Greensea IQ Launches Autonomous Hull and Infrastructure Inspection Robot Greensea IQ has introduced Bayonet Sweep, an autonomous underwater robot designed to search and inspect ship hulls and underwater structures. Bayonet Sweep provides navies, security teams, and port and harbor authorities with a rapid and effective way to inspect ship hulls without placing divers in the water. Where routine hull inspection focuses on maintenance, Bayonet Sweep is specifically built for force protection. It provides a complete data workflow for security, threat assessment, and mitigation. Operators can launch a vehicle, detect a hull anomaly, classify a threat, inform the operator, and then georeference its location—turning a slow and risky manual sweep into a repeatable, autonomous one. Sweep then produces a thorough aggregated hull record. The vehicle design is engineered as a configurable system for mission specific inspections. “We rely on ports and harbors worldwide, for our infrastructure. With all of those vessels coming in and out, we have no way of knowing what is on the underside of those ships. We’ve taken the navigation and autonomy technology that we’ve built EverClean upon, the technology that allows an autonomous vehicle to crawl along the hull, and we’ve developed a security robot that can be deployed to sweep from stem to stern reliably and with high confidence to provide an operator 100% intelligence on the hull of that ship. Through the use of this autonomy and navigation, we can plug a vital hole in our port and harbor security infrastructure,” said Ben Kinnaman, Greensea IQ’s Chief Executive Officer. Bayonet Sweep is part of the Bayonet mission suite, Greensea IQ’s line of expeditionary autonomous systems and operating software for mine countermeasures and strategic marine operations. This newest addition was evolved from the proven technology of Greensea IQ’s hull maintenance EverClean platform and tailored for security
Aug 13, 2026 · via marinelink.com
We know it's a hassle to switch browsers but we want your experience with CNA to be fast, secure and the best it can possibly be.
To continue, upgrade to a supported browser or, for the finest experience, download the mobile app.
Upgraded but still having issues? Contact us
Aug 13, 2026 · via channelnewsasia.com
There once was a time when most cars on the road did not have air bags as a standard under federal law. It took until 1998, in fact, for every vehicle on the round to have an airbag as required by federal law — that’s over 100 years after the invention of the first automobile and roughly 30 years after airbags were first invented as a safety measure. Something like that is playing out again, except this time with robotaxis and cyber protections. Louay Abdelkader, director of product management at QNX, identified it as a huge problem for the sector, “of course … keep in mind that in automotive safety, it took a while for it to adopt.” Abdelkader told Fortune lawmakers should make cybersecurity a primary consideration akin to airbags, noting that every connected vehicle introduces some degree of cyber risk. Much of the debate over robotaxis has focused elsewhere, such as whether they are indeed smart enough to avoid collisions, how insurance companies should assign liability in an accident, or how police can deal with driverless cars that commit traffic violations. Abdelkader told Fortune lawmakers should make cybersecurity a primary consideration, noting that every connected vehicle introduces some degree of cyber risk. Robotaxis are proliferating across the country, however, with the robotaxi company Zoox most recently receiving regulatory approval from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for a commercial exemption, allowing the paid service broader access without manual controls. Tesla also has moved into the robotaxi space, with the advent of Cybercab in at least seven cities. Meanwhile, Alphabet-owned Waymo has expanded from its beginnings in Arizona to 11 major U.S. cities—even pairing with rideshare company Uber in a few cities. Unlike conventional vehicles, robotaxis depend on dozens of interconnected electronic control units, high-speed networking, cloud connectivity, GPS,
Aug 13, 2026 · via fortune.com
Underwater robots have always come in two flavors. The swimmers cover long distances on battery power and take pictures, and the workers hang off a thick cable beneath a crewed ship and actually turn wrenches. You picked one, because no single machine did both jobs well. A Houston company called Nauticus Robotics builds the exception. Its Aquanaut Mk2 is a 4,200-kilogram (about 9,260-pound) electric drone, 16 feet long, that swims out to a job site like the first kind of robot, stops in open water, and puts a pair of electric arms on the problem like the second kind. The company even has names for the two personalities: excursion mode when it swims and scans, intervention mode when it goes to work. And the arm side of the business just got busy. On July 28, Nauticus announced the completed first prototype of a next-generation electric manipulator built specifically for autonomous vehicles like this one. Then on Wednesday, in its second-quarter update, the company said it is steering the whole package toward defense work. One hull, two different machines Most long-range underwater drones look like torpedoes, because a torpedo is the cheapest shape to push through water. The Aquanaut is a broad, flattened slab instead: 16 feet long, 6.7 feet wide and 5.6 feet tall (4.82 by 2.03 by 1.71 meters), with an oval ring tail carrying the two main thrusters and a set of tunnel thrusters for hovering and holding position in current. That shape exists because the machine leads a double life. In excursion configuration it carries sonar, laser scanners and cameras, and behaves like a survey drone. In intervention configuration it carries two robot arms and behaves like the tethered work vehicles the offshore industry has leaned on for decades, except nothing tethers it. It also packs a
Aug 13, 2026 · via autonocion.com
Is Uber's Robotaxi Deal With Japan's Hinomaru Kotsu a Growth Catalyst? Uber Technologies UBER announced that Uber Japan has entered into an operational partnership with taxi operator Hinomaru Kotsu Co., Ltd. Hinomaru Kotsu will manage daily fleet operations for Uber’s autonomous-vehicle pilot in Tokyo, which is scheduled to launch in late 2026. Its responsibilities will include depot management, vehicle cleaning, maintenance, inspections, charging and ensuring vehicle availability. Uber will make the rides accessible through its global ride-hailing app. The initiative follows the robotaxi partnership Memorandum of Understanding signed on March 12, 2026, by Uber, Wayve and Nissan Motor. The pilot will use Nissan LEAF vehicles equipped with Wayve’s AI Driver technology, enabling riders to experience advanced robotaxi services as an everyday transportation option. Japanese law requires authorized taxi companies to operate passenger transportation services. The initiative will comply fully with all domestic laws, regulations and licensing requirements. Uber will provide its ride-matching platform and operational support tools, while Hinomaru Kotsu will act as the authorized operator and manage the fleet. Safety will remain the highest priority during the pilot’s initial phase. Experienced Hinomaru Kotsu drivers will sit behind the wheel as safety operators to monitor the vehicles and support reliable operations. This phased approach will precede any future introduction of fully driverless services, which will remain subject to regulatory approval. If the partnership materializes as planned, Uber will benefit by expanding its autonomous-mobility presence in Japan without directly assuming the responsibilities reserved for licensed taxi operators. The arrangement will combine Uber’s customer reach, matching technology and operational tools with Hinomaru Kotsu’s local fleet expertise and regulatory authorization. This move will also allow Uber to test robotaxi operations in Tokyo’s complex driving environment, strengthen its collaboration with Nissan and Wayve, gather valuable operational experience and prepare for a potential transition to
Aug 13, 2026 · via tradingview.com
Uber Japan has signed an operational partnership agreement with taxi company Hinomaru Kotsu to support a robotaxi pilot in Tokyo scheduled to launch in late 2026. Under the deal, Hinomaru Kotsu will manage day-to-day fleet operations for the pilot, including depot operations, vehicle cleaning, maintenance, inspections, charging and uptime. Discover B2B Marketing That Performs Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms. Uber will make the rides available through its app. The Tokyo pilot follows a memorandum of understanding signed in March 2026 by Uber, Wayve and Nissan Motor to develop a robotaxi service in Japan using Nissan Leaf vehicles equipped with Wayve’s AI Driver technology. Under Japanese regulations, passenger transport services are to be operated by licensed taxi companies. Hinomaru Kotsu will serve as the authorised operator, while Uber will provide its matching platform and operational support tools. In the initial phase, Hinomaru Kotsu drivers will be on board as safety operators behind the wheel before any transition to fully driverless services, which would be subject to regulatory approval. Uber global head of autonomous mobility & delivery Sarfraz Maredia said: “Japan’s capital features one of the most complex driving environments in the world. Hinomaru Kotsu’s extensive operational experience and rigorous safety standards, as well as Nissan’s exceptional automotive engineering and Wayve’s advanced AI technology, are vital to the success of this project.” Hinomaru Kotsu president and representative director Kazutaka Tomita said: “As we address the pressing societal challenge of driver shortages, we are committed to building a sustainable mobility service that everyone can rely on with confidence—one where people and technology complement and enhance each other.” The Tokyo announcement comes as Uber and Wayve deepen their autonomous vehicle partnerships globally. In June, Stellantis, Wayve and Uber signed a non-binding memorandum of understanding
Aug 13, 2026 · via just-auto.com
iVT International will host a panel discussion on sensor fusion and functional safety for autonomous off-highway vehicles at iVT Expo Chicago on Tuesday 19 August at 2:30pm.
The 40-minute roundtable, titled Seeing Safely: Sensor Fusion and Functional Safety for Autonomous Machines on Unstructured Terrain, will be moderated by iVT‘s editor at large, Saul Wordsworth.
Panellists include Maik Graenitz, global industry and NPI program manager for mobile automation, SICK, Anant Patel, vice president of operations and strategic projects, MOBA Mobile Automation and Jason Looman, president North America, Scanreco.
The discussion will explore how OEMs and suppliers are solving perception and safety challenges as machines move toward higher levels of autonomy in unpredictable environments such as construction sites and fields.
The session is free to attend and will take place at the iVT Live Stage.
Image: AdobeStock
Aug 13, 2026 · via ivtinternational.com
Einride, a technology company driving the shift to cost-efficient autonomous and electric freight, and DAF Trucks, a giant in truck manufacturing, have announced a joint initiative to integrate Einride’s autonomous driving system, Einride Driver, into DAF’s premium vehicle platform. The collaboration marks a significant step toward the large-scale commercialization of SAE Level 4 autonomous electric freight transportation in response to industry challenges such as driver shortages and rising operating costs. Level 4 refers to a high level of driving automation in which the vehicle can independently perform repetitive driving tasks under predefined conditions, without any need for human intervention. In this way, available drivers can focus on activities in logistic operations where their expertise and judgement add the most value. Integration of technology and electric truck platform As a first step, Einride and DAF, together with experts from the Dutch independent research institute for applied science and innovation, TNO, will collaborate on defining and testing the integration of Einride’s autonomous drive system within DAF’s “International Truck of the Year 2026” electric truck platform. This includes establishing the required interfaces to enable safe and scalable autonomous operations. With the assistance of TNO, Einride and DAF are working closely with type approval authorities to ensure the platform is compliant for future expansion onto public roads. Initial tests and validation of key interfaces will be conducted during 2026, followed in 2027 by the integration and commissioning of Einride’s autonomous driving software, with all subsequent interface validation and functional testing performed on a DAF truck. Automated driving strategy This initiative builds on PACCAR’s automated driving activities, where significant experience has already been gained through the North American Autonomous Vehicle Platform (AVP) program. In parallel, PACCAR is advancing developments within the broader autonomous trucking ecosystem in collaboration with emerging full stack technology providers. This reflects
Aug 13, 2026 · via roboticsandautomationnews.com
LAS VEGASÂ â Today, the Las Vegas Raiders announced a multi-year partnership naming Waymo their Official Ride-Hailing Partner. The collaboration marks the first time a professional football team partners with an autonomous vehicle company, setting the standard for the future door-to-door fan experience. Fans traveling to Allegiant Stadium with Waymo will have access to a dedicated Waymo pickup and drop-off area and clear wayfinding signage to create a seamless rider experience for all games, concerts, and major events. Beyond providing safe and seamless rides to and from the stadium, the partnership will provide fans with exclusive experiences that a standard ticket cannot match. Throughout the season, Waymo riders will have access to unique opportunities, including a "Kickoff Kid" program, pre-game field passes, and upgraded VIP seats. Off the field, Waymo and the Raiders are committed to multiplying their positive impact across the Las Vegas community. The two organizations will collaborate on local engagement initiatives designed to give back to the city, ensuring the partnership's benefits extend far beyond game days and support neighborhood programs year-round. "Fans come to Allegiant to experience once-in-a-lifetime moments, and getting in that mindset all begins and ends with the journey," said Sandra Douglass Morgan, President of the Las Vegas Raiders. "Partnering with Waymo reflects our drive to lead the industry in innovation and provide fans the best experience. Most importantly, it gives them a safe, reliable autonomous designated driver so they can focus entirely on enjoying the event." "We're proud to partner with the Las Vegas Raiders and Allegiant Stadium as we continue forming strong and lasting relationships across the Las Vegas community," said Suzanne Philion, Chief Marketing Officer at Waymo. "We have a proven history of helping riders safely navigate major events, and partnering with the Raiders and Allegiant Stadium allows us to create
Aug 13, 2026 · via raiders.com
Greensea IQ Launches Autonomous Hull and Infrastructure Inspection Robot Greensea IQ has introduced Bayonet Sweep, an autonomous underwater robot designed to search and inspect ship hulls and underwater structures. Bayonet Sweep provides navies, security teams, and port and harbor authorities with a rapid and effective way to inspect ship hulls without placing divers in the water. Where routine hull inspection focuses on maintenance, Bayonet Sweep is specifically built for force protection. It provides a complete data workflow for security, threat assessment, and mitigation. Operators can launch a vehicle, detect a hull anomaly, classify a threat, inform the operator, and then georeference its location—turning a slow and risky manual sweep into a repeatable, autonomous one. Sweep then produces a thorough aggregated hull record. The vehicle design is engineered as a configurable system for mission specific inspections. “We rely on ports and harbors worldwide, for our infrastructure. With all of those vessels coming in and out, we have no way of knowing what is on the underside of those ships. We’ve taken the navigation and autonomy technology that we’ve built EverClean upon, the technology that allows an autonomous vehicle to crawl along the hull, and we’ve developed a security robot that can be deployed to sweep from stem to stern reliably and with high confidence to provide an operator 100% intelligence on the hull of that ship. Through the use of this autonomy and navigation, we can plug a vital hole in our port and harbor security infrastructure,” said Ben Kinnaman, Greensea IQ’s Chief Executive Officer. Bayonet Sweep is part of the Bayonet mission suite, Greensea IQ’s line of expeditionary autonomous systems and operating software for mine countermeasures and strategic marine operations. This newest addition was evolved from the proven technology of Greensea IQ’s hull maintenance EverClean platform and tailored for security
Aug 13, 2026 · via marinetechnologynews.com
RideFlux, a developer of autonomous driving software, said on Aug. 12 that it has registered its 100th patent, further strengthening its market position through an expanding portfolio of artificial intelligence (AI)-based autonomous driving intellectual property (IP). The company said it has developed core technologies across the autonomous driving software stack, including perception and localization, decision-making and control, high-definition mapping, and remote operations. It added that it has continued to secure high-quality patents focused on AI perception and decision-making algorithms that enable autonomous vehicles to understand and respond to complex real-world driving environments. Among RideFlux's patented technologies are an AI-based LiDAR object detection technology that improves processing speed and accuracy (rated AAA under the SMART5 patent evaluation system), an explainable driving decision technology designed to enhance safety (rated A), and a road network map generation technology that accelerates real-time route planning (rated AA). The company's 100th registered patent covers an AI technology that automatically generates high-definition maps from real-time LiDAR data by identifying geometric features such as lane markings and curbs. By automating manual data labeling, the technology significantly reduces the cost and time required to build high-definition maps. RideFlux said the patent was granted after being recognized as novel and inventive beyond prior patents held by China's Baidu and U.S.-based DeepMap. As of July, RideFlux had filed 148 patent applications, of which 100 had been granted. The company said it has achieved a patent registration rate of 95.06%, compared with an overall patent grant rate of 74.6% reported by the Ministry of Intellectual Property. In terms of patent generation efficiency, RideFlux said it has filed 16.78 patent applications for every 10 billion won invested. RideFlux is currently conducting autonomous driving trials with vehicles operating without a driver in the front seat under regulatory approval. The company plans to transition to
Aug 13, 2026 · via thelec.net
Minden native serves with Navy’s first unmanned undersea vehicle group Chief Petty Officer Anthony Guzman is assigned to UUVGRU-1, based in Keyport, Washington MINDEN, La. (KSLA) - A Minden native is among the sailors and engineers working to extend the U.S. Navy’s reach through unmanned undersea vehicles on a peninsula in the Pacific Northwest. Chief Petty Officer Anthony Guzman, a 2008 graduate of Minden High School, is assigned to Unmanned Undersea Vehicle Group (UUVGRU) 1 — the Navy’s first unmanned undersea group. From Minden to the Pacific Northwest Guzman joined the Navy 17 years ago and now serves as a fire control technician. “I joined the Navy to see the world,” Guzman said. “My father was in the Army, so I was aware of some of the benefits the military offered, and the opportunity to travel was the main pull toward the Navy.” He said the values he developed growing up in Minden have carried over into his military career. “Growing up, I learned that hard work and good interpersonal skills would carry me a long way,” Guzman said. “Those have allowed me to work with others despite personal differences. It has fostered good teamwork environments.” About UUVGRU-1 Established in 2017 and based at Naval Undersea Warfare Center in Keyport, Washington, UUVGRU-1 develops, tests and operates rapidly deployable unmanned undersea vehicles to further the Navy’s underwater capabilities, according to Navy officials. The unmanned vehicles can reach environments that a human crew may not be able to safely or easily access. The group operates various types of autonomous vehicles, ranging from the small Iver series vehicles to the extra-large, 85-foot-long diesel-electric Orca vehicle. Sailors assigned to UUVGRU-1 can quickly modify and adapt the vehicles to fit assigned tasks, in keeping with the command’s motto to “extend the reach” of the Navy’s
Aug 12, 2026 · via ksla.com
Baidu, China's dominant search engine company, has expanded into artificial intelligence, autonomous driving, and cloud services since its founding in Beijing in 2000. Baidu is a Chinese technology company best known for operating China's dominant internet search engine, often described as the Google $GOOGL of China. Headquartered in Beijing, the company was founded in 2000 by Robin Li and Eric Xu. Li, who had previously worked on search technology at Infoseek in the U.S., developed a key algorithm for ranking web pages before returning to China to co-found Baidu. The company's core product is its search engine, which serves hundreds of millions of users across China and holds the largest share of the Chinese-language search market. Because Google operates under restrictions in China, Baidu fills the role of default search provider for most Chinese internet users. Beyond search, Baidu has built an ecosystem of services including online maps, cloud storage, an app store, and an AI-powered voice assistant called DuerOS. Baidu has invested heavily in artificial intelligence and autonomous driving. Its Apollo platform is one of China's most prominent self-driving vehicle projects, providing open-source software and hardware frameworks to automakers and technology partners. The company has positioned AI as central to its long-term strategy, applying machine learning across its search, advertising, and cloud businesses. The company earns the majority of its revenue from online advertising, which is served across its search platform and affiliated content networks. It is listed on the Nasdaq $NDAQ Stock Market under the ticker BAIDU (BIDU) and is also listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, giving it access to both international and mainland-adjacent investors. Baidu is one of the companies the U.S. Department of Defense has added to its list of Chinese military companies, a designation that bars the Defense Department from entering into direct
Aug 12, 2026 · via qz.com
Tesla FSD Hurdles in China & Secrecy in Europe Support CleanTechnica's work through a Substack subscription, on Patreon, or on Stripe. Help us produce all of the high-quality, original content we publish week after week despite the challenges of content-scraping AI, antisocial media, inflation, and other hurdles. Tesla Full Self Driving (FSD) is still not at the unsupervised level in the United States. If your car is driving itself with FSD, you are supposed to be paying attention the whole time and ready to intervene. However, many FSD users love the capability and swear by it. I have a friend who just drove from Florida to Michigan and used FSD 100% of the time. So, naturally, Tesla has been keen to roll the feature out in other major markets, such as China and Europe. It’s been interesting watching discussions around its approval and release in those places, and we’ve got some updates this week. Tesla FSD in China … or Not? An article in the South China Morning Post puts it right in the title: “Tesla faces uphill battle for FSD entry as China rewrites self-driving car rules: analysts.” Like in the US, China is getting quite strict when it comes to vehicle data management. With modern connected cars and now self-driving cars — including all of the sensors collecting data everywhere they go — governments are coming to the conclusion there are various national security concerns to take very seriously. Of course, Tesla is a US company, even if half of its business is in China and Elon Musk is always excessively positive about the Chinese government and the people of China. “The likelihood that US electric vehicle (EV) giant Tesla will obtain Beijing’s approval for higher-level autonomous driving remains a distant prospect, according to analysts,” the article summarizes.
Aug 12, 2026 · via cleantechnica.com
Company streamlines organization, expands AI-enabled operations and strengthens commercial execution Recent Operating Highlights: - Streamlined the organization and reduced management layers as part of a broader initiative to lower operating costs, increase accountability, and improve execution. - Expanded the use of AI-assisted tools across engineering and business operations to automate repeatable work, accelerate workflows, and increase productivity. - Implemented changes to sales leadership and commercial processes, increasing emphasis on opportunity qualification, pipeline accountability, and customers aligned with the DriveMod Tugger. - Continued aligning product development with the requirements of larger industrial customers, including interoperability, enterprise deployment capabilities, and greater customer control over autonomous vehicle workflows. MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif., Aug. 12, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Cyngn (NASDAQ: CYN) today announced financial results for its second quarter ended June 30, 2026 and outlined a series of organizational and commercial initiatives designed to improve operating efficiency, sharpen execution, and position the company for scalable growth. During the quarter, Cyngn continued to see interest in its autonomous vehicle solutions; however, the pace of commercial execution was delayed relative to the Company's expectations. In response, Cyngn made changes to sales leadership and implemented a more disciplined commercial process focused on opportunity qualification, pipeline accountability, sales execution, and customers and applications that closely align with the capabilities and value proposition of the DriveMod Autonomous Tugger. Cyngn also took steps to reduce its operating cost structure and simplify the organization. The Company consolidated responsibilities, reduced management layers, and realigned resources around its highest-priority product, customer, and commercial initiatives. These actions are intended to create a leaner organization with greater accountability, faster decision-making, and a higher proportion of resources directly focused on product development, customer deployments, and revenue generation. These initiatives are consistent with a broader shift taking place across the technology sector as companies increasingly redesign their organizations
Aug 12, 2026 · via prnewswire.com
China is the country most prepared for self-driving cars, according to a new report. The new study by the B2B car company eCarsTrade analyzed robotaxi deployment, road infrastructure, legal frameworks, and public sentiment across 15 countries to see which nations are actually putting driverless vehicles on the road. Driven by massive robotaxi deployment, nearuniversal 5G coverage, and advanced regulations that allow fully driverless commercial service, China ranks first. The United States follows, with Waymo completing about 500,000 paid rides weekly. New Zealand and Canada lag behind, with limited testing and less developed legal frameworks. The study looked at four key areas, reflecting the self-driving environment. Adoption measured how many robotaxis are actually carrying paying passengers today, not just announcements or pilot programs. Infrastructure assessed road quality, 5G coverage and EV charging networks. Legal frameworks captured whether countries have passed laws allowing commercial driverless operations, and public sentiment was drawn from surveys and Reddit analysis across 76 threads. Driver‐assist systems like Tesla Autopilot were excluded because they still require a human driver behind the wheel. China - Robotaxi status: Yes for Apollo Go, Pony.ai, WeRide - Safety driver: Not used for Apollo Go - Road quality: 4.8 out of 7 - 5G coverage: 96 percent - Electric vehicle chargers: 3 million+ - Legal category: Advanced China is the world leader in self‐driving readiness, with more than 17 million robotaxi rides recorded. Apollo Go operates fully driverless vehicles without anyone behind the steering wheel, and 5G covers 96 percent of the population, giving autonomous vehicles the low‐latency connections they need. Road quality is average, scoring 4.8 out of 7, but the sheer scale of deployment outweighs infrastructure limits. Plus, China has more than 3 million EV chargers, making it easier for electric robotaxi fleets to operate. United States The United States ranks
Aug 12, 2026 · via roboticsandautomationnews.com
News Stephanie Gil, Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS), researches how robots, drones, autonomous vehicles, and other physical agents can make decisions, coordinate with one another, and act effectively in complex real-world environments. Much of her recent work focuses on how advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning can help autonomous systems move from controlled settings into the physical world. The following Q&A was developed from interviews with Gil. It has been edited for clarity, length, and context. Q: Why is it difficult to get autonomous systems, like autonomous vehicles, to work well in real-world environments? A: One of the biggest barriers is uncertainty. When you put robots or autonomous systems into the real world, they do not have perfect information. There may be parts of the environment that are simply unknown. The data they sense directly may be incomplete. The data they receive from another robot or from the network may not be trustworthy. But even with all of that uncertainty, the system still needs to make decisions that are helpful and useful. If it is a drone working with a search and rescue team, it needs to decide where to go next. If it is an autonomous rideshare vehicle, it needs to coordinate with other vehicles and respond to requests around a city. If it is working with marine biologists, it needs to be in the right place at the right time to collect useful data. That question — how do you make good decisions under uncertainty — is central to a lot of the work in my group. Q: This problem has been partly solved, right? Autonomous vehicles have been deployed for ridesharing in major cities. A: If you think about autonomous rideshare vehicles as
Aug 12, 2026 · via seas.harvard.edu
HII and MetalCraft Marine successfully complete DIU prototype testing for the Watcher, an autonomous USV powered by HII’s Odyssey control system. HII press release HII announced that the U.S. Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) has officially recognized the successful completion of the company’s Production-Ready, Inexpensive, Maritime Expeditionary (PRIME) prototype project, featuring the Watcher small Unmanned Surface Vessel (sUSV), which is based on HII’s ROMULUS-25 Unmanned Surface Vessel and powered by HII’s Odyssey Autonomous Control System (ACS). The DIU recognition follows HII’s delivery and successful sea testing of two autonomous Watcher ROMULUS-25 vessels in December 2025 under a DIU contract to develop smaller-form-factor autonomous surface vessels for the U.S. Marine Corps. Developed in partnership with MetalCraft Marine, the Watcher sUSV successfully met the program’s technical objectives and is now positioned for a potential transition to production. HII’s Odyssey ACS modular open systems architecture (MOSA) enables intelligent navigation, mission planning, collaborative behaviors, and multi-domain autonomous operations while allowing operators to rapidly integrate autonomy across multiple vehicle types and increasingly complex missions in contested environments. Its service-based design enables seamless integration with other mission-enabling technologies, enhancing mission effectiveness through AI-enabled contact recognition, identification, and edge-based decision-making. In a memorandum to HII, DIU stated: “The HII Watcher sUSV has successfully demonstrated its appropriateness to address the Department of the Navy’s operational need for sUSV interceptors, capable of autonomously transiting hundreds of miles through contested waterspace, loitering in an assigned operating area while monitoring for maritime surface threats, and then sprinting to interdict a noncooperative, maneuvering vessel.” The memorandum further concluded that HII achieved the prototype’s key technical goals and success metrics, supporting a potential transition to production under Other Transaction Authority (OTA) prototype agreements. “This milestone is another example of HII’s strategy to rapidly transition innovative technologies from concept to operational capability,” said Duane Fotheringham,
Aug 12, 2026 · via navalnews.com
JavaScript is disabled in your browser.
Please enable JavaScript to proceed.
A required part of this site couldn’t load. This may be due to a browser extension, network issues, or browser settings. Please check your connection, disable any ad blockers, or try using a different browser.
Aug 12, 2026 · via sfchronicle.com
Arbe Robotics Expands AI Radar Push as It Targets Defense, Drones and Robotaxis Arbe Robotics ARBE is expanding commercialization of its ultra-high-resolution radar technology beyond automotive applications, targeting physical AI, autonomous vehicles, defense, security, drones and marine markets, President and Co-Founder Kobi Marenko said during an Equity Sustainability presentation. Marenko said the company’s radar systems are designed to provide environmental perception in weather and lighting conditions that can limit cameras, including rain, fog, snow and nighttime conditions. He said radar also provides velocity information and can detect objects at long range, capabilities he described as important for autonomous movement by vehicles, robots and drones. “Physical AI needs reliable real-world perception,” Marenko said. “We are the sensor for that that can work in any weather, any lighting conditions.” Technology and Business Model Arbe produces radar semiconductor chipsets, including radio-frequency transmitter and receiver components and a proprietary processor. Marenko said the company’s processor can handle substantially more radar channels and points than competing systems, creating a dense point cloud that can be combined with camera data and AI software. For automotive customers, Arbe sells chipsets to Tier 1 suppliers, including Magna in Western markets and HiRain in China. For non-automotive applications, the company is manufacturing complete radar units itself. Marenko said the decision reflected slower-than-expected timing for automotive adoption and the limited interest of Tier 1 suppliers in lower-volume non-automotive programs. “The automotive will take longer than expected, and in order to survive, we must produce the radar by ourselves,” Marenko said. He added that Tier 1 suppliers typically work at volumes in the millions, while certain defense and industrial opportunities may involve thousands or tens of thousands of units. Arbe began shipping full radar systems from its own production line by the end of the second quarter, according to Marenko. He
Aug 12, 2026 · via es.tradingview.com