Windward Buys Azimut.ai

4 November, 2026

The Israeli startup’s camera software identifies ships and was tested at Ashdod Port. Windward will combine visual observations with data on vessel movements, cargo, ownership and sanctions

[Image: A screenshot from Windward’s maritime intelligence platform]

Maritime intelligence company Windward has announced the acquisition of Israeli startup Azimut.ai, which develops camera-based software for identifying and tracking vessels. Windward plans to expand its data collection through cameras installed at ports, along key maritime passages and aboard vessels. Its platform will combine those observations with positioning data, satellite imagery and radio signals. Windward did not disclose the purchase price or the planned deployment sites.

One of Windward’s main data sources is the Automatic Identification System, or AIS, which ships use to broadcast their identity, position and movement. When a ship stops transmitting or its broadcast identity is in doubt, a camera at a port or strait can provide an independent observation. It can capture details such as the vessel’s name, flag, hull shape and draft, the depth of the hull below the waterline. Windward plans to use these details as a visual fingerprint and cross-reference it with the vessel’s voyage history and information on its ownership, cargo and any applicable sanctions.

From Ashdod to Key Shipping Routes

Azimut.ai was founded in 2020 by Israeli Navy veterans and is led by Matan Saad. Its Albatros system connects to existing daylight and infrared cameras and analyzes video in real time. It detects and classifies vessels, estimates their position, speed and direction of travel, and can control how the cameras scan an area. The software also learns typical traffic patterns at each site so it can flag unusual vessel behavior.

Ashdod Port was an early test site, where the company assessed the system’s ability to detect small targets such as swimmers. Azimut.ai says the pilot recorded 464 targets and that standard daylight cameras detected vessels up to seven kilometers away under test conditions. In November 2025, the startup raised about $1 million, including $650,000 from Ashdod Port through its investment arm, Blue Ocean.

The acquisition gives Windward a way to collect some of the data it analyzes. Satellite imagery covers large areas, while a camera can provide a continuous view of a specific location, such as a port entrance. Coverage will depend on how many sites join the network and where they are located. Windward CEO Ami Daniel has approached ports, coastal facility owners and vessel operators to recruit deployment partners. The company says customers will receive the results of its analysis, while the raw images and video will stay with Windward.

From Russia’s Shadow Fleet to the Strait of Hormuz

Since its acquisition by U.S. investment firm FTV Capital in 2025, Windward has expanded its work with government and security agencies. In February 2026, it opened a maritime intelligence center that brings together its software platform and a team of analysts. In April, it acquired Prominent Edge, a provider of operational software and geospatial intelligence to the U.S. government, and announced a partnership with satellite intelligence provider Vantor. The Azimut.ai acquisition adds a sea-level view to those capabilities.

Two analyses Windward published in October illustrate why that view could matter. In a report on Russia’s shadow fleet, the company estimated that sanctioned vessels carried about 55% of Russia’s oil and petroleum product exports by volume in September. It also described ship-to-ship transfers that made it harder to trace the cargo’s origin. In a separate analysis, Windward identified nearly 230 tankers that carried oil from Gulf countries through the Strait of Hormuz and documented cases in which vessels loaded cargo while their AIS transmitters were switched off. In both cases, cameras at key transit points could help match a vessel observed in passage with records of its route, ownership and cargo.

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