Team from UIU ranks 5th at MATE ROV World Championship

UIU MARINER, a team from United International University (UIU), has secured 5th place globally in the Pioneer Class category at the MATE ROV World Championship 2025, becoming the highest-ranking team from Asia in this year's competition.

This year's MATE ROV World Championship, an international underwater robotics competition, was held from June 19 to 21 at Michigan's Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary. It brought together student teams from over 40 countries, with participants tasked with building and operating remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) to tackle real-world marine challenges.

In addition to their global ranking, UIU MARINER was crowned World Champion in Technical Documentation, earning a score of 81 out of 100. The award recognised their technical writing, precision, and understanding of marine science. Earlier this month, the team had qualified for the MATE ROV World Championship.

The team's remotely operated vehicle (ROV), Scorpion, features real-time underwater navigation, high-resolution night vision cameras, and a robotic arm with multiple degrees of freedom designed for complex underwater tasks such as object retrieval and switch operations.

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Team from UIU qualifies for MATE ROV World Championship

Md Darain Khan, Software & Control System Lead and ROV Pilot, shared that one of the toughest parts of the competition was handling pressure in real time: "Every small mistake could affect the team's performance and the country's image. What helped us was staying focused and supporting each other in critical moments."

According to the team, their ROV performed steadily throughout the live missions. A standout moment came during a precision navigation task. "Despite underwater current and low visibility, our coordination as pilot and co-pilot was spot on," said AM Zayed Abdullah, ROV Co-Pilot and Mechanical Member, "It felt like all our training paid off in that one moment."

Team Lead Anika Tabassum Orchi noted that the global stage offered more than just competition: "The professionalism and innovation we saw from other teams were impressive. But what stood out most was the environment of learning and mutual respect."

Looking ahead, the team plans to further develop their ROV with enhanced autonomy and improved sensor systems. They also aim to mentor upcoming teams in Bangladesh and contribute to the local marine robotics space. "This result is a milestone, but it's just the start. We want to turn this success into something lasting for the country," said Anika.

UIU MARINER's members include Anika Tabassum Orchi (Team Lead), Md. Farhan Zaman (Project Manager & R&D Lead), Md Darain Khan (Software & Control System Lead, ROV Pilot), Md Alamgir (Mechanical Lead), Md Mehrab Hossain Khan (Logistic Lead), and Nafisa Tabassum (Marketing Lead). They are all students of UIU and were supported by the university throughout the project.