XPRIZE Publishes Sci-Fi Ocean Anthology, ‘Current Futures’

Features New Short Stories by Award-Winning Sci-Fi Writers Who
Imagine the Future of Our Ocean

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–In honor of World Oceans Day, XPRIZE announces Current
Futures: A Sci-Fi Ocean Anthology, an online collection of
original short stories and artwork created by science fiction authors
and artists set in a future when technology has helped unlock the
secrets of the ocean.

Through its
interactive website, the series takes readers on a “deep dive” into
how some of today’s most promising innovations might positively impact
the ocean in the future. Current Futures: A Sci-Fi Ocean Anthology includes
new works from 18 writers from around the world, along with original
illustrations from 18 artists, whose collective contributions comprise
all seven continents, including a short story written while on an
Antarctic expedition.

Within the collection, writers explored a diversity of topics including:
technologies to rebuild coral reefs; neural implants that allow humans
to communicate with dolphins via mind pictures; robots that use oil from
the water to 3D print reproductions of themselves; man-made islands
built to withstand hurricanes; augmented reality deep-sea expeditions;
and more.

The anthology was created and produced by Eric Desatnik, Head of
Communications for XPRIZE, who also produced the award-winning anthology Seat
14C, and was edited by Ann VanderMeer. Original stories were
authored by Elizabeth Bear, Lauren Beukes, Catherynne Valente, Brenda
Peynado, Karen Lord, Gu Shi, Marie Lu, Nalo Hopkinson, Sheila Finch,
Mohale Mashigo, Gwyneth Jones, Kameron Hurley, Madeline Ashby, Deborah
Biancotti, Brenda Cooper, Rochita Loenen-Ruiz, Malka Older, and Vandana
Singh.

Original artwork was created by Tracy J. Lee, Nancy Liang, Cornelia Li,
Robin Eisenberg, Jing Jing Tsong, Carolina Rodriguez Fuenmayor, Andreea
Dobrin, Ayelet Raziel, Chiara Zarmati, Daria Kirpach, Rosanna Tasker,
Alyssa Winans, Christina Dill, Kaela Graham, Priscilla Kim, Jazmen
Richardson, Kristen Zirngibl, and Michela Buttignol.

“I believe that XPRIZE serves two distinct but complementary purposes,
both of which are required to propel us toward a more positive future:
we provide the tools and we provide the hope. We
incentivize the development of breakthrough innovations through our
competitions, which are the tools to build the future. And we inspire
the public through storytelling, which helps create an underlying
environment of hope and optimism, allowing for that future to come
about,” says Desatnik. “Current Futures is meant to remind us
about the mystery and majesty of the ocean, to establish the critical
need for discovery and stewardship, and to instill a sense of hope for
the ocean’s future.”

The collection follows the announcement of a partnership with Seabed
2030, a collaborative project between The Nippon Foundation and The
General Bathymetric Chart of the Oceans (GEBCO) to inspire the complete
mapping of the world’s ocean by 2030 and to compile all bathymetric data
into the freely available GEBCO Ocean Map.

The news was revealed at the awards ceremony for the $7M
Shell Ocean Discovery XPRIZE, hosted at the world renowned
Oceanographic Museum in Monaco, and featured authors Madeline Ashby and
Rochita Loenen-Ruiz as special guests, where they spoke about their
inspiration for their pieces. The global competition aimed to advance
rapid, autonomous, high-resolution ocean exploration and discovery, and
included a $1M National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)
Bonus Prize for technology that could detect a chemical or biological
signal underwater and autonomously track it to its source.

The anthology is currently available, for free, at xprize.org/oceanstories.

About XPRIZE:

XPRIZE designs and operates multi-million-dollar, global competitions to
incentivize the development of technological breakthroughs that
accelerate humanity toward a better future. Active competitions include
the $20M NRG COSIA Carbon XPRIZE, the $10M ANA Avatar XPRIZE, and the
$5M IBM Watson AI XPRIZE. The “Find a Winner” program from XPRIZE offers
a $25,000 prize to any individual who refers someone who goes on to
ultimately win a grand prize in an XPRIZE competition. For more
information, visit xprize.org.

Contacts

Eric Desatnik
eric@xprize.org
310-741-4880