SEAMLESS Project Launches Webinar Series on the Future of Autonomous Inland Waterway Transport

On 5 June 2025, ALICE hosted the introductory webinar of the SEAMLESS project, officially launching a series of sessions dedicated to advancing autonomous and digitalised inland waterway transport (IWT). The event brought together over 50 participants from across Europe to explore the project’s objectives, structure, and technological foundations. 

Advancing greener and smarter logistics 

The SEAMLESS project aims to transform inland and short-sea freight transport through innovations in automation, modular vessel design, and digital coordination systems. The session began with an introduction from Tomasz Dowgielewicz (ALICE), who highlighted the project’s alignment with ALICE’s vision for decarbonised and integrated freight transport. 

Vassilis Podimatas (NTUA) then provided a comprehensive overview of the project architecture, explaining how SEAMLESS is designed to deliver strategic impact across multimodal corridors. The project’s key objectives include: 

• Reducing emissions from inland freight transport 
• Enhancing real-time digital coordination 
• Enabling scalable, interoperable autonomous vessel operations 

Demonstration use cases in focus 

The webinar featured two Demonstration Use Cases (DUCs), presenting real-world applications of SEAMLESS technology: 

• DUC1: Northern Europe – Short Sea Shipping 
  Presented by Håvard Nordahl (SINTEF Ocean) 
  Focused on port and terminal automation, this use case explores how autonomous systems can streamline vessel turnaround and improve logistics flows in short-sea corridors. 
• DUC2: Central Europe – Inland Waterways 
  Presented by Ann-Sofie Pauwelyn (ZULU Associates) 
  This use case targets modular vessel operations and the development of a digital logistics coordination platform to enable flexible, real-time cargo routing across inland waterways. 

Both use cases will serve as testbeds for validating SEAMLESS innovations under operational conditions. 

Looking ahead 

In closing, Vassilis Podimatas outlined the upcoming webinar roadmap, which will delve deeper into critical components of the project, including: 

• Autonomous vessel navigation technologies 
• Cybersecurity and legal frameworks 
• Integration with synchromodal transport corridors 
• Policy recommendations for fleet renewal and emissions reductions 

Stakeholder engagement and insights 

The session featured active contributions from key stakeholders including Karin De Schepper (INE) and Nik Delmeire, who raised important considerations around cybersecurity, fleet renewal, and policy coherence. The discussion reinforced the value of aligning innovation with market realities and regulatory development. 

ALICE’s role in SEAMLESS 

ALICE’s contributions include facilitating stakeholder engagement and communication, as well as ensuring that results are shared across European innovation agendas. Through its networks and thematic groups, ALICE supports knowledge exchange and contributes to the strategic uptake of solutions emerging from the project. 

The SEAMLESS webinar series will continue to provide a platform for cross-sector dialogue and shared learning as the project moves from design into implementation.