As we enter 2026, the maritime industry continues to confront a landscape defined by the same layered complexity that characterized the last 12 months. Decarbonization, digitalization, crew shortages, geopolitical complexity, tightening regulations, safety, commercial performance and more: the list of overlapping challenges is long.

Complexity is the new baseline for our industry. It will not dissipate with short-term fixes. In this context, the organizations that succeed will be those that recognize regulatory compliance, commercial performance and safety at sea as interconnected levers and tests of operational excellence.  

Entangled challenges need integrated solutions. Standardized and interconnected data will lay the foundations for continuous feedback from shipyard to sea, powering better-informed, optimized decisions, operations, and regulatory reporting.  

Here are five ways data and digital solutions will actively reshape ship design, compliance and operations:  

1: Efficiency becomes the primary decarbonization lever, again 

Despite progress in alternative fuels, the momentum and targets for immediate decarbonization mean efficiency will remain the dominant emissions-reduction lever throughout 2026. 

In 2026, we may see regional measures, such as expanding the UK Emissions Trading Scheme to cover shipping, alongside potential changes to European frameworks that could broaden the scope of FuelEU Maritime. At the international level, discussions around the IMO Net-Zero Framework will re-emerge as a defining moment in the regulatory calendar in April and then again in October. While these discussions continue, shipowners will invest in efficiency to remain competitive under existing regulations.  

OECD analysis shows that while alternative fuel adoption is increasing across vessel types, costs, availability, carbon pricing, and tightening regional rules remain key factors determining adoption. Thus, efficiency will remain a permanent commercial necessity. Proven tools such as voyage optimization, wind-assisted propulsion and performance monitoring deliver immediate reductions while buying time for fuel infrastructure to mature. 

Wind propulsion illustrates this transition clearly. Installations have doubled over the past two years, signalling a move from experimental adoption to commercial deployment. Forecasts from the International Windship Association also suggest that around 100 vessels will have wind propulsion systems installed by the start of 2026. 

At NAPA, we recently conducted a simulation assessment with Norsepower and Sumitomo that showed emissions could be cut by up to 28% on some routes when wind-assisted propulsion in the form of rotor sails is paired with NAPA Voyage Optimization. These are not marginal gains; they are scalable, data-backed improvements available now. 

2:  Clean technology performance proof, not hype 

As the cleantech market matures in 2026, expectations around proven performance evidence will continue to rise. With this, scepticism toward inflated savings claims is also brewing, and rightly so. Operators, financiers, and regulators now demand auditable, transparent, third-party-verifiable data to prove compliance. To build trust, commercial models such as ‘pay-as-you-save’ will become more common in 2026. This also allows suppliers to build a critical mass of installations in a competitive market.  

The industry needs proof, not hype, which is gained through simulation combined with real operational data. Digital twins, for example, are no longer just marketing visuals. They now play an increasingly key role as decision-making tools that allow technologies to be tested under realistic conditions before committing capital. 

Advanced 3D models can also serve as the basis for a ship’s digital twin, which can then be used to analyze the vessel’s future performance, fuel consumption, GHG emissions, stability parameters, and hydrodynamic profile, as well as to simulate design variations and different operational profiles. This optimizes design decisions from the outset of a project and helps realize more sustainable, innovative, and entirely new vessel designs. This is especially important as demand grows for ships capable of using alternative fuels or equipped with clean technologies, such as wind-assisted propulsion systems. 

3: Human-centered digitalization remains non-negotiable  

The growing crew shortage, combined with rising operational and regulatory complexity, means digital tools must simplify workflows rather than add cognitive load. Technology that adds workload will fail. Technology that removes friction will scale. 

DNV has warned of a growing “safety gap” as new technologies outpace existing work practices. Knut Ørbeck-Nilssen from DNV Maritime sounded the alarm, saying there’s a growing “safety gap” between current work practices and the rapid adoption of new eco-friendly technologies on ships. 

Data has a role to play in bridging this gap. Research shows that about  90% of data generated on a ship  never leaves the deck. Tapping into this data mine could mean getting valuable insights to optimize performance.   

Electronic logbooks, automated permit-to-work systems, and digital checklists can help improve crew efficiency, ease reporting and regulatory compliance, and minimise fatigue caused by excessive hours of work. Leading gas shipping company Anthony Veder reduced its administrative workload by 14% and saved 2,000 hours per vessel after implementing an electronic logbook from NAPA. In 2026 and beyond, we predict accelerated uptake of these solutions where data is captured once, shared automatically from ship to shore and reused across workflows to meaningfully reduce administrative effort and improve safety onboard. 

4: Ship design goes digital-first, or falls behind 

2026 will expose a hard truth: legacy design methods can’t cope with the scale or speed of modern ship design. With a global orderbook exceeding 6,000 vessels, increasing use of hybrid propulsion, alternative fuels, ice-class and special-purpose designs, each vessel is becoming a near one-off prototype, where design choices directly shape compliance, carbon performance, and lifetime operating costs.  

Digital integration – 3D models, simulation, and shared data – is no longer optional; it’s the only viable way to manage complexity without slowing projects or missing critical trade-offs. In a recent RoPax project on the Stockholm–Mariehamn–Helsinki route, simulation tools used to design a newbuild vessel revealed that the future ship will spend about 50% of its time sailing at full speed, 25% in port, with the remaining 25% in slow-speed operations.

This is valuable knowledge from a design perspective because it helps naval architects understand the levels of propulsion power needed, how efficient a vessel will be, how changes in route may impact bunkering patterns, and how compliant a vessel is with safety regulations, all before steel is cut. These insights are invaluable for informing decisions on the right engine power and configuration to maximize energy efficiency. Patterns, on how compliant a vessel is with safety regulations, will provide invaluable advantages. 
 

5: Collaboration, not isolated innovation 

No single company can solve shipping’s regulatory and operational complexity alone. Progress in 2026 will be driven by industry-wide collaboration. From shipowners and yards to class societies and technology providers, this will be supported by secure, integrated data. This is why partnerships and collaboration-enabling platforms matter. 

To accelerate this paradigm shift, we launched NAPA Studios to tackle some of the industry’s most pressing challenges. Through NAPA Studios, we have been leading a cross-industry collaboration project on the use of digital twins in shipping. This includes some of the biggest names in Japanese shipping and aims to create a secure data-sharing framework between shipyards and shipowners to advance the use of digital twins and data to optimise vessel designs and operations. This collaborative project will continue to develop in 2026 and beyond. 

Looking ahead, it is increasingly clear that progress depends on partnerships and partnerships depend on shared, trusted data. In an industry where complexity is the norm, competitive advantage will not be achieved by working alone in the dark, but rather by working transparently with the right partners, and letting data light the way, build resilience and create sustained value.