Scientists in California are using AI-powered drones to spot great white sharks off the coast and warn beachgoers when the predators are nearby. The SharkEye programme, developed by researchers at UC Santa Barbara, is now being used along the California coast as a beach-safety tool.
The system combines drone footage with artificial intelligence to detect sharks from the air, then sends real-time alerts to local officials and beach communities. A public app is now being tested so swimmers and surfers can check conditions before entering the water, giving them a direct way to see what the system is picking up.
SharkEye programme at UC Santa Barbara
Researchers at UC Santa Barbara built the SharkEye programme to watch the water from above rather than wait for a sighting from shore. That setup matters for busy tourist beaches in Southern California, where the alerts are meant to reach people before they enter the water rather than after an encounter has already happened.
Galloway, a NYU professor and co-host, is among the named people in the broader discussion around the story, while Kara Swisher is the other co-host listed in the facts. The safety system itself is the point: drones scan, AI identifies, and alerts move to beach communities in real time.
California beach alerts
Researchers said unusually warm ocean temperatures have led to higher-than-average shark numbers this summer. That is the complication inside the new system: the alert network is being used at the same time shark activity is running above average, so the warning tool is operating in a more crowded water environment than usual.
For swimmers and surfers, the practical change is simple. Before entering the water, they may be able to check the public app under test and see whether SharkEye has flagged great white sharks nearby. The programme is built to push information to the people most exposed to the risk, not to explain the ocean after the fact.
Public app under test
The testing phase leaves the main operational question in front of beachgoers: how useful the app will be when it becomes a routine part of checking conditions. For now, the confirmed change is that California’s coastal safety system is moving from drone detection alone to a direct user-facing tool that can shape a decision before anyone reaches the water.
