CASE STUDY WWF
WWF Germany hunts ghost nets using the power of AI
Transforming sonar scans into recovery targets for lost fishing nets threatening our oceans
3-MINUTE READ
A hidden danger beneath the waves
Every year, commercial fisheries lose staggering amounts of fishing gear—nets, lines, pots, and traps—into the ocean. This ghost gear drifts for years, trapping marine life, destroying habitats, and ultimately breaking down into microplastics that can work their way up the food chain and onto our plates.
75,000
kilometers of purse seine nets (large circular surface nets) lost to the ocean each year1
25M+
pots and traps (cages or enclosures used to catch crabs, lobsters, and other shellfish) lost to the ocean every year2
100,000+
marine animals killed or injured by ghost gear annually3
The scale is immense and while removing ghost gear and nets is vital, the real challenge is finding them. Sonar is the most effective tool for this. Many organizations collect sonar data for scientific research, ocean mapping, and ship navigation safety—but this data often ends up buried in archives. When sonar is used for ghost gear recovery, teams face hours of raw scan footage that must be reviewed frame by frame. The process is slow, expensive, and frequently hit-or-miss.
Casting a smarter net
To tackle the challenge head-on, WWF Germany joined forces with Accenture and Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab to build GhostNetZero—an AI-powered platform that transforms sonar scans into precise recovery targets. It accelerates detection, reduces cost, and improves accuracy—making ghost net removal faster, smarter, and scalable.
Built on Microsoft Azure, the platform makes participation simple, secure, and seamless. Contributors get a clean drag-and-drop workflow, clear progress cues, and live dashboards that show how each upload moves the mission forward.
The platform is a game changer, especially for offshore operators doing seabed surveys. Instead of archiving sonar data, they can log into GhostNetZero.ai. The dashboard shows ghost nets flagged across multiple countries—their uploads expand the map.
AI scans files, flags suspicious areas, and sends them to marine experts for validation. Confirmed targets are logged and mapped, building a shared knowledge base of underwater hazards.
Recovery efforts grow through local partnerships and resources. More data sparks new collaborations in each region, tailored to local needs. In Germany, state-funded projects began once net positions were mapped—it all starts with data.
For teams working with sensitive hydrographic data, the inclusion of an offline, air-gapped mode is being evaluated as a future capability—a trust-first design concept that could broaden access without compromising security.
Turning the tide
Today, GhostNetZero is unlocking the power of sonar data with AI and a user experience designed to inspire action. The platform’s secure architecture, intuitive design, and live dashboards make participation seamless. It has already attracted data donors from research institutes, universities, private AUV companies, and government and non-government bodies and the results are promising:
35
tons of ghost nets recovered from the Baltic Sea alone
~95%
detection accuracy in AI model precision in identifying ghost nets
~127 hours
of sonar donated from community contributors
From shared data to scaled impact
WWF Germany is pioneering AI-powered ghost net detection in the German Baltic Sea, with a vision to scale globally. The roadmap includes data-sharing partnerships with research institutes and maritime stakeholders to widen coverage as the initiative grows.
This is conservation reimagined—connecting shared data, smart tech, and collective action to accelerate impact with precision and purpose.
The combination of sonar search and AI-supported detection is a quantum leap—a real game-changer in the search for ghost nets.
Gabriele Dederer / Research Diver and Project Manager GhostNets, WWF Germany