Tech Startup Wants to Reward Generational Transfer of Shipbuilding Skills
A new startup supported by NOAA's tech accelerator program believes that it has a solution to the loss of older, more skilled workers from America's shipyards: an AI-powered training platform for the next generation, designed to capture and reward the expertise of retirement-age employees before they leave.
Since the pandemic, a generational cycle of retirement has swept the American shipbuilding industry, taking with it the accumulated knowledge of thousands of experienced engineers, welders, fitters and electricians. Their replacements have to figure things out again, and the learning curve is steep. And departing workers with decades of experience may not always be willing to help pass on the knowledge for free. "Gatekeeping" behaviors are common in the trades, since older hands have a financial disincentive to help younger personnel compete for work at equivalent or lower wages.
Florida-based Dolgo wants to short-circuit this problem with a private AI software service for shipyards. Aimed at engineering divisions, the software is a communications platform for personnel to collaborate on technical problems. The information shared in this way is captured by a large language model (LLM) AI platform, which incorporates the expertise into its knowledge base. Each item is tagged with the name of the person who contributed it, and they receive a bonus or benefit every time someone accesses their contribution. In this way, they receive a financial incentive for training the next generation, based on how useful the rest of the workforce finds the information.
“We’re very excited to report positive testing on the prototype ahead of formally launching for the market in February 2026,” said Dolgo founder Mr. Nithesh Wazenn. “It is well established that one of the biggest challenges facing the shipyard industry is the looming cliff edge of large numbers of workers retiring and taking their expertise with them. We believe Dolgo’s AI software holds an answer. Retaining precious expertise will not only drive efficiency and improve safety - it can help prevent costly and time-consuming mistakes and equipment damage.”
Dolgo's development is supported by NOAA's Ocean Enterprise Accelerator, the Miami-based Seaworthy Collective, and by the University of South Florida College of Marine Science. The demand for a solution is substantial, the company says: the average age of American shipbuilders is about 55 years old, and attrition among the new hires that must replace them is unusually high, leading to escalating costs for training. Against this backdrop, shipyard demand is expected to double in the next decade, Dolgo says - so in addition to offsetting retirements, yards may have to grow their workforce in tough hiring conditions.