![A concept for a remote controlled ship by Rolls-Royce.](http://web.archive.org./web/20170910125539im_/https://www.fairfaxstatic.com.au/content/dam/images/g/y/a/t/d/s/image.related.wideLandscape.300x169.gyatcs.png/1504564613685.jpg)
Autonomous 'ghost ships' are coming
The Yara Birkeland isn’t an ordinary cargo ship. If all goes well then the vessel, currently being built for a Norwegian agricultural fertiliser company, will become the world’s first fully autonomous cargo ship when it launches in 2020.