Roboticists at the Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems in Stuttgart have developed a jellyfish-inspired underwater robot with which they hope one day to collect waste from the bottom of the ocean. The almost noise-free prototype can trap objects underneath its body without physical contact, thereby enabling safe interactions in delicate environments such as coral reefs. Jellyfish-Bot could become an important tool for environmental remediation.
Are you thinking of The Ocean Cleanup? It’s in development and testing, but there are some criticisms about the design and its effects on ecosystems.
I think it’s worth investigating multiple methods!