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spanning navigation, seafloor mapping, sonar, and autonomous systems, including the Sounder USV and HUGIN AUV family for the defense and commercial segments. Kongsberg has developed much of its defense related technology with partners in the Norwegian defense and industrial space, and the acquisition of Hydroid, the U.S. manufacturer of shallow-to-medium depth REMUS AUVs (sold to HII in 2020). July 2026 saw three major acquisitions consolidating unmanned maritime systems players:Canada’s Kraken Robotics ($615 million) acquired the UK's Covelya Group, including Sonardyne, EIVA, Forcys, Wavefront
Kraken Appoints COO, Marketing Director
business that was sold to Oceaneering in 2016.Kraken also announced that Erica Kierstead has joined as Director of Global Marketing. Based in Boston, Erica spent 2 years at MITRE in marketing and communications most recently focused on the AI and Bluetech sectors, and prior to that spent 9 years at Hydroid and then HII in marketing. With over 10 years of experience in ocean technology and the defense industries, Erica is a welcome addition to lead Kraken’s marketing efforts.
Peter A. Hunter Replaces Larry Puddister on Kraken Robotics' Board
founder, Chairman, and Managing Partner of Artemis Capital Partners, L.P., a Boston-based specialized private equity firm focused on differentiated industrial technology manufacturers. Hunter also brings subsea technology expertise to Kraken’s Board, having served 3 years as the Chairman of Hydroid, LLC, a company specializing in unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs) with its REMUS UUV brand. Hunter was Chairman of Hydroid from its early days to its eventual acquisition by Kongsberg Maritime, AS, in 2008. Hydroid was subsequently acquired from Kongsberg in 2020 by Huntington Ingalls, the
AUV Extravaganza: Tech Advances in Autonomous Underwater Vehicles
, says Reynisson. “Put the vehicle out in the harbour, send it out for 10-12 days to do a mission, have it pop up occasionally to say what it’s doing. There’s a lot more trust in autonomous and robustness in vehicle to do what it needs to do.HII’s REMUS 300. Photo courtesy HIIHydroid’s Remus 300In the shallower water domain, but targeting similar modularity, flexibility and intelligence is HII’s REMUS 300. First unveiled by Hydroid in 2020 (before its acquisition by HII), with a prototype for the U.S. Navy, HII’s REMUS 300 is being delivered to customers, mostly
Armach Robotics Set to Take the Pole Position on Ship Hull Maintenance, Intelligence
doing the hull robotics segment at Greensea and developing this technology, I brought James into Greensea to lead that technical development. When I founded Armach, James moved over to Armach as VP of Engineering.We brought in Alex Kern as Director of Sales and Marketing following a solid career at Hydroid; he knows how to sell internationally and brings a lot of enthusiasm and energy. Karl Lander is the senior program manager (after a stint) at Greensea for five years. He was the program manager that led the hull navigation and technology development. He was interfaced ONR. He is a retired coast
Kraken Wins Robotics as a Service (RaaS) Contract from Government of Canada
maintain an advanced sonar imaging and data storage capability for all three coasts, and to deploy this capability to national and international areas of interest. Under the contract, Kraken will deploy its KATFISH towed SAS sonar system and will integrate a Kraken Light Weight SAS (LW-SAS) onboard a Hydroid REMUS 100 Autonomous Underwater Vehicle (AUV) owned by FDU-A. This contract will be completed by March 31, 2022
Horton Joins Greensea
modules that can plug into other systems. Greensea’s really far down this path. To see a small company that had that vision, and committed themselves to it, not just saying so because it’s what someone wants to hear, I thought that was really impressive.”Horton joins Greensea from Hydroid where he spent the last seven years working on the REMUS AUVs. His strong knowledge of the industry and marine robotics systems made him an excellent candidate for his new position at Greensea. Greg has an electrical engineering degree from the University of Rhode Island and a history in robotic
Subsea Defense: Navy Deepens Commitment to Underwater Vehicles
;They may take on missions done by manned platforms today, but are intended to augment, not replace, manned platforms.”SmallThe Navy uses small UUVs, which are man-portable or launched from a ship, helicopter or submarine, for battlespace awareness and underwater reconnaissance, such as the HII Hydroid Mk18 Mod 1 Swordfish or the L3 Harris Iver.The Navy is currently partnered with the Defense Innovation Unit (DIU) for the Next Generation Small-Class UUV (SUUV) program to replace the MK18 Mod 1. In 2019, DIU awarded prototype Other Transaction Agreements (OTAs) to both L3Harris for its Iver4
HII Acquires Autonomy Business from Spatial Integrated Systems
Maritime Autonomy Architecture standards and integrate proven obstacle avoidance and International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea-compliant behaviors.The acquisition of SIS’s autonomy business follows other recent unmanned systems activity by HII, including the acquisition of Hydroid, a strategic alliance with Kongsberg Maritime, an equity investment in Sea Machines, and the groundbreaking on a new HII Unmanned Systems Center of Excellence in Hampton, Virginia.The transaction closed on Dec. 31, 2020 and approximately 50 employees from SIS, primarily located in Virginia Beach
August 2026
