Norway has a large coastal industry and a strong motivation for developing systems to enable sustainable management of ocean resources. Recent advances in collaborating autonomous systems, Internet‐of‐Things, microsatellites, data fusion, and sensor development have led to initiatives for a more concerted and coordinated effort through the establishment of an ocean studies research project. Applying a System‐of‐Systems perspective on the project highlights the challenges in terms of interoperability and communication interfaces, as well as revealing the use‐cases stakeholders rely on to enable informed decision‐making.