At a depth of 3,800 meters in the icy, dark waters of the North Atlantic Ocean lies the remains of the world’s most famous shipwreck: the Titanic. Just a few meters from the bow of the once-proud vessel that took more than 1,600 lives with it on the night of April 14, 1912, lie the wreckage of the Titan: the submersible carrying five explorers that was destroyed in June 2023.

A little over two years after the OceanGate tragedy, a billionaire is preparing to become the first person to descend to the legendary wreck. To make it happen, he is spending tens of millions of dollars (already having paid the first $10 million), commissioning the company building the submersible to prove that deep-sea exploration should not be synonymous with loss of life and tragedy.

The “Abyssal Explorer”

The new submersible Abyssal Explorer. Its builders promise it will withstand the immense pressure of the water at 4,000 meters depth — and do so “easily.”

Nothing too difficult for Triton Submarines, which has already begun construction of the Abyssal Explorer. The company promises it can withstand the crushing pressures of 4,000 meters depth with ease. Hardly an exaggeration, since Triton is not only the market leader, but its submersibles have already reached depths that make the Titanic’s 3.8 kilometers look shallow — including dives in the Mariana Trench, the deepest point on Earth, exceeding 10,900 meters.

This mission is not only about exploration, but also profit: it is expected to draw the attention of billions of people worldwide — and hundreds of millions of dollars.

A Journey Worth Millions

Ever since it was revealed that billionaire Larry Connor of Ohio — along with a secret second passenger — plans to dive to the Titanic in the new submersible, comparisons to the tragic fate of the Titan were inevitable. The OceanGate sub was infamously piloted with an Xbox controller and had never undergone proper maintenance.

Larry Connor, the Billionaire Explorer

Connor believes — and likely not without reason — that the tragic end of the Titan’s five passengers, who died on June 18, 2023, when the vessel catastrophically imploded under 400 atmospheres of pressure, was a disaster waiting to happen. He argues that OceanGate held criminally negligent views on safety and ignored the risks.

Like the late Titan passenger Hamish Harding, Connor belongs to the informal club of ultra-wealthy individuals obsessed with exploration. He has already traveled to the edge of space, plunged into the ocean’s depths, climbed remote mountains — and now sets his sights on conquering this milestone.

For these wealthy adventurers, diving to the Titanic is akin to summiting Mount Everest — a feat that any self-respecting explorer must include on their resume. With even greater danger, and with costs so astronomical that only billionaires can attempt it, exclusivity is guaranteed.

Connor explains that this mission is a return to “tested, real methods” of deep-sea exploration. What bothers him is that people now associate submersibles with tragedy. “If we cannot do it safely and successfully, then we simply won’t do it. We’re not thrill-seekers, and we don’t like taking big risks,” he has said, referring also to Patrick Lahey, co-founder of Triton Submarines, to whom he has entrusted the new build.

Lahey promises the most safe and spectacular submersible ever built — ready by summer 2026 — with a windshield, wings, a tail, and integrated controls, resembling more a spacecraft than a submarine. Development and construction are estimated at “tens of millions of dollars.”

Has the Wreck Decayed?

Seats in the two-passenger sub are expected to spark fierce competition among billionaires worldwide. Already, dozens of ultra-wealthy Americans, Europeans, Russians, and Chinese are willing to pay whatever it takes — tens of millions — for the chance to descend and touch the Titanic.

The public’s fascination with the wreck remains insatiable: countless websites, documentaries, interviews, museums, and of course James Cameron’s blockbuster film feed the frenzy. The tragedy’s details — from personal belongings to the desperate cries of passengers that night — fuel this obsession.

But experts warn that the Titanic is rapidly disintegrating. By 2030–2050, depending on estimates, the ship may be gone. Parts of the starboard hull and entire rooms (possibly including the telegraph room) have already collapsed. The wreck’s decay only increases the urgency for explorers and the public alike.

The Ghosts

The new team will be the first to dive to the Titanic since the Titan implosion in 2023. They may also recover answers about that secondary tragedy — filming the wreckage of the Titan and perhaps even personal belongings of its passengers.

Rumors abound: for instance, that a soda can from the Titan lies near the Titanic’s bow. Whether true or not, the two tragedies are forever linked — just meters apart, and 111 years apart.

What is certain is that the Titan did not fail without warning: its carbon-fiber hull was already damaged, including from a 20-minute entrapment during a previous dive when it became stuck in the void of the Titanic’s grand staircase — one of the ship’s most iconic features. The attempts to free it caused hull damage that was never repaired — damage that ultimately contributed to the disaster.