NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — Huntington Ingalls Industries’ Technical Solutions division announced today that it has completed a strategic equity investment in Sea Machines Robotics Inc., a Boston-based autonomous technology company that specializes in advanced software for unmanned surface vessels (USVs).
“This investment represents our commitment to advanced innovation and competencies across the unmanned systems market,” said Andy Green, HII executive vice president and president of Technical Solutions. “Sea Machines is making significant strides in the USV industry. We want to invest in their growth and continue to form complementary partnerships across this key domain.”
Sea Machines was founded in 2015 and is an autonomous technology company that specializes in advanced control technology for workboats and other commercial surface vessels. They have installed their innovative autonomy software on vessels worldwide and support customers in the commercial, recreational and government market sectors. Their commercial, off-the-shelf technology can support remote controlled or fully autonomous command of vessels.
“Our partnership with Sea Machines gives us immediate access to state-of-the art solutions for U.S government work in the USV space,” said Duane Fotheringham, president of Technical Solutions’ Unmanned Systems. “Sea Machines’ products align well with our existing autonomy capabilities, and we look forward to collaborating with their team on USV pursuits.”
HII continues to expand in the rapidly growing autonomous and unmanned maritime systems industry. Earlier this year they added additional unmanned underwater vehicle capabilities — with REMUS and Seaglider product lines through the March acquisition of Hydroid. While the company has worked on USVs in the past, this investment represents another milestone in their commitment to strengthen their leadership in unmanned systems.
