German defense technology company Helsing has announced that it is in the process of acquiring Australian underwater drone manufacturer Blue Ocean. The value of the deal is not yet disclosed.
It is claimed that together Helsing and Blue Ocean will accelerate the development and mass production of autonomous platforms to defend the "underwater battlespace, providing democratic allies with a crucial technological advantage in the maritime domain."
"By building sovereign capabilities together across Europe and Australia, we can defend ourselves especially in the North Atlantic and in the maritime regions of the AUKUS partners (the defense alliance of Australia, Great Britain and the United States – ed.)," Helsing said in the information.
The European company added that the acquisition will combine Blue Ocean's hardware and manufacturing capabilities with Helsing's artificial intelligence, integrating Blue Ocean's team and operations into Helsing.
It was also emphasized here that the acquisition of Blue Ocean will accelerate the implementation of Helsing's plans for the further development of autonomous systems based on artificial intelligence.
"The need for a smart autonomous mass-approach is clear, and together with Blue Ocean we can build an autonomous glider that provides a big leap forward to conduct underwater ISR for navies," said Amelia Gould, general manager of the maritime direction at Helsing.
By the way, the Helsing company supplies Ukraine with "lancet-shaped" kamikaze drones HF-1 and HX-2 with the ability to operate at a range of 100 km and using AI. Also in the summer of 2025, it became known that the Armed Forces of France, Germany, Great Britain and other European countries are testing the HX-2 strike drone.