Business Sectors
Business Sectors
Events
Contents
UniSea acquires Kaiko Systems to expand portfolio, integrate AI
A Norwegian supplier of health, safety and maintenance planning software has acquired a German maritime software company to become a full fleet management services provider
UniSea has completed its acquisition of Kaiko Systems to further expand its services for vessel fleet management and to help shipmanagers prepare ships for inspections.
The Norwegian company already provides software covering health, safety, environment and quality (HSEQ) and maintenance, procurement and drydocking to more than 3,000 vessels.
Kaiko Systems delivers tools for supporting vessel inspections, SIRE 2.0 self-assessments and port state-control preparations for shipmanagers.
The Berlin, Germany-headquartered maritime software company provides software, supported by artificial intelligence (AI), to more than 1,000 vessels with leading shipmanagers, including Columbia Group and OSM Thome, across tanker, bulk, container and mixed fleets.
UniSea founder and chief executive Kurt Roar Vilhelmsen told Riviera that this acquisition makes UniSea a “full fleet management software company, not just HSEQ.”
Increasingly, UniSea’s fleet management system (FMS) will be using AI to deliver insight to vessel and fleet managers as this capability comes with the transaction.
“This acquisition strengthens our position, broadening the FMS suite,” said Mr Vilhelmsen.
“Kaiko adds comprehensive frontline inspections to the group and is a natural next step in UniSea’s transition from HSEQ specialist to full-suite FMS provider.”
UniSea acquired 100% of Kaiko Systems, which was founded in 2020 by Fabian Fussek and Eddy del Valle Pino, financed by a significant capital injection by Swedish private equity fund, Adelis Equity, into the group.
Adelis Equity has continued providing financial support to the group since it became majority owner of UniSea in 2022.
With this financial backing, Mr Vilhelmsen said UniSea would be looking to further expand through the addition of complementary software providers and products.
“As we are now a much larger organisation and with a broader product portfolio, we will continue to look for specialist additions where they strengthen the group for our customers,” he said.
UniSea’s acquisition of Kaiko reflects a broader shift in the maritime software market, with consolidation creating larger, financially-strengthened providers as shipowners look for deeper relationships with trusted providers.
Kaiko will continue to operate as a distinct product with its own roadmap and team. Ship operators, managers and owners using either products will not required to change how they work, but the combined group will offer seamless integration points so data can flow between Kaiko and UniSea modules.
“Each product is designed for a specific job and we want both to remain best in class at what they do,” said UniSea chief operating officer Dagfinn Rasmussen.
“What we are building together is the opportunity for customers to connect them where they unlock the most value, while preserving the specialist depth that has made each product successful on its own.”
Mr Vilhelmsen said the company had seen rising demand for its planned maintenance, procurement and docking modules.
These included programs developed by Maindeck, which UniSea acquired in 2023.
“We have recently signed with many well-known names like Olympic Subsea, Eidesvik Offshore, Solstad Offshore, Simon Møkster Shipping, GO Offshore and CASCO Offshore to name a few,” Mr Vilhelmsen said.
Kaiko brings AI capabilities to UniSea, with its platform applying AI and proprietary computer vision across inspection workflows, including document detection, image verification and corrosion detection.
“This partnership will further accelerate our AI initiatives and help our customers automate their operations, increase efficiency and reduce costs while giving UniSea a meaningful step up in applied AI for maritime operations,” said Mr Rasmussen.
Sign up for Riviera’s series of technical and operational webinars and conferences:
- Register to attend by visiting our events page.
- Watch recordings from all of our webinars in the webinar library.
Related to this Story
Events
Maritime Regulations Webinar Week
16 Dec 2025
GMT - ONLINE
Floating energy: successfully unlocking stranded gas using FLNGs and FSRUs
24 Feb 2026GMT - ONLINE
© 2026 Riviera Maritime Media Ltd.
