Carved from the shipbuilding space in 2015, Sea Machines Robotics has spent the past decade developing and deploying the world’s leading marine autonomy across fleets operating on most oceans. Over that period, the company has invested more than $55 million in venture-backed capital to develop, field, and harden a fully integrated autonomy stack. This investment addressed one of the most technically complex challenge of unmanned surface vessels such as Modular Attack Surface Combatant (MASC): reliable software–hardware integration at scale. Having completed the difficult work up front, Sea Machines is now positioned to rapidly integrate mature, field-proven autonomy into purpose-built autonomous platforms. Today, the company applies its deep shipbuilding roots to deliver a purpose-built autonomous surface ship engineered for modern naval operations. 

Introducing the STEAMRACER-class autonomous surface ship, purpose-built to meet the Navy’s immediate and future fleet requirements for fully unmanned maritime operations. Designed around our hardened, AI-enabled remote command architecture, the platform delivers high speed, extended endurance, modular open-deck payload capacity, and a secure onboard data environment to support distributed operations at scale. 

While engineered from inception for persistent unmanned execution, STEAMRACER retains the flexibility to operate in a limited, short-duration manned configuration when mission requirements dictate – providing operational flexibility without compromising its unmanned-first design. 

Florida-forged, STEAMRACER integrates mature autonomy with proven U.S. shipbuilding capacity through partnerships with St. Johns Ship Building, TOTE Services, Ring Power, Incat Crowther, and EMI-W&O reinforcing the President’s Executive Order to restore American maritime dominance and strengthen the domestic industrial base. To meet the Navy’s resilient and robust communications standards, Sierra Nevada Corporation will provide its Maritime Advanced Secure Transmission (MAST) solution, an open, scalable architecture backed by proven secure communications and cybersecurity expertise.

Aligned with Navy leadership’s call to expand MUSV production, accelerate the scaling of unmanned capability, and rapidly field maritime robotic and autonomous systems, STEAMRACER delivers a ready-now, America-First solution. The defining attribute: PROVEN capability. STEAMRACER provides validated unmanned-first capability that is operationally tested, industrially grounded, strategically aligned, and prepared to scale at the pace required for the Indo-Pacific fight. 

In an era defined by America’s pacing-threat competition with China, our Nation and our Navy cannot afford protracted development programs that delay transition, escalate cost, and fail to field capability. The strategic environment demands operational mass, speed, and scale, not prolonged development without delivery. Others prototype. We deliver proven autonomy at the pace required for deterrence in the Indo-Pacific, or wherever in the world it will be needed. 

Sea Machines stands ready. 

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SM300-SP is a special purpose hardware version of Sea Machines’ autonomy systems, built for the emerging fleets of attritable sUSVs and for those not requiring Classed-approved hardware.

SM300-NG is a new generation autonomy system that provides 200% more computing power in a smaller size form-factor.  The SM300NG continues Sea Machines’ commitment to Class-approved marine products and is available in both digital-only and digital plus analog I/O variants.

SMLink Stream/Control-APIs are two new APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) now available to allow authorized third parties to stream data from SM300 platforms, as well as control the autonomy system.  These APIs further Sea Machines commitment to open architecture and system interoperability.

FLEETVIEWER is an online fleet visualization platform that enables an easy way to view, capture, and use real-time vessel-born data, including streaming imagery.

STORMRUNNER USV is an all-new 8-meter length HDPE unmanned surface vessel, designed to deliver high-performance and high reliability on water for defense customers. STORMRUNNER has a 40-knot top speed and gives over 500 nautical miles of range carrying 1,100 lbs of payload.  Equipped with the SM300-SP and fully integrated with sensors and communications, STORMRUNNER is Sea Machines’ second USV design, following on the 7-meter “SELKIE.”

Since 2017, Sea Machines has focused on building the most advanced maritime autonomy for both naval and commercial vessels. “Sea Machines was built around commercial market needs, which simply put, means that the products must deliver immense value and reliability.  This fits perfectly with Government customers who are increasingly demanding deployable, proven systems.  The SM300 is now operating within broad fleets of unmanned naval boats, and these operators benefit by having a hardened autonomy foundation that also enables rapid development on requirements that emerge from the quickly evolving threat environments.”  Said Founder and CTO Michael Johnson.

CEO Chip Wasson said, “We are delighted to introduce these new products that provide true asymmetric advantage for US and allied fleets. Our mission has been to deliver superior naval and maritime technologies to those who protect, defend and work on water. Our team has worked relentlessly to deliver on this commitment with these new products.”

About Sea Machines Robotics
Based in the tech hub of Boston with a global presence, Sea Machines Robotics, Inc. builds autonomous vessel software and systems that increase the performance, capability, and efficiency of naval and commercial vessels.  Their flagship product, the SM300, is a time-perfected edge computing autonomy system that has earned the respect of this fast-growing global market of unmanned boats and autonomy-enabled ships. Learn more at www.sea-machines.com

Contact: Phil Bourque, VP of Global Sales, pbourque@sea-machines.com

Download press release here.

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“On behalf of the entire Sea Machines team, I congratulate Phil on this much-deserved promotion,” said Sea Machines’ Michael G. Johnson, CEO and founder. “Among other endeavors, Phil was instrumental in securing our agreement with the U.S. Department of Defense to engineer, build and demonstrate ready-to-deploy kits that enable autonomous, self-propelled operation of barges to land and replenish military aircraft. He also led the establishing of our relationship with the U.S. Coast Guard Research and Development Center and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, both of which are implementing and evaluating the SM300 autonomy system. We are certain Phil will further develop Sea Machines’ reputation as the premier commercial provider of intelligent vessel technology to the U.S. Government.”

With more than 15 years’ experience working in the marine industry, Bourque joined the company in 2017 as director of business development. Prior to driving Sea Machines’ business, he built much of the global sales and support network for Seakeeper Inc, the leading manufacturer of marine gyrostabilizers. His work with USVs at Seakeeper inspired him to pursue the field of autonomy. Bourque has a BASc degree in international business and an MBA from the University of Redlands, in Redlands, Calif.

Sea Machines’ SM Series of products, which includes both the SM200 and SM300, provides marine operators a new era of remote, task-driven, computer-guided vessel control, bringing advanced autonomy within reach for small- and large-scale operations. SM products are ideally suited for existing or new-build commercial vessels, including fireboats, commercial survey workboats, spill-response vessels, security/patrol/search-and-rescue craft, offshore wind support vessels, aquaculture workboats and others.

In 2020, Sea Machines closed an additional $20 million in financing with significant participation by Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), America’s largest military shipbuilding company and a provider of professional services. The investment in Sea Machines marked one of the largest venture rounds for an advanced technology company serving the marine and maritime industries.

About Sea Machines
Headquartered in the global tech hub of Boston and operating globally, Sea Machines is the leader in pioneering autonomous control and advanced perception systems for the marine industries. Founded in 2015, the company builds autonomous vessel software and systems, which increases the safety, efficiency and performance of ships, workboats and commercial passenger vessels. Learn more about Sea Machines at www.sea-machines.com.

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(HOUSTON; January 25, 2021) – DEA Marine Services, a division of David Evans and Associates, Inc. (DEA), in Vancouver, Wash., is leveraging a Sea Machines Robotics SM300 autonomous-command and remote-helm control system to fulfill a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) contract that is now surveying more than 3,500 nautical miles of the Western Galveston Bay, near the Houston Ship Channel. The SM300 has been installed aboard the DEA survey boat Sigsbee, which is serving as an autonomous daughter craft for the project. Sigsbee is effectively doubling coverage by operating without an onboard crew, while collaboratively following another DEA-staffed hydrographic survey vessel, which serves as the mothership. The goal is to cover the Bay’s large and shallow survey areas more efficiently than traditional, crewed survey vessel operations. DEA operators located aboard the mothership are commanding the autonomous Sigsbee as it conducts survey missions seven days per week, effectively doubling the conventional productivity of this type of survey.

A view from the bridge of the mothership: An on-board operator commands and controls daughter craft Sigsbee (shown) using the Sea Machines SM300 as it autonomously surveys 3,500 miles of the Western Galveston Bay. Photo credit: DEA

Sea Machines’ technology and DEA’s technical advancements enhance the value of vessel operations by:

• Increasing productivity with collaborative autonomy for force-multiplication;
• Shifting recurring and repetitive operations from manual to autonomous, which enables personnel to focus on higher-level tasks;
• Interfacing autonomous navigation systems with survey software, including Hypack, enabling direct communication and optimizing the combined capabilities of both platforms;
• Improving vessel-tracking precision over planned lines to reduce cross-track error and excessive data overlap.

“Deploying the SM300 system for this mission is allowing DEA to conduct marine surveys with improved predictability, speed of data collection and at-sea safety,” said Sea Machines’ Phil Bourque, director, sales. “The integration with systems like Hypack are streamlining operations for surveyors and demonstrating our commitment to being a best-in-class technology provider. Sea Machines is pleased to to support DEA and NOAA during this critical mission and others like it in the future.”

“DEA is committed to the advancement of technology and being on the leading edge,” said DEA Marine Services’ Jon Dasler, PE, PLS, CH; senior vice president and director. “We see autonomy as the future of hydrography and have enjoyed working with Sea Machines and additional software vendors for continued improvements in autonomous operations and the use of artificial intelligence in data processing.”

In May 2020, Sea Machines announced that Deep BV, of the Netherlands, would upgrade operations with the SM300 to conduct unmanned hydrographic surveys. Deep’s vessel, operating in multiple areas of the Wadden Sea, has been regularly commanded and controlled by personnel situated in the Amsterdam office.

About Sea Machines
Headquartered in the global tech hub of Boston and operating globally, Sea Machines is the leader in pioneering autonomous control and advanced perception systems for the marine industries. Founded in 2015, the company builds autonomous vessel software and systems, which increases the safety, efficiency and performance of ships, workboats and commercial passenger vessels. Learn more about Sea Machines at www.sea-machines.com.

About David Evans and Associates, Inc.
David Evans and Associates, Inc. (DEA) is an employee-owned, multidisciplinary consulting firm headquartered in Portland, Ore. DEA’s Marine Services Division was established in 1989 and is a recognized industry leader in accurate, high-precision hydrographic surveys, marine geophysical surveys, oceanographic monitoring services, and geospatial data analysis for navigational, environmental, engineering, and scientific applications. Learn more about DEA Marine Services at www.deamarine.com.

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According to a USCG press release, the purpose of the testing was to examine “the operational utility of the [unmanned surface vessel] USV, including feasibility, costs and benefits. While potentially applicable to many Coast Guard missions, there is potential these technologies will help enable the Coast Guard to better protect critical natural living marine resources from Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated [IUU] fishing and other illicit activities.”

Whereas the other two USV systems in the demonstration were contractor-owned and -operated, the RDC purchased the Sharktech 29’ Defiant vessel in an effort to learn more about autonomous command and remote control, USV maintenance and current constraints through hands-on operations with actual Coast Guard operators. The welded-aluminum monohull pilothouse vessel arrived in Hawaii prior to the event equipped with the Sea Machines SM300 autonomous-command and remote-helm control system.

RDC crew boarded the vessel and operated Sea Machines’ SM300 autonomous-command system in real time on the water. Planned exercises included transit and grid autonomy missions, as well as an observance of the system’s obstacle detection and collision avoidance feature. Operators saw how Sea Machines executes with human-like behavior, intelligently factoring in environmental and sea conditions, and the system’s ability to autonomously change speeds between waypoints. Especially important to the USCG, Sea Machines enables optionally manned or autonomous-assist (reduced crew) modes that can reduce mission delays and maximize effort — a critical feature for time-sensitive operations, such as on-water search-and-rescues or other urgent missions.

USCG operators also donned Sea Machines’ wireless beltpack and remote-commanded the autonomous vessel from both inside the wheelhouse and from the shore. This exercise also allowed the test crew to use the beltpack controls to engage on-board payloads, including vessel sensors and other equipment. Sea Machines’ commercial wireless helm control system can be operated from a distance of one kilometer.

Sea Machines’ Chris Spagna, marine controls engineer (shown above), supported the demonstrations on-site. In observance of the event, he said: “We introduced a lot of new users to the SM300 during the demo week. It was rewarding and fun to watch their reactions to driving a boat via remote control or from their office.”

While Sea Machines has bid aloha to Hawaii, it’s clear that our work with the USCG will continue. Following the event, the Sharktech autonomous vessel was returned to the RDC’s New London facility for additional testing. The RDC will soon publish a report with recommendations for potential future actions for the Coast Guard.

Sea Machines appreciates the opportunity to participate in this important demonstration.

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Under this OT agreement, Sea Machines will engineer, build and demonstrate ready-to-deploy system kits that enable autonomous, self-propelled operation of opportunistically available barges to land and replenish military aircraft. The kits will include Sea Machines’ SM300 autonomous-command and control systems, barge propulsion, sensing, positioning, communications and refueling equipment, as well as items required for global deployment. Each modular kit will meet U.S. Navy criteria and will be in compliance with classifications and regulations from the DOD’s aviation bodies.

The contract includes a concept demonstration phase, with an option for following phases to deploy SM300 Operational Kits. The live concept demonstration is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2020, in Washington state, for which Sea Machines has teamed with FOSS Maritime, a leading maritime transportation and logistics provider based in Seattle. FOSS will provide naval architecture, support engineering and operations management to outfit a remotely commanded deck barge to land helicopters and host a scaled fueling station for aircraft, surface vessels and shore replenishment. Using the SM300, shoreside operators will have remote situational awareness and will be able to demonstrate the capabilities of remote command and control of the vessel, her operating systems and flight deck.

Sea Machines is the prime contractor for the multi-year contract and is working closely alongside FOSS Maritime and other significant industry leaders, including Huntington Ingalls, America’s largest military shipbuilding company and a provider of professional services, based in Newport News, Va., and Bell Flight, a producer of commercial and military, vertical-lift aircraft, based in Fort Worth, Texas, to ensure a successful demonstration.

“The AMPP autonomous replenishment systems will solve critical logistics challenges of expeditionary missions. We are pleased to enable this innovative capability, which will increase the effectiveness and flexibility for the U.S. military,” said Sea Machines’ Phil Bourque, director, sales. “With Sea Machines systems already working off the waters of four continents, this project is well suited for us and one that we look forward to delivering on for the U.S. Government.”

“Foss is excited about this new opportunity with Sea Machines. This contract has led to discussions with Sea Machines in a number of other areas where their expertise can help Foss, including bringing more technology to our tug fleet. What they are doing in automation is very interesting and that technology could help our mariners and our vessels safety,” said Foss’ Will Roberts, chief operating officer.

DIU’s work is part of the DOD’s Resilient Expeditionary Agile Littoral Logistics (REALL) Joint Capability Technology Demonstration (JCTD) project. Funded by the Office of the Secretary of Defense Research & Engineering, the JCTD Program addresses Combatant Command (CCMD) and Joint warfighting gaps through prototyping and demonstration of innovative and game-changing technologies. The following offices are involved with defining performance requirements and developing capabilities for REALL: U.S. Central Command, U.S. Transportation Command, U.S. Marine Corps Warfighting Laboratory, Naval Facilities Engineering and Expeditionary Warfare Center, Army Engineer Research and Development Center, and the Naval Aviation Warfare Center – Lakehurst.

About Sea Machines
Headquartered in the global tech hub of Boston and operating globally, Sea Machines is the leader in pioneering autonomous command and control and advanced perception systems for the marine industries. Founded in 2015, the company builds autonomous vessel software and systems, which increases the safety, efficiency and performance of ships, workboats and commercial passenger vessels. Learn more about Sea Machines at www.sea-machines.com.

About FOSS Maritime
Foss is a full-service maritime company focused on solving customers’ toughest marine transportation and logistical challenges—close to home and in some of the harshest environments in the world. Along with its subsidiaries and sister companies we have the expertise to support any industry requiring marine transportation services, project management or logistics, helping to handle all of the details from one-time ship assist jobs in local harbors to major multi-year projects across the globe.

About Huntington Ingalls
Huntington Ingalls Industries is America’s largest military shipbuilding company and a provider of professional services to partners in government and industry. For more than a century, HII’s Newport News and Ingalls shipbuilding divisions in Virginia and Mississippi have built more ships in more ship classes than any other U.S. naval shipbuilder. HII’s Technical Solutions division supports national security missions around the globe with unmanned systems, defense and federal solutions, nuclear and environmental services, and fleet sustainment. Headquartered in Newport News, Virginia, HII employs more than 42,000 people operating both domestically and internationally. For more information, visit www.huntingtoningalls.com.

About Bell Flight
Headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas – as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Textron Inc. Textron Inc. is a multi-industry company that leverages its global network of aircraft, defense, industrial and finance businesses to provide customers with innovative solutions and services. Textron is known around the world for its powerful brands such as Bell, Cessna, Beechcraft, Hawker, Jacobsen, Kautex, Lycoming, E-Z-GO, Arctic Cat, Textron Systems, and TRU Simulation + Training. For more information, visit: www.textron.com.

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The RDC helps transition innovative technologies and provides premier analysis and decision support to enhance operational performance across all Coast Guard missions. During demonstrations scheduled for October off the coast of Hawaii, the RDC team will test and evaluate the Sharktech vessel’s autonomous capabilities for their potential in supporting USCG surveillance, interdiction, patrol and other missions. Following the Hawaii demonstrations, the autonomous vessel will be returned to the RDC’s New London facility, where it will be used in additional testing to investigate application to various Coast Guard missions.

“As the premier USCG facility performing research, development, test and evaluation in support of the service’s major missions, the RDC team is eager to observe Sea Machines’ system in action,” said USCG’s Derek Meier, assistant demonstration director. “The exercises will ultimately help us determine how, when, and if this innovative technology can be used to support personnel who are executing a variety of Coast Guard activities.”

“Sea Machines is proud to actively support government agencies across a variety of projects and to expand that support to the Department of Homeland Security with this important demonstration being conducted by the U.S. Coast Guard,” said Sea Machines’ Phil Bourque, director, sales. “Our systems are being rapidly adopted by government and commercial operators alike, offering increases in on-water productivity and predictability, while reducing operational risk.”

“Since the launch of our Sharktech Autonomous Vessels division in 2018 we have been working to position Metal Shark for the autonomy revolution,” said Metal Shark’s CEO Chris Allard. “We are committed to the advancement of autonomous technology, through our relationships with leading autonomy suppliers as well as through our own R&D, and we are engaged with multiple customers, from the USCG, the Department of Defense and commercial operators. With this latest delivery, Metal Shark is proud to play a role in the Coast Guard’s autonomous technology R&D efforts.”

In 2019, Sea Machines partnered with Metal Shark to make available the Sharktech 29 Defiant vessel to commercial markets, under Metal Shark’s stock boat program. Most recently, in July, Sea Machines partnered with Huntington Ingalls Industries to accelerate the deployment of self-piloting technologies in the rising market of unmanned naval boats and ships.

About Sea Machines
Headquartered in the global tech hub of Boston and operating globally, Sea Machines is the leader in pioneering autonomous control and advanced perception systems for the marine industries. Founded in 2015, the company builds autonomous vessel software and systems, which increases the safety, efficiency and performance of ships, workboats and commercial vessels. Learn more about Sea Machines at www.sea-machines.com.

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Owners and operators of such response vessels to consider the benefits of installing intelligent marine technology aboard their fleets to mitigate these challenges. Our autonomous-command and remote-helm control systems can be retrofitted aboard existing vessels to reduce risk on the water, while increasing operational productivity, predictability and efficiency.

Sea Machines Solutions

Installing our systems aboard response workboats enables:

• Faster, more responsive missions

• Safer mission execution using remote-helm and on-shore operation

• Force multiplier effect using collaborative autonomy

• Reduced risk with obstacle detection and collision avoidance

Autonomy for Repetitive, Predictable Patterns

Watch to learn how Sea Machines takes over execution of repetitive, predictable vessel routes, allowing on-board crew to focus on higher level tasks.

Remote-Helm Control for Safety & Operational Flexibility

Watch to learn how remote-helm control can remove crew from hazardous situations and enables operational flexibility.

Contact Us to Learn More

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GCaptain published an article highlighting the huge growth the autonomous marine technology market is experiencing as a result of COVID-19. Key points include:

• While the maritime world struggles with COVID-19, one industry segment continues to grow at a rapid pace: Marine Autonomy. With companies like the MIT startup, Blksail completing autonomous trials remotely, autonomous inland shipping companies like ZULU Associates preparing to enter the New York market, and larger scaleups like Sea Machines closing large strategic investment deals, the rapid growth of autonomous solution providers is impressive.

• The U.S. Navy and the NOAA has also made rapid progress in vessel autonomy by signing a new agreement to jointly expand the development and operations of unmanned maritime systems in the nation’s coastal and world’s ocean waters.

• One reason for the growth in autonomous solutions is a large number of mariners unable to sign off ships because of COVID-19 travel restrictions. While smarter ships might help with these problems, many of the deals we are seeing today are not positioned to replace commercial mariners.

In summary, the article states: It is unclear how the broader industry will perform in the post-coronavirus world but it is clear that marine autonomy will play a large and critically important role.

Read the full story here.

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As the Navy continues its pursuit of unmanned vehicles, Huntington Ingalls Industries hopes to harness its experience building the service’s largest platforms to expand naval capability in the unmanned realm.

After purchasing a company that builds unmanned undersea vehicles earlier this year, HII last month announced an investment in Sea Machines Robotics, a company located in Boston, Mass. that focuses on software for the unmanned surface vehicle market.

Andy Green, HII Technical Solutions group president, said the latest investment will allow the company to respond to the Navy’s requests and help the service learn more about the new unmanned technologies it plans to use.

“Unmanned vehicles – whether surface or sub-surface – they extend the reach and act as a multiplier of existing platforms for, whether it’s [the] United States Navy or one of our allies, it provides significant extension of those platforms’ capabilities, regardless of the specific mission the platform’s being used for,” Green told USNI News in a recent interview.

The former submariner billed unmanned platforms as a way for the Navy to supplement legacy platforms like amphibious ships and combatants with new technology.

“They’re essentially augmenting the larger combatant platforms that are out there, whether you’re talking about submarines or DDGs, or amphibs,” he said of the unmanned surface vehicles.

Green described the Sea Machines investment as a “logical extension” of what HII delivers to the Navy.

“Sea Machines brings a set of capabilities to the table that we believe has a lot of potential in the USV market, which is why we got involved with them,” he told USNI News. “But there are a lot of other pieces to the puzzle. When you talk about the different technologies, because they go into UUVs and USVs, the autonomy software is just one piece of that.”

“When you say autonomy, there’s a lot of subsets of autonomy that you got to think about, whether you’re thinking about controlling propulsion, you’re controlling steering and navigation, etc, or your control of whatever devices and sensors that you’ve got onboard,” he continued.

In a press release announcing the investment from HII, Sea Machines defined its autonomous control system as one that “works under the command of a human operator” and “boosts the predictability and precision of operations while lowering the risk of fatigue-related incidents.”

HII first launched into the unmanned market in early 2015, when the company disclosed its purchase of The Columbia Group’s Engineering Solutions Division, which built the Large Displacement Unmanned Underwater Vehicle known as Proteus. Then, earlier this year, HII reached a $350 million deal with Kongsberg to purchase Hydroid, which builds unmanned underwater vehicles.

HII also joined Boeing in a collaborative bid for the Navy’s Orca Extra Large Unmanned Undersea Vehicle, for which Boeing received a $43 million contract to build four vessels in February 2019.

The most recent investment from HII in the unmanned surface vehicle arena comes as the Navy works to determine how unmanned vehicles will fit into its future fleet architecture. Last year, the Navy stood up Surface Development Squadron 1 (SURFDEVRON) to cultivate the service’s concepts of operations for unmanned vehicles. SURFDEVRON is using the Navy’s Sea Hunter, a medium unmanned surface vehicle born out of a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency endeavor, to experiment with the CONOPS.

But the pursuit of unmanned platforms has hit roadblocks in Congress, as lawmakers express skepticism over the Navy’s approach and suggest the service is moving too quickly on technology it has yet to test. House and Senate authorizers in drafting the fiscal year 2021 defense policy bills sought to increase oversight of the Navy’s Large Unmanned Surface Vehicle program.

Green said that HII, due to its history building platforms from aircraft carriers to submarines, is in a unique position to help the Navy. HII is the only contractor that builds the service’s nuclear-powered aircraft carriers. The company also builds amphibious assault ships, amphibious transport dock vessels, and destroyers.

“When you think about how we can leverage unmanned systems technology in our existing platforms . . . because we make all those platforms . . . we have the ability to, as these technologies develop, to do technology insertion, to work with our program folks on the larger programs . . . and see where we can insert those technologies — see where we can leverage all of our many many decades of experience in building maritime platforms and undersea platforms — leverage that in developing technology that’s going to take UUVs and USVs to that next stage,” he said.

Sea Machines’ A.I.-powered advanced perception system gives commercial vessel operators enhanced situational awareness via obstacle detection, collision avoidance and environment-understanding capabilities for increased safety, predictability and productivity on the water.

One way HII can help the Navy, according to Green, is by discovering “creative ways” the service could employ autonomous technology, or launch and recover unmanned platforms.

“Everybody is sort of trying to feel out this space and figure out how it’s going to evolve and how the CONOPS are going to evolve, etc. and I think being there, at the table, partnered with the Navy across all platforms certainly puts us in a good position to help them out,” Green said. “And if we can continue producing these platforms, making sure that the costs are as controlled as possible — keep these programs as affordable as possible — while giving them what they need in terms of capability and bringing them good ideas maybe that they hadn’t thought of on how to use these things, then I think we’ll all be in a good position.”

By investing in both the unmanned undersea and surface vehicle areas, Green said HII can support the Navy with the interoperability and integration the service will require as it grows its unmanned arsenal.

“I think the more that we can invest in and demonstrate that we can weave these technologies together across the UUV space and the USV space, I think the better it is for the Navy,” Green said. “Because the more commonality they have across their programs and the better these vehicles can communicate, not only with manned platforms, whether it be sub-sea, surface or air, but also communicate with other unmanned platforms – sub-sea, surface and air — it’s going to be helpful to them.”

Top photo: Artist’s conception of the Boeing and HII Orca XLUUV. (Boeing image)

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Boston-based vessel autonomy startup Sea Machines is making waves with its advanced remote-control and autonomous operation technology. It recently completed a successful Series B venture capital fundraising round with participation from some of the biggest names in the sector, including top naval shipbuilder Huntington Ingalls Industries. Founder and CEO Michael G. Johnson recently discussed how his company is modernizing the commercial marine industry.

Q: Sea Machines announced that it has raised $15 million in funding. Explain the significance of this and what it means for the company and greater maritime community?

The funds we were able to raise in this latest round are going to significantly impact Sea Machines, and therefore the maritime and marine industries as a whole. The funds will be put to use to further strengthen our technical development team as well as build out our next level of systems manufacturing and scale our operations group to support customer deployments.  We will also be investing in some supporting technologies to speed our course to full dock-to-dock, over-the-horizon autonomy. The purpose of our technology is to optimize vessel operations with increased performance, productivity, predictability and ultimately safety.

Q: Was fundraising much more challenging this time around, considering our pandemic-induced recession? 

On the whole, no. Raising capital is not meant to be easy but it’s safe to say that this round was simpler than previous raises. Because of where we are as a company, we have been proving our ability to retool the marine industry with our technology, and therefore we are delivering confidence to investors. We were forced to conduct the entire process by video conference, which may have increased overall efficiency of the raise as these rounds traditionally require thousands if not tens of thousands of miles of travel for face-to-face meetings, diligence, and handshakes.

Remote pitches also proved to be an advantage because it allowed us to showcase our technology in a more direct way. We did online demos where we had our team remotely connected to our vessels off Boston Harbor. We were really able to get the investors into a captain’s chair, as if they were remotely commanding a vessel in real-world operations. That worked out well.

Sea Machines’ remote command station in Boston

Q: Tell us a little about your partnership with Huntington Ingalls (HII), America’s largest shipbuilder. 

We are especially excited to be partnering with Huntington Ingalls in this round. What’s not to love about partnering with the builder of the SS United States, USS Enterprise and so many other amazing ships? HII is a solid and diversified company and as you know the leading capital ship supplier to the U.S. Navy. HII is a top choice partner for a growing marine autonomy company. They are more than a shipbuilder, also now leading in underwater autonomous systems, and they have a technical solutions group comprised of more than 6,000 personnel. The partnership gives us a supporting company to help us better serve U.S. government customers, a first-hand understanding of the technical needs of the U.S. Navy, and access to HII’s strengths in technical areas that are necessary to support autonomous operations, such as cybersecurity and modern HM&E. HII also lives and represents a social conscience that matches with modern society and our commitment to social responsibility.

Q: Sea Machines seems to have developed a strong foothold in the government industry with this announcement. Is that where you see your niche?

The government is an important and critical part of our growth strategy, but it’s just one piece. We also have a heavy emphasis on the task-driven workboat sector – marine survey, spill, fire, search-and-rescue, aquaculture and other boats – as well as the transit-driven maritime and passenger vessel sectors. Our autonomy can be used onboard as an advanced pilot assist system with a crew or provide remote command of a vessel.

Q: Which sectors seem to be the early adopters of marine autonomy?

It’s coming at us quickly.  The defense and task-driven workboat sectors are the first adopters, commercial passenger and shipping are now in the early stage of innovation trials.

The areas of value provided by autonomous technology overlaps for all sectors, however, for the navy, new on-water capabilities and unmanned vessels are a leading driver, whereas commercial is looking for increased productivity, efficiency and predictable operations. Our systems meet all of these needs. Our technology is designed to be installed on new vessels as well as existing vessels. Our ability to upgrade existing fleets greatly reduces the time and cost to leverage the value of our autonomous systems.  It definitely speeds up the adoption of the technology.

Sea Machines’ autonomous workboat, Lightning, a 29-foot vessel now being offered through Metal Shark’s “Sharktech” autonomous division

Q: Can you provide us with the latest on your technology development?

This month we are releasing software version 1.6 on our SM300. That’s six significant updates in 18 months, each one providing increased technical hardening and new base features and applicative features for specific workboat sectors. In January, we announced the receipt of ABS and USCG approval for our SM200 wireless helm and control systems on a major class of U.S.-flag articulated tug-barges (ATBs), the first unit has been installed and is in operation and we look forward to announcing details around it.  We will be taking the SM200 forward into the type-approval process.

Sea Machines has also begun serving the survey vessel market with the first announced collaboration with DEEP BV in the Netherlands; the vessel outfitted with the SM300 will be entering survey service within the month. In the second half of 2020 we are also commencing onboard collaborations with some crew-transfer vessel (CTV) operators serving the wind farm industry.

Q: In closing, what does the future look like for Sea Machines and our industry, with your systems on the market?

Being in our fifth year we have a good sense of what the industry needs and where it’s going. Sea Machines systems are already at work off the waters of four continents. Today we install systems on one or two vessels at a time and within a couple years it will be entire customer fleets at a swoop. To meet this demand, we are expanding our teams in Boston and Hamburg. We also recently opened an office in the Esberg, Denmark, to better serve the many forward-looking customers of that region.

The marine industries are a critically significant component of the global economy and it’s up to us within to keep it strong and relevant. Along with people, processes and capital, pressing the bounds of technology is a key driver. The world is being revolutionized by intelligent and autonomous self-piloting technology and today we find ourselves just beyond the starting line of a busy road to broad adoption through all marine sectors. If Sea Machines continues to chart the course with forward-looking pertinence then you will see us rise up to become one of the most significant companies and brands serving the industry in the 21st century.

Top photo: Sea Machines’ A.I.-powered advanced perception system gives commercial vessel operators enhanced situational awareness via obstacle detection, collision avoidance and environment-understanding capabilities for increased safety, predictability and productivity on the water. 

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MMA cadet Mary Shea operates a Sea Machines autonomous vessel

MMA students will command and control the autonomous vessel in the Castine Harbor and surrounding areas from the shoreside station. While learning about autonomous systems and their impact on the future of the commercial marine industry, project managers and MMA students will measure the vessel’s emissions output to determine the precise efficiencies gained, documenting differences among various engines, equipment and sea states. During these hands-on trials, participants will collect additional data about the vessel’s situational awareness and operational performance, predictability and safety during missions. 

An example shoreside command station

“The importance of this partnership extends beyond providing quantitative data for what we already know – that autonomous technology can be leveraged to improve vessels’ operational efficiency, productivity and predictability while reducing at-sea navigation incidents. This project is ultimately about preparing future merchant marine officers with the training and skills they will need to command the digital, data-driven commercial fleets of the 21^st century. We also anticipate that this initiative will further accelerate the multi-user operational review and validation of human-in-the-loop autonomous systems,” said Sea Machines’ Michael G. Johnson, CEO. “MMA and MARAD have been tremendous partners and we look forward to working with them on this project and others like it in the future.”

“The goal of this initiative is to expand Maine Maritime’s current research portfolio and to provide our students with the opportunity to gain education and training on new ‘smart vessel technology.’ The cutting edge technology will enhance students’ awareness of and use of such systems, which are quickly entering the maritime industry,” said MMA’s Jennifer Norwood, assistant professor, marine transportation. “In addition to supporting our students, we look forward to providing the META Program with the data it needs to understand how advanced marine technologies can impact maritime operations and sustainability.”

About Sea Machines
Headquartered in the global tech hub of Boston and operating globally, Sea Machines is the leader in pioneering autonomous control and advanced perception systems for the marine industries. Founded in 2015, the company builds autonomous vessel software and systems, which increases the safety, efficiency and performance of ships, workboats and other commercial vessels. Learn more about Sea Machines at www.sea-machines.com.   

About the Maritime Administration & META Program
The United States Maritime Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Transportation. Its programs promote the use of waterborne transportation and its seamless integration with other segments of the transportation system, and the viability of the U.S. merchant marine. The Maritime Administration works in many areas involving ships and shipping, shipbuilding, port operations, vessel operations, national security, environment, and safety.

The META program promotes the research, demonstration, and development of emerging technologies, practices, and processes that improve maritime industrial environmental sustainability. Through the META Program, MARAD partners with Federal, state, and local agencies, the maritime industry and academia, to develop and carry out projects that provide all stakeholders with useful information and insight on maritime environmental issues. Learn more here.

About Maine Maritime Academy
Maine Maritime Academy is a co-educational, public college on the coast of Maine offering programs of study in engineering, management, science, and transportation. The college serves approximately 950 undergraduate and graduate students in career-oriented degree programs. The job placement rate for MMA graduates regularly exceeds 90 percent within 90 days of graduation and the college is consistently recognized for providing a high-value education by organizations such as the Brookings Institution, Washington Monthly, Money Magazine, and U.S. News and World Report. Learn more at: https://mainemaritime.edu/

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Click to listen to the full interview (Starting at 13:06):

The post Bloomberg Baystate Business Radio: Sea Machines Interview appeared first on Sea Machines Robotics.

• How we used our technology to put investors in the captain’s chair remotely during a global pandemic,
• Why our partnership with Huntington Ingalls is significant to the industry, and
• How we plan to grow the company during this exciting time.

Full story available online here.

Story originally appeared on BOSTInno.

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