Unmanned Maritime Systems

Oliver Mitchell, a partner at ff Venture Capital, recaps highlights from recent trade shows including Automate and Xponential.

Saildrone, in partnership with Meta, has successfully demonstrated that the Saildrone Surveyor performs on par with crewed vessels.

Saildrone plans to deploy the first four Saildrone Voyagers in the Baltic Sea in June 2025 under contract to the Danish Armed Forces.

Saronic has retained the experience workforce of Gulf Craft and expects to prototype and build medium uncrewed surface vessels.

Boumarang, which has developed hydrogen-powered aerial drones, received investment in addition to acquiring Wavedrone.

With increasing geopolitical tensions and rising activity in the Baltic Sea, Saildrone said the need for persistent maritime intelligence is paramount.

During an ONR trial, the Saildrone Surveyor and BlueSentry system operated continuously for 26 days and maintained uptime greater than 96%.

The award follows the U.S. Navy’s $92.6M MESR contract awarded to VideoRay in May, which BlueHalo acquired later last year.

The SCSP, or nonpartisan Special Competitive Studies Project, has recommended that the White House make AI and robotics a top priority.

Saronic plans to use its Series C funding to build Port Alpha, a next-generation shipyard for the U.S. hybrid fleet.

The rapid melting and thinning of the Arctic ice have sparked serious concerns in the scientific community. Researchers are proposing a new system that uses aerial drones, autonomous underwater vehicles, and a self-sufficient vessel that acts as a docking station.

Nauticus brings its expertise in autonomous underwater systems, like its Aquanaut robot, to its latest partnership with Leidos.

XOCEAN provides ocean data collected via autonomous robots to the offshore energy and civil hydrography sectors.

Project CETI researchers developed the AVATARs framework to make the most out of the small amount of time sperm whales spend on the surface.

The manual mooring process demanded substantial manpower and time, while KIMM said its automated method removes these barriers.

ANELLO Photonics, which has developed compact navigation and positioning for autonomous systems, has closed its Series B round.

The new Certus Mini line of navigation systems offers precision in a compact package, says Advanced Navigation.

The Saildrone Voyagers’ mission primarily focused on the Jordan and Georges Basins, at depths of up to 300 meters (900 feet).

This year’s sailing events at the Paris Olympics are using robotics buoys from Effetto Venturi for the first time.

Saronic has attained a valuation of $1 billion as it develops robotic vessels to extend the reach of U.S. naval and allied fleets.

Seatrec says its technology can allow robots to work in the open ocean indefinitely and without any intervention. 

Elmo Motion Control will show off its Platinum Bassoon servo drive at the Robotics Summit & Expo and other events.