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Maritime Robotics in Blue Economy (Master MARBLE) is offered as the novel curriculum of the Master’s degree in Electrical Energy and Systems Engineering at the University of Trieste, with four other European universities participating in the teaching of the programme.
Master MARBLE provides students with in-depth knowledge and skills in robotics and unmanned systems, machine learning, oceanography and marine technologies — with focus on the Blue Economy applications.
The programme addresses the rapidly growing field of maritime robotics, which is crucial for the technological development and competitiveness of the European economy, particularly in the Adriatic region where maritime activities are central to economic growth.
Master MARBLE is a two-year master degree programme with a workload of 120 ECTS, designed to provide a clear and structured course of study that integrates the different expertise of the five consortium universities.
Students starting the programme in 2026/27 are enrolled at the University of Trieste Master in Electrical Engineering and Systems , and upon successful completion will be awarded the Laurea magistrale in Ingegneria dell’Energia Elettrica e dei Sistemi .
The Blue Economy is an interdisciplinary field that promotes sustainable ocean-resource utilization for economic development — taking environmental health and social equity into account. It is a growing sector full of opportunities, but also full of challenges.
As these sectors evolve, the need for advanced engineering technologies such as maritime robotics and machine learning becomes more and more urgent. There is a lack of trained, skilled personnel available to work at sea. And in many Blue-Economy applications there is no alternative to using technology and robots — human divers have a very limited operational depth (at most 200 m in extreme cases) and the ocean environment is either too deep or too dangerous to explore and exploit by humans.
Developing Blue-Economy sectors requires skilled professionals who can design and develop maritime robotics across offshore energy, environmental monitoring, autonomous shipping and aquaculture — among others. To maintain an edge, Europe needs to invest not only in research and development, international partnerships and favourable regulatory frameworks, but also in the development of a skilled workforce that can advance innovation and maintain competitiveness.
