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But the Navy's problems go beyond putting ships into service: its autonomous naval drone acquisition unit has also been rocked by the firing of its top admiral, and a senior Pentagon official expressed concerns about the program...
A U.S. naval test off the coast of California last month, designed to showcase the Pentagon's best autonomous drone ships, came to an abrupt halt. It all happened when one ship stalled and another rammed into the starboard side of the first.
The previously unreported episode, which involved two ships built by U.S. defense technology rivals Saronic and BlackSea Technologies, is one of a series of recent setbacks in the Pentagon's effort to build a fleet of autonomous ships, according to a dozen people familiar with the program.
Weeks ago, during a separate Navy test, the captain of a support boat jumped into the water after another BlackSea autonomous vessel it was towing suddenly accelerated, capsizing the support boat. The captain was rescued and refused medical attention. The incident, which was first reported by Defense Scoop., opens a new tab.
Both incidents stemmed from a combination of software failures and human error, including interruptions in communication between embedded systems and external autonomous software, according to a person with direct knowledge of the matter.
Marina, Saronikos and BlackSea declined to comment on the incidents.
American military leaders, seeing the extraordinary impact of naval drones in the Ukraine war, have repeatedly said they need autonomous air and naval drone groups to deter a potential Chinese advance through the Taiwan Strait. Taiwan itself has begun purchasing its own naval drones.
The drones being developed in Ukraine, which often look like unmanned speedboats and are capable of carrying weapons, explosives and surveillance equipment, are mostly remote-controlled and cost close to $250,000, making them optimal for the suicide missions that have effectively neutralized Russia's Black Sea Fleet.
Meanwhile, the US is aiming to build an autonomous naval fleet that can move in groups and without human command, an ambitious mission but with a high cost; up to several million dollars per speedboat.
The recent test failures highlight the challenges the Navy faces in deploying new technologies, said Bryan Clark, an autonomous warfare expert at the Hudson Institute.
But the Navy's problems go beyond putting ships into service: its autonomous naval drone acquisition unit has also been rocked by the firing of its top admiral, and a senior Pentagon official expressed concerns about the program in a candid meeting with Navy leaders last month, Reuters revealed.
Since the latest incident, the Pentagon's Defense Innovation Unit (DIU), which had purchased technology for the tests, has indefinitely suspended a contract worth about $20 million with L3Harris (LHX.N).
The Pentagon did not respond to questions about the cause of the accidents or the termination of the L3Harris contract, which has not been previously reported.
A Pentagon spokesman said it conducted drone tests as part of a "competitive and iterative approach, between operators and industry."
"L3Harris stands behind the security, integrity and capability of our autonomy command and control product," said Toby Magsig, who oversees L3Harris' autonomous software products.
Drone takeoff at sea
To accelerate its drone efforts, the Pentagon launched the $1 billion Replicator program in 2023, through which branches such as the U.S. Navy and the IDF planned to buy thousands of air and sea drones, along with the software to control them. The first systems from the program are expected to be announced this month.
The Navy has committed at least $160 million to BlackSea, which is producing dozens of its Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft ships per month, according to procurement data.
Saronic, which was recently valued at $4 billion in a funding round backed by Andreessen Horowitz and 8VC, makes the competing Corsair naval drone but has yet to announce a major contract. Federal procurement records show the company has generated at least $20 million from prototype deals.
“These systems will play a critical role in the future of naval warfare by extending the reach of the fleet, improving situational awareness and increasing combat effectiveness,” said Acting Chief of Naval Operations Jim Kilby during a visit to the BlackSea facility in June.
Riots in the Navy
Since returning to office, President Donald Trump has made deploying a slew of drones a top military priority. Trump's "Big and Beautiful" bill, passed last month, included nearly $5 billion for autonomous naval systems.
But, so far, the Navy's approach has been met with skepticism from the new administration.
In April, the Navy's main drone ship procurement unit, known as the Program Executive Office for Small and Unmanned Combatants (PEO USC), hailed a demonstration of the software used to control the BlackSea ships as a success, calling it "a major step forward in advancing maritime autonomy."
In response, Colin Carrol, then chief of staff to Deputy Secretary of Defense Steven Feinberg, said the program was duplicating other efforts within the Pentagon. “I have a feeling there are changes in the future of this program,” he replied. Carrol, who is no longer with the Pentagon, declined to comment further.
PEO USC recently came under suspicion, according to four people familiar with the matter, due to a series of setbacks and could be restructured or shut down.
This comes two months after the Navy said it had dismissed the unit's leader, Rear Admiral Kevin Smith, due to a loss of confidence in his leadership after the Naval Inspector General upheld a complaint against him. Reuters was unable to reach Smith.
During a meeting last month, Feinberg asked Navy officials about autonomous ship capabilities, including those being made available by PEO USC, according to three people briefed on the meeting. Feinberg was unimpressed with some of the capabilities the Navy was acquiring and questioned whether they were cost-effective, the sources said.
A Pentagon spokesman said "we will not comment on private internal meetings" and directed questions about PEO USC to the Navy.
The Navy declined to comment on the meeting. Spokesman Timothy Hawkins said that PEO USC remains true to its mission, including its role as the purchasing authority for the maintenance and modernization of unmanned naval systems.
The turmoil comes as shipbuilders and software providers are scrambling to secure even larger autonomous maritime projects, such as unmanned submarines and ships that carry cargo.
Last week, PEO USC began accepting proposals for the Modular Surface Attack Ship, to purchase medium and large vessels capable of carrying containers, surveillance equipment, and conducting attacks.
TX Hammes, an autonomous weapons expert and fellow at the Atlantic Council, said the Navy is in uncharted waters, trying to revisit decades of tradition at high speed.
"You have a system that is used to building big things, taking years to make a decision, and now suddenly you are asking them to act quickly," he said. /Adapted from Reuters/
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