This is one of the key questions explored in the new book Safety by Design: Human-Centered Approaches to AI, Automation, and Remote Operations, launched in June.

The publication brings together contributions from leading researchers and experts in safety, human-machine interaction and autonomous systems.

For members of Ocean Autonomy Cluster and MIDAS, the topics are highly relevant. The growing adoption of autonomous vessels, remote operations and AI-enabled decision support systems offers significant opportunities, while also creating new requirements for safety, operator support and system design.

Safety must be built in from the start

The book argues that safety cannot be treated as an add-on once technology has been developed. Instead, human factors, usability and the role of operators must be integrated into systems from the outset. Drawing on experiences from aviation, maritime operations, energy and transportation, the authors demonstrate how serious incidents often occur when technology, organisations and human work processes are not sufficiently aligned.

A central concept in the book is “Meaningful Human Control”, a framework designed to ensure that people retain situational awareness, decision-making authority and the ability to intervene when automated systems operate in complex and safety-critical environments. This is becoming increasingly important as new AI regulations are introduced across Europe.

Ole Andreas Alsos, Head of NTNU Shore Control Lab, Professor in Interaction Design. Photo: Lars Bugge Aarset/Fremtidens Industri

“As automation and AI move into safety-critical domains, safety can no longer be treated as something that is verified only at the end of development. It must be designed into the relationship between people, organizations and technology from the very beginning.”

“This book is important because it brings human factors, interaction design and safety science together in a practical way: it shows how we can create systems where humans retain meaningful control, operators are supported under pressure, and complex technologies become safer, more transparent and more resilient.”

— Ole Andreas Alsos, Professor of Interaction Design, NTNU; Head of Shore Control Lab; co-editor of Safety by Design

Container ship “NCL Salten” grounding near Trondheim. Photo: Lars Bugge Aarset/Fremtidens Industri

“Autonomous and remotely operated maritime systems will not become safe simply by removing people from the bridge or the control loop. They become safer when we understand the work operators actually have to perform, design the technology around that work, and ensure that people can build situation awareness and intervene when conditions change.”

— Stig Ole Johnsen, NTNU

Stig Ole Johnsen, NTNU, co-editor and contributor to Safety by Design.

Relevance for autonomous maritime operations

For organisations developing the next generation of autonomous vessels, subsea systems and remotely operated maritime services, the book offers an important perspective: technology does not become safer by removing humans from the loop—it becomes safer when the interaction between people and technology is carefully designed.

The book is edited by Frøy Birte Bjørneseth, Vidar Hepsø, Stig Ole Johnsen, Ole Andreas Alsos and Gunhild Birgitte Sætren. Several of the editors and contributors have extensive experience in research and development related to maritime technology, autonomy and safety-critical operations.

MIDAS – Humans in Future Maritime Operations

The book is initiated, funded and written as part of the project MIDAS – Humans in Future Maritime Operations.

MIDAS is a national competence project that investigates the role of humans in future maritime operations, where autonomy, artificial intelligence and automation are becoming increasingly important. The ambition is to ensure that new technology is developed in ways that safeguard safety, usability and meaningful human control.

The project brings together researchers, technologists, designers and industry stakeholders across the maritime value chain. NTNU contributes interdisciplinary expertise from several departments, while SINTEF Digital provides competence in human factors and digitalisation. DNV contributes expertise in classification and maritime safety, and the clusters Digital Norway, Ocean Autonomy Cluster and Blue Maritime Cluster. Through MIDAS, the aim is to strengthen Norwegian industry’s innovation capacity and contribute to the development and export of future autonomous maritime solutions.

NTNU Shore Control Lab in Trondheim. Photo: Lars Bugge Aarset/Fremtidens Industri

Open access resource for industry and academia

Published by CRC Press, Safety by Design is available as an Open Access book under the Creative Commons CC BY 4.0 licence. This means that the book can be downloaded free of charge, shared, copied and reused in research, education, training, industrial development and policy work, provided that the original source is properly credited.
The book offers practical and research-based insights for technology developers, operators, designers, researchers, educators, regulators and policymakers working to ensure that autonomous, remote and AI-enabled systems are not only innovative, but also safe, usable and centred on meaningful human control.