AI Assistant Could Help Fish Farms Grow Smarter
Scientists from Russia, Cyprus and Serbia have developed a digital platform to monitor and analyze data from all production processes at aquaculture farms.
Russia continues its broad digital transformation of aquaculture, the farming of fish and seafood in artificial water bodies and marine farms. Aquaculture has become an important part of the agricultural sector, helping increase the supply of foods that are essential to human diets.
Modern fish farming is gradually becoming “smart” and evolving into a high-tech industry in which information systems play an increasingly important role, with production decisions based on big-data analysis.
Smart Aquaculture
Digital technologies can help Russian aquaculture producers improve production efficiency. Scientists from the St. Petersburg Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, together with colleagues from Kaliningrad State Technical University, the University of Kragujevac in Serbia, the University of Nicosia in Cyprus and the Agricultural Research Institute in Cyprus, have developed a system aimed at the industry. It collects data from an aquaculture farm and generates recommendations for improving operations.
One of the challenges facing fish farmers is changes in water chemistry, acidity and oxygen levels. Water quality directly affects the health of fish and seafood species. Farmers therefore need to monitor conditions continuously and respond quickly when water treatment is required.
The new digital system automates aquaculture-farm operations. It combines IoT sensors, mathematical models for processing collected data and artificial intelligence algorithms. The sensors monitor water conditions, including temperature, oxygen levels, acidity and ammonia concentrations. Farmers enter data on feeding schedules, fish growth and mortality into the software. A mathematical model processes these indicators and, after analyzing the data, forecasts how the fish will develop as farm operating parameters change.
Lower Costs, Higher Efficiency
Based on the forecasts generated by the mathematical model, a neural network gives farmers specific operational recommendations, including adjustments to water parameters and feeding schedules. The final decision on how the farm operates, however, remains with the farmer.
The digital platform can significantly reduce major production costs. “The tool we have developed will help fish farms use limited water resources more efficiently and improve their economic stability. In the near future, we plan to test the technology at aquaculture farms in Cyprus, a country with a well-developed aquaculture sector but limited water and energy resources. These conditions make optimizing farm operations particularly important. Preliminary estimates indicate that our technology could reduce feed consumption by 10% to 15% without reducing aquaculture productivity, creating an economic benefit for the farms that adopt it,” said project leader Andrey Ronzhin, DSc in Engineering, professor and director of the St. Petersburg Federal Research Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences.
Digital technologies are becoming a standard tool in Russian aquaculture. In 2025, an AI-based computer-vision system began analyzing sturgeon eggs at a trout breeding facility in Sochi’s Adler district. The machine identifies viable eggs, helping improve production efficiency.
Further adoption of digital technologies could make aquaculture more attractive to small and midsize businesses and draw in new investment, because entrepreneurs at every level would have access to platforms that help them monitor and model production processes.
Fish and Technology Exports
Higher production efficiency is expected to increase shipments to both domestic and international markets. In 2025, Russia exported 2.1 million metric tons of fish and fish products, up 1% from the previous year. Meanwhile, Russia’s wild fish catch fell 4% in 2025, while commercial aquaculture production increased from 180,000 metric tons in 2014 to 400,000 metric tons.
“The development strategy for Russia’s fisheries sector calls for aquaculture production to reach 600,000 metric tons by 2030. Aquaculture needs to deliver predictable output, develop continuously and demonstrate results. We have everything we need to achieve that. We need to take the industry to a new level of development regardless of climate and weather conditions. Above all, we expect fisheries science to deliver new solutions that businesses will actually need,” said Ilya Shestakov, head of the Federal Agency for Fishery, in May 2026 during a meeting on aquaculture in the Leningrad region.
Experts say AI technologies can help improve the efficiency and global competitiveness of Russia’s fisheries sector. Demand for industry-specific digital technologies is already emerging. Scientists from Serbia and Cyprus are participating in the development of the new AI platform for aquaculture, and the technology will be tested in Cyprus. That means Russia could soon begin exporting digital systems for aquaculture farms to friendly countries alongside its fish exports.
