A new Netflix documentary delves into the events leading up to the Titan submersible disaster, reigniting interest in OceanGate’s controversial CEO Stockton Rush and the cost of building the doomed vessel.
The submersible imploded in June 2023 during a dive to the Titanic wreck site, killing all five passengers on board, including British billionaire Hamish Harding, father-and-son duo Shahzada and Suleman Dawood, former French Navy diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet, and Rush.
While it may have appeared to be an unexpected incident, engineering experts explain in Titan: The OceanGate Disaster that it was an accident they long feared might happen.
OceanGate promoted Titan as a vessel that would revolutionize deep-sea travel, but behind the scenes, questions about its design, testing standards, and safety practices raged on, with the new documentary placing renewed focus on its creation.
How much did the Titan sub cost to make?
The full cost of building the Titan has never been officially disclosed by OceanGate. However, former employees and independent experts suggest it was constructed on a surprisingly modest budget, with some estimating as low as $360,000 for the materials used to make the prototype.
According to one widely circulated breakdown from a marine engineering enthusiast, this estimate includes roughly $160,000 for the titanium hemispheres and interface rings and $100,000 for the carbon fiber hull.
A few thousand dollars may have been used for each for the viewport, thrusters, batteries, wiring, and other onboard systems – many of which were either off-the-shelf or DIY solutions. Notably, the sub’s piloting system relied on a $30 Logitech game controller, which hit the news when the Titan went missing.
NetflixThe vessel’s stripped-back interior – no seats, exposed wiring, camping lights, and minimal displays – further reflected its low costs. While OceanGate positioned this as innovation, critics argue it was cost-cutting that bypassed proven safety protocols.
Experts in the Netflix documentary say Rush prioritized affordability and speed over safety. OceanGate’s former director of marine operations, David Lochridge, famously raised alarm about the safety of the Titan – and was later fired.
Tony Nissen, the firm’s ex-director of engineering, was also fired by Rush. At a hearing, he revealed that Rush made a majority of the engineering decisions, despite lack of qualifications to do so.
While the prototype cost is low, this estimation doesn’t factor in operational costs, marketing, salaries, and expedition logistics. The actual construction of Titan itself may have cost closer to $1-3 million, once assembly, offshore support, and software development are factored in.
That’s still a fraction of what comparable deep-sea submersibles cost. For instance, Triton’s Limiting Factor – compared to the Apollo spacecraft – was built for an estimated $37 million.
These costs are necessary to build a vessel able to withstand the pressure of the surrounding waters. According to countless experts, Rush cut corners. While this sped up the timeline and kept prices low, it ultimately is what contributed to the fatal 2023 voyage.
Submersible expert Rob McCallum says in the Netflix documentary, “We were at lunch one day at OceanGate and Stockton said that he decided that he saw no need for third-party classification, for third party oversight.
“I stood up, and I said, ‘Sorry, I can’t be part of this conversation, nor can I be associated with OceanGate or this vehicle in any way.’ And I left. He had every contact in the submersible industry telling him not to do this.
“But once you start down the path of doing it entirely yourself, and you realize you’ve taken the wrong turn right back at the beginning, particularly for Stockton, then you have to admit you were wrong… that’s a big pill to swallow.”
This was especially true given the amount of investment, time, and effort that had gone into commercializing Titanic wreck exploration.
Where did the money come from?
NetflixOceanGate, officially launched in 2009, was a privately-owned company, and much of its funding came through angel investors, venture capital, and self-financing by Rush.
According to internal documents seen by Wired, by 2018 the company had raised around $9 million in venture capital and $4 million from subsidiary companies that profited off OceanGate’s research and missions.
However, the most money was supposed to come from trips to the Titanic wreck – a seat on the submersible cost up to $250,000.
While OceanGate raised several rounds of funding over the years, the biggest arrived in 2020 with an $18.1 million investment. This was to lay the financial foundation for the company to expand its fleet of vessels and therefore increase ticket sales.
Rush didn’t reveal the identity of the investors, but said at the time that it was “100% insiders”.
Despite raising millions, OceanGate remained on precarious ground. In The Titan: OceanGate Disaster, experts speculate that Rush’s ambitious timelines and financial difficulties may have contributed to the decision to skip critical steps in the process.
This is perfectly summarized by a statement from Mark Negley, materials and process engineer at Boeing, who was asked at a hearing why Boeing and OceanGate stopped working together.
Netflix“I don’t know exactly. But I think maybe we were too expensive,” he said. Although Boeing and the University of Washington were involved in the early stages of OceanGate’s submersible project, Rush soon parted ways with them.
Despite this, he continued to claim to be working with both firms, as well as NASA. It wasn’t until the 2023 disaster that these details made headlines.
As a privately held company, OceanGate’s valuation was never made public, but the $18.1 million round in 2020 suggests investors still believed in its commercial potential before the Titan’s implosion.
By mid-2023, however, the company’s liabilities and reputational damage rendered it effectively worthless, and it was officially shut down in July that year. At the time of writing, no criminal charges have been filed against those involved.
However, Richard Ortoli – acting as administrator of the estate of French Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet, one of the men killed aboard Titan – filed a lawsuit against multiple parties, including the Rush estate. The case is ongoing.
Titan: The OceanGate Disaster is streaming on Netflix now. You can also read about where Stockton’s wife Wendy Weil Rush is now and check out the new movies streaming this month.
