Boston-based Sea Machines Robotics, a leading developer of autonomous systems for ocean-going vessels and workboats, has closed a new $15 million financing round with significant participation by Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), America’s largest military shipbuilding company and a provider of professional services. This investment in Sea Machines marks one of the largest venture rounds for an advanced technology company serving the marine and maritime industries.
The strategic investment and associated partnership with HII will accelerate the deployment of self-piloting technologies in the rising market of unmanned naval boats and ships and is a continuation of HII’s expansion in the rapidly growing autonomous and unmanned maritime systems industry.
Sea Machines’ autonomous systems serve the modern mariner. They markedly increase productivity of vessel operations by assuming active domain perception and navigation duties. A Sea Machines system works under the command of a human operator and, by taking on the long duration and often repetitive control duties, it boosts the predictability and precision of operations while lowering the risk of fatigue-related incidents. The technology also enables new capabilities on water, such as the onshore command of remote offshore vessels.
Since launching its first family of products in late 2018, Sea Machines has deployed systems on vessels serving a multitude of sectors. From large cargo vessels (such as the previously disclosed program with A.P. Moller-Maersk) to U.S.-flag ATBs and data-collecting survey boats, oil-spill response craft, search-and-rescue (SAR), patrol and crew transfer vessels. Sea Machines systems are now operating in four of the world’s eight geographical regions and this reach is enabled through a dealer-partner program with established marine electronics integrators.
This investment round was led by Accomplice with further participation by Toyota AI Ventures, Brunswick Corp. (through investment partner TechNexus), Geekdom Fund, NextGen Venture Partners, Eniac VC, LaunchCapital and others.
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.
Huntington Ingalls Industries
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.