200-foot-long unmanned ships with advanced autonomy to be built in US

Two U.S. companies, Hanwha Defense and HavocAI, have partnered to develop 200-foot autonomous surface vessels (ASVs) equipped with advanced collaborative autonomy technology. This collaboration, formalized through a Memorandum of Understanding, aims to jointly handle mass production planning, installation, proposal development, and technical aspects under the U.S. government’s Modular Attack Surface Craft solicitation program. Hanwha, the only shipbuilder with an operational U.S. shipyard involved, is considering its Philly Shipyard for production. The partnership is intended to meet the Department of War’s demand for faster, more capable, and cost-effective naval vessels, while also fostering much-needed competition in defense procurement. The alliance builds on a prior strategic relationship and successful technology demonstrations, including an autonomous force protection mission conducted by HavocAI with beyond-line-of-sight command and control from Hanwha’s Geoje shipyard in Korea. HavocAI recently secured $85 million in funding, confirmed sales of multiple vessels