HD Hyundai and Anduril Join Forces to Build Next-Gen Autonomous Naval Vessels

HD Hyundai has signed a major strategic contract with U.S. defense-tech company Anduril to co-develop next-generation autonomous surface vehicles (ASVs), marking one of the most ambitious naval-autonomy collaborations between a South Korean shipbuilder and an American AI-defense pioneer.

The signing took place in Seoul with HD Hyundai Heavy Industries President Joo Won-ho and Anduril co-founder Palmer Luckey present at the ceremony.

Under the agreement:

• HD Hyundai will build the ASVs at its Ulsan shipyard
• The company will supply and integrate ship-autonomous navigation technologies currently under development
• Anduril will embed autonomous mission-execution systems and AI-driven engagement software
• Prototype development and construction are targeted for completion by 2026, followed by global market expansion efforts

This partnership stems from HD Hyundai’s stated ambition to extend its maritime autonomy technology into defense applications. Leadership from both companies emphasized that combining South Korea’s naval engineering capacity with U.S. AI defense innovation could redefine naval operational doctrine.

HD Hyundai’s Joo Won-ho called the project a “new milestone in Korean-U.S. defense collaboration,” while Anduril’s Palmer Luckey noted that Ulsan — home to the world’s largest shipbuilding complex — is an ideal birthplace for Anduril’s first ASV.

Strategic Context

This move signals a broader shift in naval strategy worldwide:

• increased adoption of unmanned vessels
• manned-unmanned teaming
• modular mission payloads
• AI-assisted maritime operations

Sea-control and ISR missions — once dependent solely on crewed ships — are rapidly transitioning toward distributed autonomous fleets.