Aquabotix Gets U.S. Navy Funding to Support UXO Detection Missions

UUV Aquabotix’s wholly-owned subsidiary Aquabotix Technology Corporation has been granted an award of USD 78,000 in funding from the United States Navy’s Naval Undersea Warfare Center (NUWC) to deliver a solution geared towards unexploded ordnance missions for the U.S. Navy.

After delivery, the solution will be incorporated into Aquabotix’s SwarmDiver or other unmanned underwater vehicles manufactured by Aquabotix, to support unexploded ordnance detection missions by the Navy and allied forces.

A Texas A&M University study estimated there are over 13.6 million kilograms of ordnance just in the Gulf of Mexico alone. To avoid accidental detonation of these explosives, mission support is required to detect, locate, and neutralize them.

This initial funding from the Navy supports continued SwarmDiver product development that is tailored to provide a solution for a sizable and currently otherwise unaddressed governmental need, the company said.

Aquabotix’s chief executive officer, Whitney Million, said, “We are grateful to the United States Navy for this initial order. Governmental procurement processes can take extended periods of time, yet NUWC obligated the funds within one month after we started our discussions about the issue with them. Aquabotix’s products are the platform for the solution to this immediate military need, and we look forward to this first phase of our co-operation with the Navy, and to fully productising our solution in a range of versions tailored for different uses.”