Our Top Blogs and Webinars of 2025

2025 was a key year for Impossible Metals and for the deep sea mining industry at large. From landmark regulatory approvals to geopolitical debates, it reflected the growing momentum behind the responsible development of critical metals from the seabed. As we move into 2026, we wanted to look back and spotlight the content that resonated most with our readers and viewers. Here are our top three blogs and top three webinars of the year.

Top Blogs of 2025

#1 — BOEM Approves Impossible Metals’ Deep-Sea Request in U.S. Federal Waters

Published: May 21, 2025

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) approved Impossible Metals’ request to begin the leasing process for deep sea mineral exploration off the coast of American Samoa — making us the first company to pursue a lease under the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act of 1953 for critical mineral exploration in the deep sea.

The approval opened the door to the responsible development of deposits of nickel, cobalt, copper, magnesium, and rare-earth elements, which are essential to national defense and to reducing dependency on foreign supply chains. It also marked the beginning of what we expect to be a close, transparent working relationship with the local American Samoan community, scientists, and environmental organizations. A watershed moment — and our most-read blog of the year.

Read the full post.

#2 — Opinion: The U.S. Should Create a Strategic Stockpile of Polymetallic Nodules

Published: April 8, 2025

In this opinion piece, CEO Oliver Gunasekara made the case that the United States should expand its National Defense Stockpile to include polymetallic nodules — the seafloor deposits that contain the world’s largest known reserves of nickel, cobalt, manganese, and copper. Highlighting parallels to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve established in 1975, the piece outlined a compelling set of benefits: securing a domestic reserve of critical metals, incentivizing U.S. investment in deep sea collection technology, and even presenting a geopolitical opportunity to counter China’s growing influence in Oceania by anchoring infrastructure in American Samoa.

The piece connected the dots between ocean resource development and urgent national security priorities in a way that resonated strongly well beyond our usual audience — generating discussion in defense and policy circles throughout the year. Recently the US Administration announced project Vault to stockpile critical metals. https://bipartisanpolicy.org/article/project-vault-and-forge-the-administrations-latest-moves-to-secure-critical-minerals/

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#3 — Next-Generation Eureka Collection System Animation Now Available

Published: November 10, 2025

Since we first conceptualized our selective collection system in 2021, we have released a series of animations that chart the evolution of the Eureka technology from concept to deployed reality. This third-generation animation was our most detailed yet — and our readers made it one of our most-visited pages of the year.

Where previous animations left certain aspects to the imagination (a battery that appeared to fly through the air, nodules that disappeared into a hopper as if by magic), this release closes those gaps entirely. It walks through the full surface operations: how autonomous underwater vehicles are captured, secured to the ship, and serviced using an automated smart hook system — including battery swaps and nodule offloads — in a way that can function in high sea states. With our first autonomous docking between Eureka II and the smart hook prototype already demonstrated, this video shows that what was once a concept is fast becoming an operational reality.

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Top Webinars of 2025

#1 — The Deep Sea Mining Debate

Webinar Date: November 14, 2025

Is responsible seabed resource collection essential to meeting the world’s growing demand for critical metals — or is it a risk we shouldn’t take? That question was put to the test in this live debate, moderated by Eric Young, host of the Elements of Deep Sea Mining podcast.

Oliver Gunasekara, CEO of Impossible Metals, debated Victor Vescovo, CEO of Caladan Capital—a noted explorer and the first to reach Everest, the deepest ocean point, and space.

They discussed everything from battery technology and financials to China’s role and environmental trade-offs. The webinar was substantial and drew our largest audience of the year.

Watch the debate →

#2 — The Implications of China’s Deep Sea Mining Strategy on U.S. Defense Presence in Oceania

Webinar Date: September 5, 2025

As China has moved aggressively to secure deep-sea mineral contracts and expand its research vessel presence across the Pacific, the implications for U.S. national security have become impossible to ignore. This webinar featured Lucia Fogler, a University of Virginia student in Public Policy and Global Security with a concentration in East Asia, who walked through her open-source mapping and analysis of China’s deep-sea mining contract areas and vessel movements.

Her findings highlighted China’s strategy and opportunities for U.S. mineral independence. The timely event engaged a wide policy and industry audience.

Watch the webinar →

#3 — The Geopolitical Impact of Critical Minerals with Frank Fannon

Webinar Date: July XX, 2025

Few people are as well-positioned to speak to the intersection of critical minerals, energy security, and global diplomacy as Frank Fannon — former U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources and now Managing Director of Fannon Global Advisors. In this webinar, Fannon drew on his extensive government and industry experience to examine how nations’ competition for critical metal supplies is reshaping trade policy, energy transition strategy, and national defense priorities worldwide.

Fannon also serves as a Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council and the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), and as a Visiting Fellow at Purdue’s Center for Tech Diplomacy. His perspective brought a level of foreign policy depth that complemented our technology and environmental focus—and made this one of our most-shared webinars of the year among policy audiences.