Dear readers,

This week, we take a closer look at how Croatia is exploring its ambitions to build a maritime robotics industry around autonomous vessels, underwater technology, and smart marine infrastructure. 

We speak with MARBLE's Andelko Katalenic about the challenge of moving research out of university laboratories and into commercial applications, and why Croatia could have the engineering talent and maritime heritage to make it happen.

We also examine where the smartest VC money is going in 2026, with investor Silvija Gelevski sharing her views on AI, industrial automation, valuations, and what makes a startup worth backing. And, as more investors look towards SEE, we ask the uncomfortable question: does the region need more capital, or better ideas?

Enjoy!
Bojan Stojkovski
Editor-in-Chief, IT Logs

Croatia has long built its international reputation around the Adriatic Sea. Its coastline, islands and historic coastal towns have made tourism one of the country's most recognisable economic strengths. But there is another side to its relationship with the sea that could become increasingly important in the coming years: maritime technology.

From autonomous vessels and underwater robotics to smart sensors capable of monitoring marine ecosystems, a number of Croatian engineering projects are now exploring how technology can reshape the maritime industry. At the centre of this effort is MARBLE, a research and technology organisation founded in 2024 with ambitions that extend well beyond academic research.

Created as a spin-off of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing (FER) at the University of Zagreb, MARBLE is attempting to bridge a gap that has traditionally separated scientific research from commercial applications.For Croatia, this also represents an opportunity to build on something that already exists: a maritime identity, a history of engineering and a growing pool of robotics talent.

But turning that potential into an internationally competitive industry requires more than good ideas. It requires research infrastructure, access to testing facilities, commercial partnerships and, perhaps most importantly, a way to move technologies out of laboratories and into actual operations. And that is precisely the space MARBLE wants to occupy.

From university research to a maritime technology company

MARBLE's origins go back more than 15 years, when researchers at FER began developing underwater technologies, robotics and sensing systems. Over time, the research group became increasingly successful at securing European research projects and collaborating with international partners.

However, its success eventually created a structural problem. Operating within a university meant working under employment and administrative rules that made it difficult to expand the team, pursue commercial activities and respond to industrial demand with the flexibility required by private-sector partners.

The turning point came through the EU’s Teaming for Excellence programme, a highly competitive initiative designed to establish new research organisations in countries with less developed scientific infrastructure. The FER research group secured a €30 million grant, providing the financial foundation for a new organisation.

Its current model is somewhere between a conventional research institute and a tech company. It conducts scientific research, participates in EU-funded projects and develops new technologies, but also works directly with industrial partners to mature those technologies into commercially viable solutions.

"The point of MARBLE is to really put the technology on the market and mature it together with industrial partners," Katalenic says.

The organisation currently employs around 30 people, including researchers with PhDs and engineers responsible for turning scientific developments into working systems. It plans to expand to at least 50 employees.

Rather than concentrating everything in one location, MARBLE is building a network of research and testing facilities across Croatia. Its headquarters are based in Zagreb, in the former facilities of the shipbuilding institute, an institution that once represented part of the country's industrial and maritime engineering heritage before going bankrupt.

The organisation is renovating these facilities while developing additional infrastructure along the coast. In Šibenik, MARBLE has offices and a pilot site across the Šibenik Canal, including an underwater laboratory and an area where autonomous vessels can be tested. Nearby, it is developing a floating smart mussel and fish farm that will combine office facilities with marine production and technology testing.

There is also a floating facility in Rijeka, called Smart Marina, which can be used for testing submarines, vessels and other maritime equipment. These facilities are intended to give researchers and companies something that is often difficult to access: an environment where technologies can be tested outside the laboratory, in actual marine conditions.

When maritime heritage meets robotics talent

Croatia's relationship with shipbuilding has not always been an easy one. The country inherited a substantial maritime industrial base from Yugoslavia, but much of that industry struggled in the decades that followed. Several major shipbuilding companies went bankrupt, while others have been undergoing restructuring or attempts at revival.

The focus now is narrower and more specialised: robotics, sensors, autonomous navigation and the technologies that can make smaller vessels and maritime operations more intelligent.

Companies such as Gideon Brothers, known for autonomous mobile robots, have helped develop expertise in areas that can be transferred to maritime applications. Katalenic himself previously worked at Gideon Brothers and believes that experience with autonomous ground vehicles can provide a foundation for developing autonomous vessels.

"If you take a person who worked at Gideon Brothers on autonomous navigation for forklifts, that person can immediately start developing autonomous ships. A lot of the technology is very transferable." he tells IT Logs. 

The same applies to other engineering disciplines, from electronics and sensor development to mechanical engineering. Croatia also has research groups working on robotics and specialised applications, creating a talent pool that MARBLE hopes to draw from as it expands.

The organisation already cooperates with Croatian industrial companies, including shipyards, as well as international partners. Among its collaborators are Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU), Italy's National Research Council (CNR) and the Ruđer Bošković Institute.

The commercial opportunity beneath the surface

The potential applications for maritime robotics extend across several industries, but Katalenic identifies two particularly important commercial markets: defence and the offshore energy sector. The latter includes oil and gas infrastructure, offshore wind farms and other installations that require regular inspection, maintenance and monitoring.

These environments are particularly suitable for underwater robots and autonomous systems. Instead of sending human divers or deploying expensive vessels for every inspection, operators can increasingly use robotic platforms to monitor infrastructure and collect data.

Norway offers an example of how such an ecosystem can develop. With a substantial offshore energy industry and significant maritime expertise, the country has become an important centre for maritime robotics companies and research projects. 

MARBLE's Norwegian partnerships provide access to this experience. "Oil and gas has a lot of infrastructure at sea, and this infrastructure needs maintenance, repair and monitoring. Robots fit quite nicely there as a solution," Katalenic says.

He adds that these customers can also afford to invest in technologies that are not yet fully mature, helping researchers and companies improve systems through real-world deployment.

Croatia, however, has a different industrial landscape. Its offshore oil and gas sector is smaller, and it does not currently have offshore wind farms, limiting some of the opportunities available in northern Europe.

Defense and maritime security could therefore become more significant markets. Underwater monitoring systems, for example, could help ports detect suspicious activity beneath the surface, while autonomous vessels and underwater drones could support surveillance and inspection operations.

The increasing interest in unmanned systems across military environments is also creating demand for technologies that can operate for extended periods without direct human intervention. Still, Katalenic cautions that autonomous shipping is not yet a fully mature industry. 

"There is still no legal framework for autonomous ships. If you want to have a product that is an autonomous ship travelling between islands, that is currently not legally possible." he says.

For now, many applications remain limited to pilot projects and controlled environments, such as autonomous systems operating around offshore installations. Nevertheless, defense customers are often willing to finance the development of emerging technologies even when they are not yet ready for widespread commercial deployment.

MARBLE is also exploring applications that have little to do with defense or energy. One area involves underwater acoustic sensors designed to monitor marine life. These systems can detect fish, estimate their size and potentially identify different species, while also helping researchers study communication between marine mammals.

Another project focuses on smart marinas, combining automation with environmental monitoring. Croatia's extensive charter and recreational boating industry creates environmental pressures, including pollution that can be difficult to detect and address quickly.

Building an ecosystem, not just another technology company

Perhaps one of MARBLE's more interesting ambitions is its intention to support other companies rather than develop and sell every technology itself. The organisation wants to position itself as a technological partner for startups and smaller businesses that have promising ideas but lack the infrastructure, equipment or expertise to turn them into products.

That could involve providing testing facilities, access to specialised equipment, assistance with research and development or support in preparing applications for European funding.

There are already several examples. One is SmartBuoy, a small company developing smart mooring buoys. Its software allows users to reserve a buoy and detect whether a vessel is properly connected to it. MARBLE is helping the company develop the physical buoy technology and test it using its facilities.

Another is Anchor Technologies, which is developing a system to detect whether an anchor has moved. MARBLE is also supporting a university team working on a robotic lifeguard system designed to detect people in danger of drowning and deploy a rescue robot. The technology is still under development, but the organisation is helping the team prepare a funding proposal that could support its next stage.

For Katalenic, these initiatives are also an important part of what MARBLE is supposed to become. The organisation can provide the scientific and engineering expertise that smaller companies might struggle to afford independently, while startups and industrial partners can concentrate on developing products, reaching customers and building commercial operations.

Regional cooperation will be another important part of that strategy. MARBLE already works with the University of Montenegro and has established collaborations with partners in Italy, Greece and Cyprus, particularly through EU-funded projects. Additionally, Katalenic sees further opportunities to expand cooperation across the Adriatic and the wider Mediterranean, including Albania and other neighbouring countries.

From research projects to products

The ultimate goal however, is for MARBLE to demonstrate that its model can work commercially. The initial European funding provides an important foundation, but it is not intended to finance the organisation indefinitely. As an independent limited liability company, MARBLE will eventually have to cover its operating costs through commercial activities and research projects, Katalenic emphasizes.

He identifies two main measures of success: developing products that are actually sold on the market and achieving long-term financial sustainability. The organisation is already working towards two particularly important technological objectives.

One is an autonomous vessel system that could be integrated into existing ships, allowing them to perform autonomous operations. The other involves underwater sensing technologies using sonars, hydrophones and other equipment to detect activity, monitor marine environments and identify potential threats.

MARBLE's role would be to develop the underlying technology, including the autonomy stack, rather than necessarily manufacturing the entire vessel. There is also an emerging opportunity in extending the operational endurance of maritime drones, Katalenic points out.

By using a larger mothership as a mobile platform, smaller autonomous vehicles could operate nearby, return to recharge and continue their missions. Such a configuration could enable operations lasting 24 hours or longer, opening up possibilities for persistent maritime monitoring.

These are ambitious objectives, particularly for an organisation that is still building its infrastructure and expanding its team. And while tourism will undoubtedly remain central to the Croatian economy, the same sea that attracts millions of visitors every year can also serve as a testing ground for autonomous vessels, underwater sensors, marine research and new industrial technologies.

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