On December 22, the 6th International Innovation and Cooperation in Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering (ICNAME2022) and the 2nd International High-End Forum on Autonomous Navigation Technology for Ships were conducted online. Renowned experts from 11 well-known universities, research institutions, and enterprises, including the Marinet Industry Center in Russia, the Russian Shipping and Port Corporation, the Russian Jiao Tong University, Ushakov State Oceanic University, Sepuluh Nopember Institute of Technology (ITS) in Indonesia, China Institute of Navigation, China Classification Society, SDARI, Wuhan University of Technology, and Harbin Engineering University, participated in the conferences online.

The conference facilitated in-depth discussions on intelligent ships, autonomous ships, and unmanned ship technologies, exploring the acceleration of cutting-edge innovative technologies such as intelligent, unmanned, and digital ships. The event deepened international scientific and technological cooperation in the field of ships and marine engineering, jointly promoting scientific and technological progress in the international shipbuilding and marine field.

Alexander Klimov, President of MIIT and rotating chairman of the forum, introduced the preparations for the event. Speeches were delivered by Alexander Pinskiy, head of Russia's Marinet Industry Center; WANG Junli, Secretary General of the Chinese Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineering; and XIA Guihua, Chairman of the International Organization for Innovation and Cooperation in Ship and Marine Engineering.

This online forum also launched an all-English live streaming channel. During the one-day conference, 11 presentations were given by attending experts and scholars. Reporters shared the current situation and development trends of intelligent ships in China and Russia, along with relevant research on cutting-edge technologies for unmanned ships. The content covered industry demands and cutting-edge scientific issues in the field of ship and ocean engineering, such as autonomous navigation ships, surface unmanned ships, and autonomous tugboats. The event had 50 attendees, and the online live broadcast reached over 300 views.

The forum, hosted by The Chinese Society of Naval Architects and Marine Engineering, ICNAME, Harbin Engineering University, the Russian Jiao Tong University, and Wuhan University of Technology, was organized by the International Joint Laboratory of Ship Intelligence and Autonomous Navigation Technology, the Key Laboratory of Intelligent Technology and Application of Ship and Marine Equipment at Harbin Engineering University, and the Key Laboratory of High-Performance Ship Technology, Wuhan University of Technology, Ministry of Education.

Since its establishment in June 2015, ICNAME, led by HEU, has received widespread response and support from domestic and foreign industries, with an increasing number of councils and observers. On November 16, 2021, at the 5th ICNAME and the 1st International Forum on Ship Intelligence and Autonomous Navigation Technology held at HEU, Krimov and XIA Guihua jointly initiated the establishment of an international joint laboratory for ship intelligence and autonomous navigation technology, with the College of Intelligent Systems Science and Engineering undertaking the joint laboratory construction work. This forum represents another in-depth exchange around autonomous navigation technology for ships, following the successful holding of the first forum.

The aim is to promote international scientific and technological cooperation in the field of ships and marine engineering using the International Joint Laboratory of Ship Intelligence and Autonomous Navigation Technology as a platform, and jointly address the challenges brought by the development of unmanned ships.