Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) has awarded performance-based production agreements worth as much as $900 million to GrayMatter Robotics and Path Robotics as part of an effort to introduce physical AI and adaptive automation into US Navy shipbuilding.
The seven-year agreements will focus on advanced robotic manufacturing solutions for the construction of crewed and uncrewed naval platforms. Through the High-Yield Production Robotics (HYPR) program, HII plans to combine robotic welding, automated material movement, surface treatment and quality inspection within an integrated assembly-line environment designed to accelerate ship and submarine production.
The program is being launched as Washington works to strengthen US shipbuilding capacity, replace older vessels and expand the Navy amid growing competition with China’s rapidly developing maritime force. US shipyards, however, continue to encounter major industrial challenges, including shortages of skilled labor, aging facilities, limited workspace and persistent production delays.
HYPR is intended to address these limitations by automating key structural manufacturing activities. The planned production process will cover cutting, fitting, welding, surface preparation, inspection and coating, reducing the dependence on manually coordinated fabrication tasks.
HII is targeting proof-of-concept demonstrations during 2026 and plans to move into a full pilot program in 2027.
Two-Phase HYPR Implementation
The robotics agreements will be executed through development and delivery phases. Initially, HII and the technology partners will qualify autonomous systems for welding, painting, assembly, inspection and other fabrication functions before integrating them into a standardized US Navy production line.
Once operational, the delivery phase will allow HII to assign shipbuilding projects to the automated production line according to cost, schedule and quality requirements. The effort will begin with smaller steel structures and subsequently scale to larger sections and ship modules.
HII intends to outsource more than 2.5 million shipbuilding labor hours during 2026, a 30% increase over the previous year. It is also broadening its assembly-partner network to enable more work to be completed outside its shipyards before final integration.
Supporting the “Golden Fleet” Vision
The HYPR program supports the wider US initiative to modernize the naval industrial base, expand shipbuilding output and adopt scalable manufacturing techniques for the future “Golden Fleet.” The Navy’s 30-year plan calls for a fleet exceeding 450 vessels in the early 2030s while pursuing changes to acquisition practices and strengthening the maritime industrial base.
At present, the Navy operates 291 battle-force ships, well below the statutory target of 355. Officials have identified increasing costs, schedule delays and changing program requirements as key obstacles to fleet expansion.
For fiscal years 2027–31, the Navy’s plan includes $77.8 billion for surface combatants, $124.9 billion for submarines, $22.3 billion for aircraft carriers and $29.3 billion for amphibious ships. An additional $15 billion is earmarked for 21 auxiliary and logistics vessels, while the strategy calls for investments in 47 medium unmanned surface vessels and 16 extra-large unmanned underwater vehicles.
