A 25-ton deep sea mining robot prototype is currently lying stranded at the bottom of the Pacific Ocean, Reuters reported.

The uncrewed mining machine was in the middle of running tests when it became detached from the cable linking it to the ship on the surface, leaving it at the mercy of the Ocean some four km (13,000 feet) beneath the water.

The deep sea mining machine, known as Patania II, is developed by Global Sea Mineral Resources (GSR), the deep-sea exploratory division of dredging company DEME Group. It is meant to gather small rocks on the ocean floor known as nodules that are rich in cobalt and other battery metals. These materials are vital for the production of electronics, smartphones, and batteries, as GSR explained.