Machine Learning | Data Science | Molecular Biology | Marine Conservation
PhD in Fish and Wildlife Conservation from Virginia Tech
Partnering with National Geographic and Ocean Exploration Trust to Automate Shark Classification with AI
About
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Jeremy Jenrette is a marine scientist and data analyst specializing in the development of artificial intelligence and molecular tools, ecological models, and spatial frameworks to advance ocean conservation. His work integrates computer vision, remote sensing, and statistical modeling to monitor marine biodiversity, evaluate species distributions, and inform ecosystem-based management. Jeremy has led collaborative projects across the Mediterranean and Northwest Pacific, leveraging citizen science, eDNA, and fisheries data to build scalable tools for detecting, classifying, and predicting shark presence in data-deficient regions. He is completing his PhD at Virginia Tech, where his research bridges cutting-edge technology with applied conservation outcomes.
Since 2019, he has specialized in these areas of study to remotely monitor shark populations with non-lethal, non-invasive, and cost-efficient methods. |
Previous WorkJeremy has worked as a field biologist in remote salmon hatcheries, where he assessed the health and development of juvenile salmon, and as a research biologist for the Virginia Tech Aquaculture Center, conducting population surveys of freshwater mussels to support conservation and restoration efforts. In addition to his field experience, he served as a cloud and server administrator for sharkPulse, a global platform for crowdsourcing and structuring shark observation data, where he built scalable systems to warehouse and analyze citizen science contributions for marine conservation. Additionally, he designed the software and hardware components of intelligent drone platforms for monitoring large marine protected areas.
As an undergraduate at Virginia Tech, Jeremy's research dealt with mapping the genome of the Aedes albopictus mosquito, vector of the chikungunya virus and dengue fever. 
Adriatic Sea
Cape Cod
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Prince William Sound, Alaska
NewsVirginia Tech Daily News
AI and citizen science combine to help save sharks Virginia Tech Daily News eDNA testing for sharks in the Mediterranean Sea yields fin-tastic results SeaKeepers Project Summary The Virginia Tech team has detected white sharks at 4 separate stations throughout the Sicilian Channel in the Mediterranean Sea from 2021-2023. They collected and processed 170 samples. Riff Reporter Great white sharks in the Mediterranean: From a supposed monster to an icon of modern species protection Forbes Uncovering Mediterranean white shark using environmental DNA (eDNA) Forbes Young mako shark travels 750 miles, offering hope for conservation efforts Robb Report How This 87-Foot Sailing Yacht Is Helping to Protect Endangered White Sharks |
