Inside OceanX: Ray and Mark Dalio’s mission to explore the seas no one has mapped

What emerged was OceanX—part philanthropic foundation, part science accelerator, part global media engine capable of producing everything from National Geographic specials to Disney+ blockbusters. The mission sounds simple enough: explore the Earth’s final frontier—the ocean, after all, covers more than 70 per cent of the Earth’s surface and remains largely unmapped below 200 metres—and change how humanity understands it. “We realised the science is more powerful when you pair it with storytelling,” Mark says. “One without the other doesn’t move anyone.”

In other words: data informs, story transforms.

One moment proved this point: the first-ever footage of a giant squid, captured in collaboration with Japanese television network NHK and Discovery Channel, after decades of failed attempts by the global scientific community, electrified audiences worldwide. Mark watched the world react—the awe, the virality, the sudden renewed interest in deep-sea biodiversity. It confirmed what he had begun to suspect: that science on its own could inform, but combining it with media would ignite public engagement.

The Dalios are quick to point out they’re not just adventurers—they’re strategists. Every OceanX mission is designed to generate knowledge that can move beyond the ship and into the world, shaping how people think about the ocean and how decisions about it are made. Their current focus? Asia. “Asia has the most biodiverse waters on the planet,” Ray explains, “thrilling and underexplored. That’s the perfect combination.”

For OceanX, Asia is not a backdrop. Across multiple expeditions over two years, the region has become a proving ground for the organisation’s vision to advance ocean science and literacy. From mapping unexplored seamounts and deep-sea habitats in Indonesia and discovering mesophotic reefs in Malaysia to creating one of Timor-Leste’s most comprehensive marine surveys and conducting Singapore’s first major deep-sea scientific expedition under the United Nations’ Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction framework, OceanX and its mission partners have already accelerated notable scientific achievements in the region.

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In tandem with these missions, OceanX has hosted hundreds of students and educators aboard the OceanXplorer. They’ve also offered residencies to local researchers and multi-day leadership immersions that are designed to build local capacity and attract skilled professionals towards a future in ocean careers. “When it comes to engaging the next generation, the question we ask is ‘How do we get the brightest talent and develop the brightest talent to drive some of those skill sets to the oceans?’ Because they’re desperately needed,” says Mark. 

By standing shoulder to shoulder with universities, government agencies and regional partners, OceanX strengthens local research ecosystems while generating knowledge that can shape policies and educational outreach across Asia and beyond. 

For a region that depends on the ocean for food, livelihoods, trade and cultural identity, these collaborations amplify understanding and help equip people with the tools to make informed decisions about the waters they rely on. Here, the ocean is not an abstract frontier; it is central to life and future prosperity, making this work both urgent and purposeful.

Despite his reputation as one of the world’s most influential investors, Ray talks about the ocean not in terms of returns, but in terms of reverence. “To me, life is an adventurous journey. If you can know your nature and enjoy your mistakes as part of the ups and downs, that’s what matters.”

This spirit is reflected in his desire to make an impact. Despite its beauty and the vast volume of its resources, the ocean is under siege. “We treat it like a trash can we eat from,” Ray says. “It’s terrible … Sometimes I feel revolted by the destruction, by what we see in the ocean.”

And yet, he refuses to be fatalistic. “Can we reverse everything?” he asks. “I don’t know. That’s a lot to ask. But the effect we’ve had already—working with the UN, supporting countries doing expeditions they’ve never done. It’s shocking how fast the network is growing.”

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Mark believes that while no single organisation can “save” the ocean, collective action might. “What gives me hope is cross-country collaboration,” he says. “Marine life doesn’t know borders; science shouldn’t either.

We’re seeing glimmers [of hope]—countries realising the urgency, understanding that education and science have to be collaborative. That’s what keeps me going.”

And, of course, what OceanX is building reflects that collaborative spirit. “We’re creating an entire pipeline of immersive media,” Mark explains. “Virtual reality, projection mapping, interactive museum experiences, game-engine data visualisation—that’s where the future is.”

These immersive programmes are designed to meet people where they are. Using real mission data, OceanX turns complex scientific information into experiences that can be explored intuitively, whether through large-scale installations, interactive platforms or digital tools. The aim is to build lasting understanding and connection, especially for those who may never experience the ocean firsthand.

On board the ship, they host hackathons where scientists, technologists, designers and early-career explorers work directly with expedition data, shaping new ways to visualise ecosystems, biodiversity and human impact. These collaborations feed directly into the programmes of OceanX Education, ensuring that learning experiences remain grounded in active science. “Gaming is bigger than music, TV and film combined,” Mark says. “And now, science is using game engines too.

If we don’t build the infrastructure to leverage this, we’ll be left in the dust.”

Other tech exploration includes investigating the potential of artificial intelligence. In partnership with Imar, Cape Verde’s marine institute, OceanX developed SeaSwipe, an AI-powered “Tinder for sea creatures”, as Mark describes it. The image recognition platform invites people to participate directly in the scientific process by helping identify marine species. Each interaction contributes to machine-learning models used by researchers, while giving participants a tangible role in ocean science. “That’s just a sliver of what AI can do,” he says.

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Through OceanX Education, immersive technology becomes a bridge between exploration and stewardship. It enables people to engage with the ocean as a living system, understand the pressures it faces and see their place within it.

Mark recounts a particularly dramatic experience: while filming Realm of the Humpbacks, the OceanX team witnessed a rare event, where a pod of orcas was hunting a humpback calf as its mother fought to protect it. Encounters like this are seldom observed, and even more rarely documented in a way that allows scientists to study them in depth. “We had cameras on the lead orca, aerial drones and underwater teams. It was like watching a football match,” he says. “The coordination was unbelievable.”

The footage now forms part of the scientific record, offering insight into predator-prey dynamics, social coordination and whale behaviour that researchers continue to examine. Beyond the data, it revealed the complexity of relationships that define life in the ocean, intelligence, cooperation and survival unfolding in real time. “It reinforces something important,” Mark says. “We aren’t the only conscious beings on this planet.”

There are frustrations, of course. When asked what keeps him awake at night, Ray doesn’t hesitate. “The rate of deterioration relative to the rate of prevention. That’s it.” Mark’s answer is more nuanced. “The challenge is also the hope—cross-country collaboration. It’s slow, time-consuming and political, but we’re seeing excitement and change … What good life would you have if you didn’t have challenges to surmount?”

Both men meditate regularly and describe the underwater world as a spiritual counterweight to the velocity of modern life. “When you dive, the breathing itself becomes meditative,” Mark says. “You slow down. Everything dissolves.” Ray adds, “It’s a feeling of being part of the whole. That’s spirituality—the connection, the acceptance. The ocean gives that.”

Ray turns 77 this year—he’s still active and youthful, but also realistic about the fact that he’s in the later chapters of his career. “I know where I am in my life journey,” he says. “Who do I leave it to? What do I leave? My philanthropic work, my next family—this is all part of that.” OceanX clearly offers him something the markets never could—meaning beyond metrics. “For me, playing the markets was like a game,” he says. “I was lucky the thing I loved also rewarded me. But this— this is different.”

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There’s a palpable sense of being a tiny part of something much bigger than themselves, but also of wanting to use their extensive resources to make a difference; to recognise the harmony and recognise that we’re part of the whole. “The world is better if we’re not greedy and tearing each other and the environment apart,” Ray says. Mark nods before quipping, “My dad has a whole bunch of principles. I’ll follow his direction on that.” The passing of the torch is subtle, but unmistakable.

So, where do they see OceanX in ten years? “I think that we’re going to move the needle,” Ray says. “We’ll build a community of many others who will do that with us. Funding will increase; interest will increase. It will be a force that recognises the ocean as a place to protect, to be thrilled by and to develop harmoniously. We can do it.”

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