- HavocAI is a defence tech company that has developed autonomous boats for military use.
- The company aims to produce AI-driven boats that can be created in months, rather than years.
- Its key products include the 14-foot Rampage, 38-foot Seahound, 42-foot Kaikoa, and a 100-foot Atlas, all powered by the same AI.
Website: havocai.org
What is HavocAI?
Founded in January 2024 by former Navy officers Paul Lwin and Joe Turner, HavocAI builds autonomous boats designed to make naval defence cheaper and easier to deploy.
Instead of building huge billion-dollar warships that take years to create, HavocAI makes affordable, quick robot boats that have AI navigation included.
Since launching, the company’s vessels have been bought by the US Navy, Army, and Defence Innovation Unit. Through this, they aim to mimic how the Ukrainian military has managed to out-innovate Russia using autonomous drone technology.
And just last month, HavocAI closed an $85 million venture funding round to continue improving their development.
To date, HavocAI has raised nearly $100 million since its launch last January.
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What Makes HavocAI Unique?
HavocAI is unique because it’s building commercial grade boats driven by AI technology for a more affordable price. Its system is able to manage a whole fleet, allowing them to search, patrol and share intelligence at scale.
Another huge benefit is that HavocAI can produce a vessel in hours, with unit prices as low as $100,000. This is considerably cheaper and much much faster than existing options, which can take years to build.
One of its other benefits is that the design is modular, meaning militaries can easily swap surveillance sensors to weapons, further improving cost-efficiency.
Is There A Market For Autonomous Maritime Defence?
Definitely, and it’s growing. The US is investing more in its naval technology, but struggling to keep up with demand. This is made worse by the long and expensive processes that currently dominates the industry.
Currently, the US Navy alone spends billions each year on ships that take up to 6 years to build and cost millions of dollars. By contrast, HavocAI’s shops take just a few months, for a much lower price.
President Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ also set aside $3.3 billion for autonomous vehicle development, making it an obvious focus for the government. And it’s easy to see why, autonomous vessels can gather intelligence, survey waters and even attack in dangerous areas that would endanger human lives.
Through Havoc, militaries can keep populated vessels back at a safe distance and send in small autonomous boats to collect valuable data for targeting and precision,
With growing geopolitical tensions around the world, the demand for vessels that are cheaper, faster and able to be deployed at scale.
Where Can You Find HavocAI?
HavocAI is based in Rhode Island, USA but can be found online at havocai.com.
