Lockheed Martin and Saildrone: Accelerating Maritime Readiness at Scale
With a $50 million investment in Saildrone, Lockheed Martin is forging a strategic collaboration to rapidly scale unmanned maritime defense capability.
Together, the companies will pair Saildrone’s proven unmanned surface vessel (USV) platforms with Lockheed Martin’s combat-tested defense tech and mission integration expertise —delivering powerful, defense-ready USVs to the fleet faster.
Anticipating Needs. Accelerating Capability.
Saildrone’s USVs are built for endurance and autonomy. Their long-established track record includes more than a decade operating in remote, open-ocean environments, with millions of nautical miles logged. First deployed by the U.S. Navy in 2021, they are currently operational today, working around the clock, 365-days alongside American Sailors in combat theaters across the globe.
Recently, after months-long use of Saildrone’s USVs, more than 130,000 nautical miles over 2,700 cumulative mission days were logged with 116,000 unique contacts detected.
Starting with the JAGM Quad Launcher on Saildrone’s Surveyor platform, Lockheed Martin is integrating its defense payloads to transform commercial-grade autonomy into a multi-mission maritime solution capable of fleet defense, undersea surveillance, reconnaissance and strike.
Speed, Scale and Readiness
The partnership is designed to accelerate the Navy’s unmanned vision at scale. The teams will begin work immediately, integrating the JAGM Quad Launcher onto the Saildrone Surveyor and expanding to additional Lockheed Martin payloads across multiple platforms.
Lockheed Martin’s investment helps mitigate risk on the path to Distributed Maritime Operations and supports the Navy’s drive for affordable mass by 2027. The open-architecture approach and secure command-and-control framework ensure rapid, reliable integration while preserving security and interoperability.
By anticipating needs before they become requirements, this forward-looking approach reinforces Lockheed Martin’s commitment to turning innovation into decisive advantage for the United States and its allies.
What’s Next
Lockheed Martin and Saildrone plan to deliver proof-of-concept integrations and live fire demonstrations in 2026. Larger Saildrone vehicles are already in development to support significantly larger payloads and capabilities to include Lockheed Martin’s Mk70 VLS launcher and thin line towed arrays.
The strategic relationship brings together the best of commercial and defense technologies to deliver unparalleled naval solutions at speed and scale.