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Autonomous Systems: Land & Sea
8NOV

HD Hyundai sails 368-ton ship uncrewed

2 min read
19:26UTC

HD Hyundai sailed a former US Navy test ship off Long Beach for three and a half hours with nobody aboard, Anduril software running the mission.

← Back to UK names HII at £303m; its tender said £125mJump to analysis ↓
TechnologyDeveloping
Key takeaway

HD Hyundai is demonstrating an uncrewed ship to the US Navy before winning any order.

HD Hyundai said on 19 October it had sailed a modified 368-ton experimental vessel, once operated by the US Navy, uncrewed for three and a half hours off Long Beach, California⁠1. The Korean shipbuilder's VAone autonomy system sailed the ship while Anduril's Lattice software managed the mission. Nearly 40 observers watched, from the US Navy, the US Coast Guard, the Republic of Korea Navy and the American Bureau of Shipping, the US ship classification society.

HD Hyundai was not among the yards that won the US Navy's medium-USV production slots in September. Like Birdon, which began building a hull in Louisiana, it is putting a working ship in front of the Navy before any order. HD Hyundai is building a second prototype at Ulsan and plans to launch it this month.

Deep Analysis

In plain English

HD Hyundai is South Korea's largest shipbuilder. Anduril is an American defence technology company whose Lattice software coordinates drones and sensors. They took an old US Navy test ship, fitted it with self-driving software, and let it sail off California with no one at the controls. Officials from the US and Korean navies, the US Coast Guard and the American Bureau of Shipping, which certifies ship safety, watched. HD Hyundai hopes to sell crewless ships to the US Navy.

Deep Analysis
Root Causes

The US Navy wants many uncrewed ships faster than its own yards can deliver. Asian shipbuilders with spare capacity and commercial autonomy products see a way into a market that was closed to them for crewed warships.

Classification societies set the terms of entry. DNV's AROS rules for autonomous and remotely operated vessels have been in force since January 2025, and an ABS presence at the Long Beach trial suggests HD Hyundai is building the same kind of approval record with the US class society.

What could happen next?
  • Opportunity

    Korean yards could become a second source of uncrewed hulls for the US Navy.

  • Consequence

    Merchant-ship autonomy software is moving into naval programmes.

Sources:Army Recognition
Mentions:Anduril →Lattice →US Navy →US Coast Guard →Republic of Korea Navy →American Bureau of Shipping →Ulsan →Birdon →Onomichi Dockyard →South Korea →Indian Navy →Bulwark Dynamics →Caravel-35 →Accurate Industrial Controls →ISACA →Indian Register of Shipping →Japan →Louisiana →California →VAone →HD Hyundai →DNV →AROS →
First Reported In

Update #14 · UK names HII at £303m; its tender said £125m

Army Recognition· 8 Nov 2026
Read original →
Causes and effects
Caused by
US Navy buys 30 robot boats from 3 yards
HD Hyundai showed a working hull after missing the US Navy's thirty MUSV slots.
Occurred 29 Sept 2026
Read story →
This Event
HD Hyundai sails 368-ton ship uncrewed
A Korean yard shut out of the US Navy's medium-drone order is courting it with a working uncrewed ship.
Different Perspectives
EDGE Group
EDGE Group
EDGE took control of Italian engine maker CMD in October and signed exploratory USV memorandums with Novamarine and Abu Dhabi Ship Building in early November. It is assembling an Italian hull and engine supply chain around Emirati autonomy, with no customer named.
Japan Ministry of Defense
Japan Ministry of Defense
Nikkei reported on 29 October that the ministry will start research in fiscal 2027 towards mass-producing underwater drones for detection and attack, with prototypes by fiscal 2035. The stated aim is to deter China's growing submarine fleet with fewer sailors at risk.
Kongsberg Discovery
Kongsberg Discovery
Kongsberg received a $54m DIU modification, mainly for AUV deliveries, and Camilla Kiss said the unit has signed 1.7bn Norwegian kroner of AUV contracts in 2026. The Norwegian maker sells into the US market as an established production line.
Elbit Systems
Elbit Systems
Elbit bought ISE of Vancouver, maker of more than 250 AUVs, on 20 October for a price it called not material. The Israeli group adds an underwater vehicle line to its naval business.
Defense Acquisition Program Administration
Defense Acquisition Program Administration
DAPA's 179th committee cleared a 591bn won mine-warfare USV programme on 6 November, alongside the Jangbogo-N nuclear submarine. HD Hyundai's Long Beach trial with Anduril shows Korean industry pitching hulls abroad while Seoul funds its own.
Finland National Emergency Supply Agency
Finland National Emergency Supply Agency
NESA opened an €11m competition on 4 November for radiation-sensing drones and ground robots, including quadrupeds, for the EU's rescEU stockpile. It is a civil-protection buyer using open tender, with a decision expected in March 2027.

Written with AI from Lowdown's published reporting. Not individually reviewed by an editor. Editorial standards.