Deep Trekker takes exploratory spirit and underwater tech to new places around the world

Imagine being able to navigate through the depths of lakes and oceans, uncover lost items or take deep dives to conduct research using only a small, portable robot or drone. Deep Trekker is making this easier, more accessible and affordable, through the development of groundbreaking underwater technology. 

Deep Trekker’s founder and president, Sam Macdonald, along with partners Jeff Lotz and Shawn Pette, started the Kitchener-based company with a mission to make underwater adventure and exploration easier.  What sets Deep Trekker apart from other companies is its strong focus on portability, user-friendliness and cost-effectiveness.

Deep Trekker has developed products and solutions for all kinds of missions – from helping researchers track how great white sharks hunt in deep waters off the coast of Guadalupe Island to supporting the removal of lost fishing gear that threatens the safety of fish and other marine animals. Deep Trekker also produces the most widely used fish farming inspection robot in the world, with two of the world’s largest salmon producers using Deep Trekkers ROVs for their net and mooring inspections.

Since its inception in 2010, the company has expanded to offer its innovative, affordable solutions to environmental and industrial clients. Its underwater robot and subsurface surveillance cameras now service several industries across 80 countries, including aquaculture, municipal contracting, military, search and rescue, shipping and infrastructure.

Deep Trekker’s products include five robot lines with two remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROVs), two submersible crawler systems and subsurface surveillance cameras. The company has earned recognition for its innovation in ROVs. In 2017, Deep Trekker won the Abbott Most Innovative Product Award from the North American Society for Trenchless Technology for their DT-430 Pipe Crawler

Deep Trekker robots have also become the product of choice in many national and international search and exploration missions, including the famed 1845 Franklin expedition shipwrecks (HMS Terror and HMS Erebus), the USS Arizona shipwreck and Belize’s Great Blue Hole.

True to its mission, Deep Trekker’s durable, innovative and affordable products make tough tasks easy. The company has garnered attention for its range of products and services.  Deep Trekker President, Sam Macdonald was featured in The Fish Site’s Women of Agriculture series, where she was recognized for her work in supporting the field of Aquaculture.

Recognizing their growing success, in 2019, FedDev Ontario contributed $100,000 to support Deep Trekker to expand to new international markets and create seven jobs. The company opened a new office in Puerto Montt, Los Lagos, Chile in May 2019.

With this funding, the company is bringing its technology to new countries and emerging markets in New Zealand, Australia, Latin America and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region in the Middle East, all while continuing to market its innovative products in Canada.