HavocAI and Hanwha Defense have announced they are seeking to develop a 200-foot autonomous uncrewed surface vessel (USV).
Hanwha Philly Shipyard has been earmarked as a potential U.S. production site for the forthcoming platform, which it dubs an autonomous surface vessel (ASV), as per a press statement.
Two parts of the wider South Korean Hanwha Group will be involved in the effort: Hanwha Defense USA (HDUSA), which has its headquarters in Virginia, and Seoul-based Hanwha Systems Co (HSC), which specialises in defence electronics, C4ISR, and other advanced tech.
HavocAI’s autonomy software is used by the Metal Shark uncrewed surface vessel (USV) HSMUSV, used by the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps. Its own smallest USV, the 14-foot Rampage, has undergone extensive testing and it is currently developing medium-sized drone boat platforms too.
As per Hanwha Defense’s statement, the firm recently raised an additional $85 million funding and gave a demonstration of its collaborative autonomy tech in GPS-denied environments.
Hanwha Defense USA CEO Michael Coulter commented: “By forging a partnership between an allied defence company with advanced manufacturing scale in Hanwha with a software-first defence technology company in HavocAI, we will deliver state-of-the art ASVs at scale for American service members.”
Paul Lwin, Co-founder and CEO of HavocAI, added: “The Department of War has sent a clear demand signal to the shipbuilding industry: we need more boats, faster, with more capabilities, for less money.”
He continued: “Partnerships like this — pairing a leading-edge technology with an established global infrastructure — are exactly how we achieve that goal.”
The two firms first announced a ‘strategic relationship’ following a joint technology demonstration at Hanwha Ocean’s Geoje shipyard in South Korea in October which controlled assets off the coast of Hawaii.
- You can read more details on the Hanwha Defense website