Wherever we innovate, navigate, and defend — the harpoons cease.
Operational view - APV
Kangei Maru in visual range
As seen on
National media coverage // May 30, 2024
WDA cited in CNN coverage of Japan’s new whaling mothership.
CNN quoted WDA founder James Anderson on the Kangei Maru and the risk of renewed Southern Ocean whaling.
Independent editorial coverage. CNN is not affiliated with the Whale Defense Agency.
Publishing command // Public record
Latest from Command.
Official news, mission briefs, press releases, public resources, and systems updates published through WDA Command CMS.
Enter the newsroom →Establishing secure public publishing bridge…
Agency posture // Mission first
Not another awareness campaign or season mission.
Whaling is an operational threat. WDA is organized to answer it operationally—with intelligence, engineering, persistent surveillance, and direct non-violent intervention. The objective is not symbolic presence. The objective is to stop the hunt.
01
Intelligence before movement
Every response begins with evidence, geolocation, pattern analysis (machine learning), and a clear operational picture, including simulationg direct engagements.
02
Technology as force multiplier
Autonomous aircraft, maritime platforms, remote sensing, and command software extend reach without extending harm.
03
Action with human control
Automation accelerates detection and decision support; accountable human command authorizes operational action.
04
Zero-kill success rate
WDA pursues disruption, deterrence, documentation, and protection without a whale dying on our watch since our founding.
Established // 2023
Sacramento, California
About WDA // Operational conservation
Built to defend whales at the point of threat.
The Whale Defense Agency is an independent anti-whaling organization designed around action: intelligence collection, maritime engineering, advanced surveillance, autonomous systems, evidence preservation, and direct non-violent intervention.
WDA brings an agency-style command structure to whale protection. Former military experience, technical development, public reporting, and maritime response are organized into one mission system, so credible information can move from detection to an accountable operational decision without exposing protected controls.
Disrupt pursuit and protect whales without lethal force.
Verify, correlate, decide, deploy, take action and preserve evidence.
Maritime platforms, unmanned systems, sensing, and command software.
Maritime capability // APV
A 60-metre platform — from concept to steel.
Follow the WDA Anti-Poaching Vessel from its color operational rendering to the preliminary 2D profile and the actual steel hull taking shape in the shipyard.
Operational form
Color rendering
Platform // APV-60Development sequence
High-speed anti-whaling patrol vessel
Designed as WDA's primary long-range maritime response platform, the APV brings command-and-control, aerial and surface unmanned systems, high-speed pursuit, evidence collection, and whale protection capabilities into a single mission architecture.
Length60 m
Speed target60+ kn
Mission roleLong-range response
DoctrineNon-lethal
SystemsUAS / USV / UUV
Command layerAegirX + WAPS
Public specifications describe design objectives and protected capability areas; sensitive engineering and operational details are withheld.
Naval architecture
2D profile and arrangement
The Shipyard
Hull under construction
Active protection // WAPS
New technology, developed by the Whale Defense Agency
The Whale Active Protection System is WDA's protected architecture for detecting developing threats, maintaining a protected whale track, supporting fast human decisions, and coordinating non-violent defensive countermeasures that actively engage harpoons while in flight, in under 300 milliseconds.
WAPS // Protected architecturePublic overview
Detect early.
Decide clearly.
Protect the whale.
WAPS is a protected mission architecture, not a public control panel. The website explains its role without publishing the software, thresholds, response logic, authentication model, or operational parameters behind it.
Multi-sensor awareness
Whale-centered tracking
Human command authority
Evidentiary continuity
Protected system
Sanitized disclosure
Non-violent doctrine
Detect and correlate
Combine maritime radar, optical sensing, reported data, and protected mission feeds into one coherent operational picture.
Protect the whale track
Maintain the whale as the primary protected asset while tracking nearby vessels, harpoon movement, and developing risk via an AESA radar.
Assess developing threats
Use AI-assisted classification and trajectory analysis to surface time-critical events for trained human review or automatic control intercept.
Authorize safely
Apply human authorization, safety interlocks, and accountable command authority before any protective action is initiated.
Preserve evidence
Capture sensor context, operator decisions, timestamps, and mission records for post-event review and evidentiary continuity.
Public disclosure boundary: source code, sensor thresholds, response logic, authentication controls, and operational parameters are not published.
Direct action // Barracuda
Built to close the distance.
The Barracuda concept is designed for rapid, non-violent maritime intervention—bringing persistent observation, documentation, command connectivity, and protective presence to active whaling grounds.
Full-spectrum capability
Designed for the distance between detection and action.
The new platform is being designed as the digital front door to a larger operational system: reports become verified intelligence, intelligence becomes a mission picture, and the mission picture supports a fast, proportionate response.
Capability 01ISR
Ocean intelligence
Fuse verified public reports with maritime traffic data, remote sensing, environmental context, and historical patterns to reduce uncertainty at sea.
Capability 02UAS / USV
Autonomous reach
Extend observation and response through unmanned aerial, surface, and underwater systems designed for persistent, non-violent mission support.
Capability 03Maritime
Rapid intervention
Support high-speed maritime assets with a common operating picture, mission planning, evidence management, and real-time command coordination.
Capability 04C2 / AI
Evidence to action
Use AI-assisted triage and verification to surface credible reports quickly while preserving human review, command authority, and operational security.
Mission architecture // V2
One secure path from sighting to response.
The public-facing platform will not expose operational controls. It creates a hardened path for evidence to enter a protected command workflow, where it can be verified, fused, reviewed, and acted upon using AI to assist, within minutes.
Open Crowd Intelligence Portal
Public reports remain subject to verification and human command authority.
Secure submission
Photos, video, coordinates, time, and vessel details enter through a protected reporting channel with clear consent and retention controls.
Public interfaceVerification
Automated checks and trained analysts evaluate provenance, metadata, location, vessel identity, credibility, and urgency.
AI-assisted + human reviewedMission picture
Validated intelligence is fused with maritime and environmental data inside AegirX to produce a shared operational picture.
Protected command environmentAuthorized response
Command personnel determine the appropriate non-violent response, task available assets, and preserve the evidentiary record.
Human command authoritySecure contact // Strategic inquiries
Open a direct channel.
Use this form for partnerships, technology, maritime operations, media, donor, or volunteer inquiries. We're the only agency with WAPS, for questions, or concerns, please reach out. Direct email: info@whaledefenseagency.org.
Secure submission
Submission validation
Rate limiting and bot controls
And more
System notice // Pre-launch
The next WDA platform is coming online.
Public launch timing remains controlled until security, resilience, and operational-readiness requirements are met. Whales do not need another promise. They need a system built to respond.