Can AI Identify Fish? Inside Sweden's Eye of the Fjord

Picture one curious fish living next to an underwater camera. Every day it swims past the lens, again and again. A computer counts it every time. By the end of the season, has the fjord gained a hundred fish, or one very loyal neighbour?

That is the real question behind a headline from Sweden. Can AI identify fish on an underwater camera? Yes, it is starting to, and the researchers are testing it now. One system recorded nearly 150,000 fish and other animals after going live in July 2026. But the researchers are clear: that is not 150,000 different individuals. Some fish live near the cameras and appear over and over.

That difference is what makes the project interesting. It is not a reason to dismiss it.

How the camera system works

Two cameras at Kristineberg Marine Research Station watch two different habitats. One looks at an eelgrass meadow at five metres. The other looks at a rocky ledge at 22 metres.

The footage gives continuous observations, without divers visiting again and again and disturbing the site.

Researchers are testing two systems that recognise and count animals. Continuous footage can build long records of when species appear, and how that changes between depths or between years.

What does a count of fish actually tell us?

A count can show repeated activity and help track patterns. It does not automatically tell researchers how many individual fish live in the fjord. A territorial fish that swims past every day can add many appearances on its own.

The camera data can be compared with sensors that measure water temperature, salinity, plankton and oxygen. Those measurements help turn a fish-shaped blur into a useful ecological observation.

Why human scientists still matter

AI systems need testing, correction and expert interpretation. The Swedish Polar Research Secretariat says the systems are still being tested and improved, and the streaming setup itself is being upgraded too.

So this is not a machine replacing observation. It is a new tool that helps people look through far more footage than they could ever watch alone.

You can read our Sweden ocean guide for more about the country’s marine life. The fish do not know they are on camera. The clever part is building a system that notices them without asking them to perform.

Questions people ask

Wildlife encounters are never guaranteed and never forced. Ocean Calling works only with vetted, ethical local operators, and every animal is free to approach, or not, entirely on its own terms.