Panthalassa: An Abundant Energy Future

Untapped Ocean Energy

Global energy demand could reach 20 terawatts by 2050. Solar is scaling fast, with global capacity hitting 2 terawatts in 2024. Yet it remains intermittent and requires storage to deliver 24/7 power. Fusion holds long-term promise and continues to move from lab to commercialization.

Panthalassa’s founders saw an opportunity for immediate impact in the open ocean. Waves offer dense, reliable energy that runs day and night. "There’s this resource that is totally untapped, very low cost potential, very large scale potential,” says Panthalassa cofounder, coinventor, and CEO Garth Sheldon-Coulson. "That really excited us. And so we asked ourselves, what’s really stopping us from creating that tech stack?”

Simple Design, Continuous Power

Previous ocean energy systems relied on complex mechanical assemblies to track the movement of waves. Panthalassa simplified the system by applying hydropower principles to an offshore setting. Waves push water into a pressurized reservoir, which then flows through a single turbine.

This setup delivers power up to 90% of the time. That’s far above offshore wind or land-based solar. The design avoids exotic materials and uses standard steel, making it easier to manufacture, maintain, and scale.

Built to Scale 

Panthalassa’s team draws on experience from aerospace, naval architecture, software, and manufacturing. Their process combines advanced simulations with hands-on field trials. What began in wave tanks now runs through hundreds of simulations each week. Every major design is still tested at sea.

Ocean trials have helped shape both the product and the culture. Teams spend long stretches deploying systems under tough conditions. "You've got a team of 10 or 15 people out on tugboats in hotels, staying in these locations and really burning the midnight oil for months on end to get these systems tested at sea," says Garth.

The design is also optimized for production. A single coastal facility could produce a gigawatt of capacity each year using standard equipment and materials. This simplicity allows the system to scale without putting pressure on global supply chains. The power can support offshore clean fuels, ocean-cooled data centers, or future industries that require low-cost baseload energy.

From Prototype to Deployment

Panthalassa is building its pilot facility near Portland, Oregon. As production scales, its ocean-based energy tech could unlock new architectures for AI compute, clean fuels, and heavy industry, without the land, grid, or permitting constraints of traditional infrastructure.

Interested in joining the mission? Panthalassa is hiring. Explore open roles.