Volteo Maritime: From excel sheets to superpower – sailing through paperwork

When we sat down with Surendra Lingareddy, co-founder of Volteo Maritime, it became clear that everything the company is doing is tied to a single mission: to make seafaring, and the maritime industry at large, hassle-free and truly digital.

How it all began

A software engineer by training, Surendra was once far removed from the sea and its complexities. That changed in 2016, when he attended a maritime event in Visakhapatnam. What struck him was not just the scale of operations, but the persistent challenges seafarers face–particularly around record-keeping and data archiving. “I understand why software is built–it’s for people to get a better experience. At the end of the day, that’s what our product is supposed to be,” he reflects. The turning point came in 2017, when the Andhra Pradesh government backed his team’s vision, sparking a chain of developments that led to the creation of Volteo Maritime. What began as a consulting exercise for the government soon grew into a mission to reimagine maritime operations in the digital age. By 2020, Surendra had immersed himself in the workings of vessels–floating factories that are technologically advanced but administratively archaic. Despite cutting-edge machinery onboard, much of the workflow still revolved around paper logs and Excel sheets. After hearing the same frustrations repeated across the industry, the team decided it was time for a solution.

Breaking through

Volteo Maritime’s growth has been shaped by spotting pain points and designing solutions. As Surendra puts it: “We started with resolving fatigue in a seafarer’s eyes. Every line of code we write is designed to make life easier onboard. We don’t just build features–we aim for outcomes that transform lives at sea.” Today, Volteo’s platform integrates electronic logbooks, checklists, noon reporting, and permit-to-work systems into one seamless digital suite. Customers can pick individual tools or adopt the entire package. Once digitized, data is instantly shared with shore teams, reducing administrative burdens by up to 30 per cent for both ship and office staff.

The right crew and backing

Building such a solution required not only innovation but also strong partnerships. Volteo Maritime secured Eastern Pacific Shipping–one of the world’s leading shipowners–as both an investor and customer. They also gained recognition through Techstars, further accelerating their journey. Now headquartered in Singapore and focusing on regional coasts, Volteo Maritime is on track to reshape vessel operations management–sailing past paperwork and steering the industry toward smarter, simpler, and more human-centred technology.