Tech Startup HavocAI, Lockheed Martin Strike Partnership To Develop, Scale Medium USVs

“BREAKING DEFENSE” By Justin Katz

“Defense tech startup HavocAI and the venture capital arm of Lockheed Martin today announced a strategic partnership focused on rapidly developing and scaling medium unmanned surface vessels.”

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“The future of maritime warfare is autonomous, and the MUSV is at the forefront of this revolution,” Paul Lwin, CEO at HavocAI, said in a statement. “By collaborating with Lockheed Martin, we can integrate advanced weapons systems and deliver complete solutions that meet the evolving needs of our warfighters. This collaboration is a significant step forward for HavocAI and demonstrates our commitment to innovation and customer satisfaction.”

HavocAI is a Rhode Island-based startup focused on developing what it calls “ultra-low cost, high-rate production” autonomous surface vessels. The partnership announcement comes just as Congress passed its highly-anticipated reconciliation bill that included billions of dollars in funding for the US Navy to pursue a number of unmanned technology programs.

It also follows a pattern this year, that Breaking Defense previously reported on, of an increasing number of entrants vying for space in the Pentagon’s limited funding portfolio for unmanned surface and subsurface vessels.

“Maintaining superiority in maritime defense is fundamental to ensuring deterrence in contested waters. Autonomous capabilities make investment now more important than ever, to help the United States and its allies remain on the cutting-edge of defense technology at sea,” said Chis Moran, Vice President and General Manager of Lockheed Martin Ventures.

“The MUSV is a game-changer for maritime defense, offering enhanced range, payload capacity, and mission versatility. By combining HavocAI’s innovative autonomy stack with our ability to integrate the best of American technology and deliver at scale, we can give warfighters a decisive edge in future conflicts.”

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

JUSTIN KATZ

Prior to joining Breaking Defense, Justin Katz reported on the Navy and Marine Corps as an associate editor for Inside Defense, where he focused on the services’ largest acquisition programs and congressional committees overseeing them. Justin has also covered the federal government’s cybersecurity policies and programs for FCW and a worked as a general news reporter in both Baltimore and Washington, D.C. Katz graduated from Flagler College in St. Augustine, Fla., in 2015 with a degree in communications focusing on journalism and is a native of Long Island, N.Y. jkatz@breakingmedia.com