Brief - The Hustle

Have $2B to blow? Buy a submersible superyacht

Written by Sara Friedman | Jan 19, 2024 12:28:06 AM

What do you get for the supervillain who has everything?

A luxury submersible superyacht, probably. And lucky for you, one’s coming.

Austrian company Migaloo is developing the Migaloo M5: a 541-foot-long submersible that can hold 20 passengers and 40 crew members, dive to a depth of 820 feet, and stay submerged for four weeks, per Air Mail.

The superyacht, which would cost ~$2B to build, comes tricked out with all the bells and whistles, including:

  • Two six-person minisubmarines, a helipad, and a room for jet skis.
  • A 36-seat dining room with glass walls for ocean viewing.
  • Optional additions like a swimming pool, wine cellar, or cinema, which, of course, cost extra.

Migaloo CEO and founder Christian Gumpold told The Times, “Our target group are visionary billionaires with or without existing superyacht experience who have extraordinary demands for exclusivity, safety, adventure…”

And Migaloo has designed some other wild offerings, like its Kokomo Ailand: a floating habitat with palm trees, waterfalls, beach clubs, and a shark feeding station. (If that’s not Bond-villain coded, we don’t know what is.)

Before you start practicing your evil laugh…

Where there are superyachts this big, there are problems.

Migaloo’s submersibles will have a host of obstacles to overcome:

  • The percentage of yacht owners peaked in 2014 at 3.6% and has since been falling, reaching 2% in 2021 — despite the growing number of people who can afford them.
  • Legal restrictions could limit large submarines from traversing waters in certain countries and potentially disrupting the environment.
  • And there are, of course, safety concerns, particularly following the Titan sub’s implosion last year.

All that said: We’ve watched the ultra-rich turn back time, build bunkers, and, y’know, travel to view the Titanic wreckage — so this doesn’t exactly surprise us.