake was critical to their preparation.
The 2026 edition featured a broader range of challenges than the 2023 competition. Teams were evaluated on autonomous docking, collision avoidance, manoeuvring and pathfinding, along with technical inspection, technical reporting and presentation. A surprise autonomy challenge was also introduced to test how effectively teams could adapt their systems to an unfamiliar situation.
Team Aritra from the Department of Ocean Engineering secured the overall championship with 90.42 points, finishing more than 10 points ahead of MYS YAVUZ from Türkiye, while AGH Solar Boat from Poland finished third.
STUDENTS EFFORTS
Team Aritra was represented by Aarav Patel, S. Gurukesav and Madhava Sai, who led the development and deployment of the autonomous surface vessel for the competition.
Speaking about the achievement, Mr. S. Gurukesav, Team Aritra member, said,
“Winning first place was the goal from day one. Winning it by this margin is what makes it special. We scored full points in the pathfinding and manoeuvring tasks and performed well in the others, thanks to months spent fine-tuning our perception, controls and navigation systems for real-world conditions on the fjord. It also sparked a longer conversation with the judges about where this technology could go next—the kind of interest that goes beyond scoring a competition.”
Mr. Aarav Patel, Team Aritra member, added,
“NJORD 26 had its share of highs and lows, but every challenge taught us something and pushed us forward. We hope our journey reminds people that it is worth giving the unconventional a shot. The things worth pursuing are not always what everyone else is chasing, but what you believe in and are willing to stay committed to.”
UNEXPECTED CHALLENGES
One of the biggest tests for the team came from challenges not apparent in the competition specifications. Strong magnetic interference at the competition arena caused drift in the vessel’s Inertial Measurement Unit, affecting measurements used for autonomous navigation. The students had to diagnose and address the issue to maintain reliable localisation and navigation.
The team also encountered electromagnetic interference between the camera and GPS systems, requiring them to investigate interactions between sensors and electronics across the integrated vessel rather than treating the issue as an isolated software problem. These experiences underscored a fundamental challenge in marine robotics: autonomous systems that perform reliably in simulation or controlled environments must also cope with imperfect sensors, physical disturbances and unexpected hardware-software interactions in the real world.