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Robot model

Blue Water autonomous ship (Liberty Class)

Blue Water Autonomy, an early-stage startup based in Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, is building toward a full-sized long-range autonomous ship and is recorded in the maritime form factor at research, pre-deploy maturity, completing the cohort's maturity ladder at its bottom rung. It was founded in 2024 by chief executive Rylan Hamilton, a former US Navy surface warfare officer and early Amazon Robotics leader who co-founded 6 River Systems, alongside Scott Miller, an early iRobot engineer, and Navy veteran Austin Gray, and has raised about $64 million, a $14 million seed in April 2025 plus a $50 million Series A led by GV, and signed a production agreement with Conrad Shipyard in Louisiana in September 2025. Its verified-versus-claimed profile is the load-bearing point: verified are the company's existence, its $64 million in funding, the GV-led Series A, the Conrad production deal, and a credentialed team, while its roughly 190-foot Liberty-class autonomous ship designed to cross the Pacific and operate for months, and a 2026 first deployment, are claimed and unproven, with no fielded vessel and no DARPA or Navy program-of-record contract as of mid-2026, correctly placing it at research and pre-deploy. Several corrections to common priors apply: it was founded in 2024 rather than 2023, with 2023 a possible stealth-inception; its vessel is described by the company at about 190 feet rather than 100 to 150 feet, the framing having grown; the often-cited Sea Machines founder link could not be confirmed, with the verified pedigree being Navy, Amazon Robotics, and iRobot; and the 2026 first deployment is a forward claim rather than a fielded result.

Blue Water autonomous ship (Liberty Class) is a maritime robot built by Blue Water Autonomy.

Machine-readable surfaces

Form factor
maritime
Maturity stage
research
Lifecycle
active
Deployments
0
ID
e5c70808-b691-4050-b849-879a13bf9110

Specs

notes
[object Object],[object Object],[object Object],[object Object]
specs
Ambition: a full-sized long-range autonomous ship - ~190ft 'Liberty Class', designed to cross the Pacific + operate for months. Conrad Shipyard (Louisiana) production agreement (Sept 2025). First-deployment target 2026 (CLAIMED, not fielded). Founded 2024, Boston/Cambridge MA; founders Rylan Hamilton (CEO, ex-US Navy / Amazon Robotics / 6 River Systems), Scott Miller (ex-iRobot), Austin Gray (Navy veteran). $14M seed (Apr 2025) + $50M Series A (GV-led) = $64M total.
formFactor
maritime (autonomous SURFACE vessel / full-size long-range autonomous ship; PRE-DEPLOY)

Supply chain

No verified supply relationships on file. Supply-chain coverage is being added across the registry; check back as the seed populates this model’s suppliers.

Suppliers appear here when verified with at least two strong sources (maker-official / IR / regulatory / standards-body / verified tier-2). Sources are append-only; corrections add new sources rather than rewrite history.

Sources (5)

  1. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/blue-water-autonomy-announces-50-million-series-a-led-by-gv-to-strengthen-us-maritime-power-with-autonomous-unmanned-ships-302538277.html
  2. https://breakingdefense.com/2025/09/maritime-tech-startup-blue-water-autonomy-signs-deal-with-conrad-shipyard-for-usv-production/
  3. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/04/11/business/blue-water-autonomy-captainless-ships/
  4. https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/blue-water-autonomy-introduces-liberty-class-a-190-foot-autonomous-ship-for-the-us-navy-302684880.html
  5. https://www.damen.com/insights-center/news/damen-and-blue-water-announce-agreement-for-autonomous-ship-for-the-us-navy

Common questions

What is Blue Water autonomous ship (Liberty Class)?
Blue Water Autonomy, an early-stage startup based in Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts, is building toward a full-sized long-range autonomous ship and is recorded in the maritime form factor at research, pre-deploy maturity, completing the cohort's maturity ladder at its bottom rung. It was founded in 2024 by chief executive Rylan Hamilton, a former US Navy surface warfare officer and early Amazon Robotics leader who co-founded 6 River Systems, alongside Scott Miller, an early iRobot engineer, and Navy veteran Austin Gray, and has raised about $64 million, a $14 million seed in April 2025 plus a $50 million Series A led by GV, and signed a production agreement with Conrad Shipyard in Louisiana in September 2025. Its verified-versus-claimed profile is the load-bearing point: verified are the company's existence, its $64 million in funding, the GV-led Series A, the Conrad production deal, and a credentialed team, while its roughly 190-foot Liberty-class autonomous ship designed to cross the Pacific and operate for months, and a 2026 first deployment, are claimed and unproven, with no fielded vessel and no DARPA or Navy program-of-record contract as of mid-2026, correctly placing it at research and pre-deploy. Several corrections to common priors apply: it was founded in 2024 rather than 2023, with 2023 a possible stealth-inception; its vessel is described by the company at about 190 feet rather than 100 to 150 feet, the framing having grown; the often-cited Sea Machines founder link could not be confirmed, with the verified pedigree being Navy, Amazon Robotics, and iRobot; and the 2026 first deployment is a forward claim rather than a fielded result.
Who makes Blue Water autonomous ship (Liberty Class)?
Blue Water autonomous ship (Liberty Class) is made by Blue Water Autonomy, based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, founded in 2024.
Where is Blue Water autonomous ship (Liberty Class) deployed?
No verified deployments of Blue Water autonomous ship (Liberty Class) are currently on the DEPLOY registry. DEPLOY records deployments only when verified at a named site with a primary source; absence may reflect pre-deployment, research, or manufacturer-internal use.
What is Blue Water autonomous ship (Liberty Class)'s maturity stage?
Blue Water autonomous ship (Liberty Class) is at the research stage on the DEPLOY maturity ladder (research, prototype, pilot, commercial, production). Research stage means active development without commercial deployments on file.

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