Lloyd’s Register (LR), a UK-based classification society and professional advisory service, will be among the first maritime organizations to use generative AI for permitting capabilities, utilizing Microsoft Azure OpenAI Service. This collaboration aims to streamline the regulatory process for nuclear technology, accelerating its deployment in maritime applications.
The AI capabilities, through analysis of historical nuclear licensing data, will allow licensing engineers to draft permitting documents more efficiently, ready for review and refinement. The technology also facilitates rapid searches of regulations, precedents, and other crucial information within extensive regulatory datasets. This capability allows a faster and more cost-effective path through regulatory hurdles, critical for making nuclear power a viable clean energy solution.
Mark Tipping, LR’s Global Offshore Power To X Director, who leads on nuclear technology, explained, “We have a large data source from decades of regulatory applications which these AI capabilities can interrogate swiftly to identify good practice and lessons learned. Together, we’re tackling one of the biggest challenges in deploying nuclear technology, which is navigating complex, slow, and costly licensing processes.”
AI’s potential extends to unlocking the potential of nuclear power across floating nuclear power, offshore applications, and ship power. Tipping added, “Collaborating with Microsoft provides us with an excellent opportunity to combine two very different areas of expertise, their AI capabilities and our vast history and knowledge of maritime and nuclear safety.”
This initiative is driven by Lloyd’s Register’s CTIO team. Jeff Scott, Deputy Chief Technology and Innovation Officer, played a pivotal role in engaging with Microsoft to explore AI’s potential in maritime nuclear regulation. Scott stated, “Regulations shouldn’t be a roadblock to innovation—they should be a launchpad. By teaming up with Microsoft, we’re using AI to cut through the red tape and fast-track the future of nuclear in maritime. It’s an exciting step toward making clean energy a reality on the water.”
Darryl Willis, Microsoft CVP, Energy & Resources Industry, commented, “This collaboration underscores our commitment to harnessing the power of AI to drive innovation and advance sustainability across sectors. By combining our AI expertise with Lloyd’s Register’s expertise in maritime and nuclear safety, we are paving the way to ease regulatory barriers and make sustainability more attainable for all industries.”
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