Anduril presents the first prototype of the ultra-large Ghost Shark underwater drone

Anduril, together with the Australian Navy and Australian defense accelerators, has presented the first prototype of the Ghost Shark ultra-large autonomous underwater drone. This is stated in the manufacturer’s press release.

The Ghost Shark program is aimed at developing an extra-large autonomous underwater vehicle (XL-AUV) with a long range for long-term intelligence gathering, surveillance and remote strikes.

“This drone is capable of gathering intelligence, conducting surveillance, reconnaissance and, most importantly, striking. Thus, it can be equipped with weapons to deter potential aggressors,” said Australian Defense Minister Pat Conroy at an event to unveil the drone, without providing further details.

The Ghost Shark program began in mid-2022, and the production version of the Ghost Shark is due to be ready by the end of 2025. A total of three units have been ordered. Ghost Shark is a development of Anduril’s Dive-LD program.

As a reminder, Anduril Industries was founded by Palmer Lucky, founder of Oculus VR and designer of the Oculus Rift, in 2017, together with Matt Grimm, Trey Stevens, and Brian Schimpf, former managers of Palantir Technologies, an analytical company that works closely with intelligence agencies. Anduril Industries specializes in autonomous military systems and control systems.

Many maritime countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, China, Israel, Ukraine, and, unfortunately, Russia, have programs to create large underwater autonomous drones. The use of such vehicles could significantly change naval tactics in the coming years.