In recent times, many navies, just like the US Navy, have revealed plans to accelerate the build and integration of USVs as a tactical advantage. Amid the many benefits of USVs over crewed vessels, for the United States government this is a question of timing and budget. Notwithstanding the lengthy lead times, conventional crewed vessels are simply too expensive to build and operate under current conditions. The cost of Ford-class aircraft carrier is $13 billion; an Arleigh Burke destroyer will set you back $2.2 billion; and the new Columbia-class ballistic missile submarine approaches $10 billion.
The Hybrid Fleet
Industry would be well-served to watch these developments carefully as shipbuilders work to review and balance their manufacturing capabilities, and ideally, be prepared to build a mix of crewed ships and USVs needed by the US Navy.
As national stakeholders, lawmakers and naval command alike, consider options for the Navy-After-Next’s fleet composition, there are four primary choices that have gained purchase within the US Navy. They are:
- The US Navy’s current goal as described in the 2026 Navy Shipbuilding Plan. This includes 299 battle force ships, 68 auxiliary ships, and 83 uncrewed vessels. The Congressional Research Service notes that key issues for Congress involve funding the plan, balancing new construction versus retirements, and integrating large unmanned systems.
- The second option that has gained traction is called the “hybrid fleet.” This concept was unveiled by then-Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Michael Gilday, and endorsed by his successors. This envisions a Navy of 350 crewed ships and 150 USVs. Earlier this year, Chief of Naval Operations, Admiral Daryl Caudle, noted that USVs could be used to “up-gun (provide more offensive firepower) to carrier strike groups.
- The third option is called the “hedge fleet.” This envisions a for- ward-deployed force of crewed ships and robotic autonomous systems (RAS) to be employed quickly in any crisis. The CNO explaining the rationale for hedge fleet this way: “We need tailored forces and a Navy that has other battle formations beyond carrier strike groups. The hedge fleet avoids a brittle single-purpose force.”
- The final option is the US Navy’s “golden fleet,” an initiative announced by President Trump in late 2025 to rapidly expand and modernize the fleet. The rationale for this plan is that America’s Navy is too small for a modern Pacific war. Most observers have suggested that the small- and medium-sized uncrewed surface vessels armed with long range strike and missile defense systems will be the most strategically impactful assets of the golden fleet in the near term.
What ties these four options for the Navy-After-Next together is the presence of a substantial number of USVs working alongside crewed ships across multiple missions. While none of the four options have been fully definitized, especially the number of crewed ships and USVs in each choice, more details have begun to emerge through official US Navy documents, presentations at military-industry symposia, and online media.
Navy leadership is clearly keen to develop and field USV technology. This is a very achievable goal. Advances in command and control systems designed for increasingly remote operations make USVs a scalable reality and not just an aspiration. Beyond concept and into production, we can expect to see more USV hulls hit the water in the near future.
Scaling Opportunity
The implications for the commercial maritime industry should be clear. While expensive, and even risky, to “tool up” in anticipation of this new form of demand, the Navy’s pronounced commitment to field substantial numbers of large, medium, and small-sized USVs is an opportunity too big to ignore.
An important consideration for industry is that over the past decade-plus the Navy and Marine Corps have conducted a substantial number of exercises, experiments, and demonstrations where USV developers have fielded capable prototypes and put them in the hands of Sailors and Marines.
During the 2026 AFCEA/USNI “West” symposium, the CNO noted how Navy and Marine Corps events such as the those conducted by Fifth Fleet, Fourth Fleet, and a series of USV-focused events with NATO allies have accelerated the development of certain models. As just one of many examples of this testing that has gone on for years, MARTAC, a US-based USV builder, has been invited to bring its MANTAS T12 and Devil Ray T24 and T38 USV vessels to a wide range of Navy and Marine Corps at-sea events.
These events have included the COMPACFLT-led Integrated Battle Problem series of exercises; the Integrated Maritime Exercise series held under the auspices of US Naval Forces Central Command in the Arabian Gulf; NATO exercises BALTOPS, REPMUS, and the follow-on Dynamic Messenger; Australian Defence Force Autonomous Warrior exercises, and many others.
As the maritime industry moves forward to produce capable USVs to meet the Navy’s current and anticipated needs, companies would be well-served to participate in as many exercises, experiments, and demonstrations as possible. This will enable them to “wring out” their USVs, as the likes of MARTAC, Saildrone, Leidos, and others have done, in order to gain fleet feedback to produce USV systems that will meet the Navy’s needs and support its worldwide missions and commitments.
