Rylan Hamilton, Scott Miller, & Austin Gray
Founded in 2024 by former leaders from Amazon Robotics, iRobot, and the U.S. Navy, Blue Water Autonomy is turning unmanned ships into reality.
The team recognized a unique opportunity to combine cutting-edge advances in AI and robotics with the Navy’s growing demand for autonomous systems. Blue Water’s vessels are designed from the ground up to integrate hardware, software, and AI into a single platform, enabling it to operate independently for months at sea and perform a wide range of missions.
In February 2026, the team introduced their first vessel, the Liberty Class, a 190-FT autonomous ship. In partnership with Damen, Blue Water is delivering the next generation of naval capability with autonomous ships that are not only advanced, but reliable and producible. The first Liberty Class ship is expected to be completed by the end of this year.
“We’re building autonomous ships to modernize America’s fleet by combining software-defined technology with domestic shipyard expertise and designing vessels around autonomy from the start.”
Co-Founder and CEO, Blue Water Autonomy
Rylan Hamilton
Blue Water Autonomy’s Liberty Class, a 190-FT autonomous vessel designed for endurance and optimized for mission flexibility.
