Blue Water Autonomy mentioned its autonomous ship is designed for mass manufacturing and endurance on the open ocean. | Supply: Blue Water Autonomy
Blue Water Autonomy, a Boston-based firm designing and constructing unmanned ships for the U.S. Navy, raised $50 million in Sequence A funding. Immediately’s announcement follows Blue Water’s $14 million seed spherical introduced in April 2025, bringing the corporate’s whole funding raised to $64 million.
Blue Water Autonomy mentioned it would construct and deploy its first long-range, full-sized autonomous ship subsequent 12 months. For the reason that seed spherical, the Blue Water Autonomy crew has quadrupled in dimension, accomplished on-water engineering checks, and began buying long-lead materials from greater than 50 chosen suppliers.
“There may be an pressing want for autonomous ships designed particularly for maritime safety and logistics. This funding offers our crew the assets to construct long-range autonomous ships from the keel up that can function on the open ocean for months at a time,” mentioned CEO Rylan Hamilton. “Blue Water Autonomy is laser-focused on perfecting a single platform class. This intentional technique ensures unmatched high quality, velocity to market, and reliability from day one.”
Hamilton is former co-founder of 6 River Programs, an autonomous cell robotic (AMR) developer that was acquired by Shopify in September 2019 for $450 million. It was finest figuring out for the Chuck AMR.
GV led the spherical, which additionally included participation from all of Blue Water Autonomy’s current buyers, Eclipse, Riot, and Impatient Ventures. As a part of as we speak’s information, GV Managing Accomplice Dave Munichiello joins the corporate’s Board of Administrators.
Blue Water needs to maintain up with China
At the moment, China is dominating international shipbuilding. The nation has over 200 occasions better shipbuilding capability than the U.S., and is rising its fight fleet with new naval tonnage. Now, Pentagon management is accelerating plans for autonomous vessels that can assist bolster the U.S. fleet. The Pentagon is leveraging $2.1 billion in new Congressional funding for the medium-sized unmanned floor vessels like these Blue Water Autonomy builds.
Future unmanned ships have to be producible, reasonably priced platforms that may ship assorted payloads, whereas complementing and supporting the superior capabilities of conventional naval belongings, Blue Water Autonomy mentioned. Whereas targeted on preliminary naval purposes, Blue Water’s management sees an enormous alternative in industrial maritime markets which can be replete with boring, harmful, and soiled jobs at sea.
The crew just lately opened a Washington D.C. workplace and has grown to incorporate shipbuilding veterans with a observe file of delivering over 30 ships to the U.S. Navy, together with complicated destroyers and amphibious ships, and DARPA’s absolutely autonomous NOMARS.
Based in 2024, Blue Water Autonomy mentioned its autonomous ships absolutely combine {hardware}, software program, and AI, permitting the vessel to function on the open ocean for months at a time. The firm emerged from stealth in April 2025, having developed a full-stack autonomy suite, commenced saltwater testing, and developed idea ship designs.
