# Ulysses: maritime robotics company

Canonical ID: `42859d17-c1f6-48b2-9fb6-6c5a46d2a7b1`

## Key facts

- **Funding:** [$46M ($38M Series A + $8M seed, Apr 2026)](/investors.md) ([see investors](/investors.md))
- **Founded:** 2023 (Dublin)
- **HQ:** San Francisco, CA, USA
- **Lead Investor:** Andreessen Horowitz (American Dynamism)
- **Category:** Maritime (surface + subsea autonomous vehicles)
- **CEO:** [Akhil Voorakkara](/people/akhil-voorakkara.md)
- **Co-founders:** [Akhil Voorakkara](/people/akhil-voorakkara.md), [Will O'Brien](/people/will-obrien.md), [Jamie Wedderburn](/people/jamie-wedderburn.md), [Colm O'Brien](/people/colm-obrien.md)
- **Series A Investors:** Andreessen Horowitz (lead), [Booz Allen Ventures](/investors/booz-allen-ventures.md), [Harpoon Ventures](/investors/harpoon-ventures.md)
- **Seed Investors:** [Pebblebed](/investors/pebblebed.md) (lead), [Genius Ventures](/investors/genius-ventures.md), [Lowercarbon Capital](/investors/lowercarbon-capital.md), [Superorganism](/investors/superorganism.md), [ReGen Ventures](/investors/regen-ventures.md)
- **Revenue:** Over USD 5M in customer revenue (company-reported, Apr 2026)
- **Employees:** 20 (as of Apr 2026)
- **Key Customers:** US Navy, Australian government, Great Barrier Reef Foundation, Nature Conservancy, Virginia Institute of Marine Science, Mote Marine Laboratory, Florida Dept of Environmental Protection
- **Products:** Mako (AUV), Leviathan (USV mothership), Kraken (launch & recovery system)
- **Mako Unit Cost:** Approximately USD 50,000 per AUV
- **Leviathan Endurance:** 6+ months at sea, 1,200 nm range, 20-knot speed, carries up to 4 Makos
- **Origin:** Founded 2023 in Dublin, Ireland; HQ in San Francisco
- **Hero image candidate:** https://cdn.sanity.io/images/se2buomd/production/eb5fb4629d70411ad9ee875e5ab8ad5fee72b913-1170x872.webp (source: official press kit theoceancompany.com)

- **Slug:** ulysses
- **Status:** active
- **Founded:** 2023
- **HQ:** San Francisco, CA, USA
- **Funding total (USD):** 46000000
- **Category:** [Maritime](/maritime)

## Models

- [Ulysses Autonomous Maritime Fleet](/models/ulysses-auv-usv-fleet.md) (maritime) (id: `5e3399a6-d8e7-4c47-b1e2-100f95b090cd`)

## Current leadership (5)

- [Akhil Voorakkara](/people/akhil-voorakkara.md) Co-Founder & CEO (secondary-verified)
- [Akhil Voorakkara](/people/akhil-voorakkara.md) Co-Founder (secondary-verified)
- [Will O'Brien](/people/will-obrien.md) Co-Founder & President (secondary-verified)
- [Jamie Wedderburn](/people/jamie-wedderburn.md) Co-Founder (secondary-verified)
- [Colm O'Brien](/people/colm-obrien.md) Co-Founder (secondary-verified)

## Partnerships (1)

- [Ulysses x Booz Allen Hamilton maritime autonomy investment](/partnerships/ulysses-x-booz-allen-hamilton-maritime-autonomy-investment.md) with Booz Allen Ventures _investment_

## Supplies to

_No verified supply relationships on file. Supply-chain coverage is being added across the registry; check back as the seed populates this company's outbound edges._

_Outbound supply edges. Each appears when verified with at least two strong sources. Sources are append-only; corrections add new sources rather than rewrite history._

## Common questions

### What is Ulysses?

Ulysses ("The Ocean Company") builds networked fleets of low-cost autonomous surface and underwater vehicles for persistent operation in harsh maritime environments. The San Francisco-based company, founded in 2023, combines cost-efficient hardware with advanced onboard computers for next-generation autonomy across defense (mine countermeasures, ISR), commercial (offshore survey, cable laying, wind-farm inspection), and environmental (seagrass restoration) missions. Ulysses has field-tested five generations of underwater vehicle prototypes and generated over USD 5 million in customer revenue across government, commercial, and scientific partners including the [US Navy](https://www.navy.mil), the Great Barrier Reef Foundation, and the Nature Conservancy

### What does Ulysses make?

Ulysses has 1 robot model on the DEPLOY registry: Ulysses Autonomous Maritime Fleet (Ulysses builds physical robots).

### Who competes with Ulysses?

On the DEPLOY registry, peer companies to Ulysses building in the same form factors include Interactive Robotics and Vision Laboratory (IRV Lab), Shihang Intelligent.

### Where is Ulysses headquartered?

Ulysses is headquartered in San Francisco, CA, USA.

### How much funding has Ulysses raised?

Ulysses has raised approximately $46M in disclosed funding on record in the DEPLOY registry.

### Where does Ulysses operate robots?

Ulysses is a robot manufacturer and does not directly operate deployments on the DEPLOY registry. Its products are deployed by customer operators; see the company page for the verified deployment record.

### When was Ulysses founded?

Ulysses was founded in 2023.


## Sources (2)

1. https://www.siliconrepublic.com/start-ups/irish-founded-ulysses-raises-46m-in-rounds-that-include-andereesen-horowitz
2. https://www.linkedin.com/posts/tommquigley_will-obrien-and-akhil-v-sailed-into-my-activity-7450667828610830336-nYyo

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