Skip to main content

The Mito drone captures underwater action without the nausea-inducing footage

Underwater drones open up ocean exploration without getting wet, but placing a drone in the current can create some shaky footage. Startup Navatics is attempting to fight that with an aquatic drone equipped with stabilization. Now on Kickstarter, the Navatics Mito is a remotely operated underwater vehicle (ROV) with a 4K camera and advanced active stabilization.

Recommended Videos

The Mito uses a floating tether to transmit signals to the controller, but the tether also uses a built-in solar panel to extend the battery life of the drone from two hours to up to a four-hour run time. The drone is rated to dive to 135 feet and the tether allows for 165 feet of navigation away from the float.

The drone uses four thrusters to move underwater and can also tilt up or down up to 45 degrees without changing the depth. Mito can travel as fast as four knots, which is about 6.5 feet per second.

The ROV is equipped with a 4K, 30 fps camera for video, with eight megapixel still photos. Two LED video lights are also built onto the drone. Underwater footage often suffers from odd colors, so the drone’s app, available on iOS and Android, also has built-in color correction.

Navatics MITO: The Most Stable Underwater Drone is Live on Kickstarter!

The drone is operated with an included controller that also uses a slot to attach a smartphone. The built-in camera can livestream to the app for navigation in 1080p quality.

Navatics says they built the Mito to fit into a carry-on suitcase or backpack at 15 inches on the longest side. The drone weighs 6.6 pounds.

“With Navatics Mito, our goal is to create an underwater drone with the ability to stream high-quality video and maneuver with maximum stability to get the best footage,” Navatics CEO Andreas Widy said in a statement. “We want to provide this professional level experience so that anyone from the hobbyist consumer to the professional videographer can experience the marine world without limitation.”

Navatics is a 2016 startup sparked from a college project of the founders at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology. The Mito is the company’s first underwater drone.

Navatics is using Kickstarter to crowdfund its first drone. The group reached its funding goal after five hours on the platform. Pledges that include a drone start at $1,199. If the Mito is successful, it’s expected to retail for $1,999.

Hillary K. Grigonis
Hillary never planned on becoming a photographer—and then she was handed a camera at her first writing job and she's been…
FAA authorizes autonomous drone flight without an operator nearby
DJI Mavic Air 2 underneath view

You could soon be able to buy and operate your own autonomous drone, thanks to the first approval by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of an automated drone that can operate without a human pilot on site. The company American Robotics announced it has received FAA approval for its A.I.-powered drone which can operate safely even when the operator isn't within line of sight.

Autonomous drones are already used in applications like patrolling military bases, but until now there hasn't been a commercially available drone that flew autonomously.

Read more
The Ioniq 5 is once again eligible for the $7,500 tax credit
2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5

After a brief and confusing absence, the Hyundai Ioniq 5 is once again eligible for the full $7,500 federal tax credit — and this time, it's sticking around (at least for now). So, what happened? Let’s unpack the ride.

The Ioniq 5, a sleek and tech-savvy electric crossover, initially made headlines not just for its design, but for being built at Hyundai’s brand-new Metaplant in Georgia. That domestic assembly qualified it for the EV tax credit under the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which requires vehicles to be made in North America with batteries sourced from trade-friendly countries. But early in 2025, the Ioniq 5 vanished from the list. Why? Likely due to its battery packs, which were then still being sourced from SK On’s Hungarian facility.

Read more
Sebastian Stan lays out Bucky’s future after Thunderbolts
Sebastian Stan in Thunderbolts.

There are some spoilers ahead for the ending of Marvel's Thunderbolts. Stop reading now if you don't want to be spoiled.

Earlier this year, Captain America: Brave New World briefly introduced a new direction for James "Bucky" Barnes, a character Sebastian Stan has been playing since 2011 in Captain America: The First Avenger. In Brave New World, the former Winter Soldier apparently retired from being a reformed hero and went into politics by running for Congress. Thunderbolts reveals that Bucky won his election to the House of Representatives. But his stay in Congress was short.

Read more