Timeline for COMEC
#14 18 Oct
Assessed as building the second suspected mothership
Autonomous Systems: Land & Sea: Guangzhou hull hints at UUV mothershipBackground
Naval News named COMEC on Longxue Island, Guangzhou, as the likely builder of a second suspected mothership for very large uncrewed submarines, reported on 18 October 2026. The hull, filmed on the Pearl River near Panyu, is about 150m long with six stern masts. The evidence is stills from two Weibo videos whose authenticity remains unconfirmed.
COMEC is the former Guangzhou Shipyard International (GSI), and Naval News describes it as associated with Huangpu Wenchong. A larger suspected mothership, just over 200m with twelve masts, was seen at Hudong in Shanghai.
Common Questions
Which shipyard is building China's second drone mothership?
Naval News names COMEC, formerly Guangzhou Shipyard International, on Longxue Island as the likely builder.Source: Naval News
How big is the Guangzhou drone mothership?
About 150m long with six stern masts, smaller than the 200m-plus Shanghai hull.Source: Naval News
How the World Sees Them
Elbit Systems
a complete multi-domain autonomous ecosystem
Naval Group and the DGA
10-day increments without human intervention
Australian Department of Defence
Those Ghost Sharks now have teeth
UK Ministry of Defence
The UK is all in on AUKUS
DNV and Fassmer
becoming one of the key pillars in defence
UK Defence Intelligence and Kraken
almost certainly marks the first time
Written with AI from Lowdown's published reporting. Not individually reviewed by an editor. Updated 8 November 2026. Editorial standards.