Maritime crew managers have to grapple with a daunting task every time a member of their crew changes: managing immigration regulations, COVID requirements and travel plans for each person, usually done through emails with port agents. This can lead to a large backlog of emails, particularly if multiple people need to be onboarded or leaving, that are often sent across different time zones. To solve this issue, Greywing, a Singapore-based maritime intelligence platform that has received investments from firms like Flexport and Y Combinator, recently rolled out SeaGPT: an AI chatbot based on GPT4 tech.
Nick Clarke, Greywing’s CEO, stated that email overwhelm is a major concern expressed by crew managers and that SeaGPT is the company’s latest tool for crew management automation. The chatbot simplifies the process by drafting emails with the most important queries and extracting specific information from replies sent by port agents. In addition, the program has been tailored specifically to the maritime industry.
SeaGPT was made possible by advancements in GPT4 technology, according to Hrishi Olickel, Greywing’s co-founder and chief technology officer. Currently, the chatbot is available on Greywing’s platform, Slackbot, and its mobile app, and further integrations for WhatsApp and Teams are planned for the future.
Olickel explains that having too many emails can limit a crew manager’s ability to make informed decisions. As an example, one of Greywing’s customers had an incident where their master needed to be quickly transferred from his vessel to the nearest hospital that had the necessary medical facilities. SeaGPT could have cut down the time required to find the port and coordinate the departure from hours to minutes.
So how does SeaGPT work? After a request, such as “set up a crew change for me in Melbourne,” is sent, the chatbot pores through a database of 18,300 ports to provide all the essential information. Questions that are often forgotten, such as whether or not PCR tests are needed for a shore leave and how much it will cost, are asked and the necessary emails are drafted. SeaGPT also doesn’t allow hallucinations and will flag any details that are not available. Additionally, it translates the replies to different languages and amalgamates the information for easy record-keeping.
While SeaGPT is currently aiming to simplify communication with port agents, Olickel revealed that Greywing hopes to eventually develop the chatbot into a team member or assistant that can help with communication between agents and seafarers, as well as provide automated decision support.
The company Greywing is based in Singapore and allows maritime intelligence. Greywing offers both crew management and software automation. Greywing is backed by investors such as Y Combinator, Flexport and other venture capitalist firms. They focus on simplifying crew management while considering standards of safety and sustainability.
Hrishi Olickel is the Co-founder of Greywing, as well as Greywing’s Chief Technology Officer. He specializes in building maritime solutions for crew management automation. Olickel cooperated with advancements in GPT4 and a maritime-specific approach to programming to make SeaGPT possible. In a statement, he highlighted the importance of SeaGPT to prevent human error and make the process faster, especially when time zones are not optimal.
