ABYSS turns every dive into an interactive journey of discovery, learning, and protection, exploring the unknown while protecting the unseen.

AI has been used for the video generation with references from AREX, Meta and licenced content from Artlist.

Context & Opportunity
The project responds to a recurring gap in recreational diving: the underwater environment is rich in information, yet divers often lack the means to identify species, understand their surroundings, or receive immediate feedback on their skills while submerged. Traditional tools, dive computers, paper slates, and standard masks, prioritize safety data and basic navigation, but offer limited support for observation, learning, and shared discovery. This leaves many dives feeling passive, especially for beginners and marine-life enthusiasts.

Design Approach
ABYSS is built as an augmented-reality diving mask that layers contextual information directly onto the diver’s field of view. Rather than replacing the dive computer, it extends the experience beyond depth, time, and pressure into orientation, buoyancy, marine-life recognition, and environmental awareness. Cameras, inertial sensors, depth and biometric measurements form the technical core, while a rotating virtual control dial defines a simple interaction model usable with gloves and limited visibility. The result is a system that supports attention rather than demanding it, keeping the diver immersed in the real underwater environment.

How It Works
During a dive, the system uses the mask’s cameras and IMU to understand orientation, movement, and surrounding conditions. Species encountered in view can be identified in real time, with distance indicators and selectable information panels controlled through the rotating dial. For training, virtual guides support buoyancy, horizontal posture, kicking rhythm, and navigation exercises; for exploration, AR reconstructions can reveal submerged ruins and historical contexts. At the safety stop, the interface shifts into a recap mode, allowing divers to review species sightings, dive data, and discoveries before surfacing.

Positioning
ABYSS positions itself as an accessible layer for guided and recreational diving: immersive, educational, and adaptable to dive centers and rental workflows. It is designed for dive schools, marine citizen-science programs, and recreational divers who want more purpose from each dive—turning observation into learning, individual exploration into shared activity, and underwater curiosity into data that can support local conservation efforts.