Full-Time
Senior Electrical Engineer Maritime Control Systems
Blue Water Autonomy
51-200 employees
Designs autonomous unmanned surface vessels
Compensation Overview
$150k - $170k/yr
Lexington, MA, USA
In Person
 Electrical Engineering (1) |
|---|
Get referred to Blue Water Autonomy
See people who can refer or advise you
- Must be a U.S. Person due to required access to U.S. export controlled information or facilities. By applying, you confirm that you are a U.S. Person and can provide acceptable documentation verifying your status if selected.
- Design of electrical control panels, harnesses, and subsystem interfaces.
- Support integration and testing of power distribution, batteries, converters, and switchgear.
- Create schematics meeting marine and navy requirements.
- Work with various contract manufacturers to get cable harnesses and electronic assemblies built and tested.
- Perform bench tests and debug boards, harnesses, and controls.
- Coordinate with Mechanical, Systems, Marine, and Software teams to get projects built and out the door.
- Provide clear, concise instructions to technicians for testing and assembly tasks.
- B.S. or M.S. in Electrical Engineering or related field.
- Minimum 5-10 years’ experience in robotics, power, autonomy or similar fields.
- Expert with AC and DC circuit design and analysis.
- Experience designing and testing to industry/electrical standards.
- Have decent soldering skills and comfortable with hand tools and basic power tools.
- Ability to use electrical test equipment safely and train others in electrical safety.
- Experience working on 1000VDC and 480Vac projects.
- Experience programming embedded systems.
- Experienced with the failure mode effects and analysis (FMEA) process and can lead a team through the effort.
Blue Water Autonomy designs and builds unmanned long-endurance USVs for the U.S. Navy. They produce purpose-built, fully autonomous ships with a proprietary full-stack autonomy suite (hardware, software, AI) enabling months-long open-ocean operation and thousands of miles without crew. The ships have a modular design to host various payloads for missions such as surveillance, logistics, or munitions transport, with an in-house end-to-end approach rather than retrofitting existing vessels. The goal is to deliver production-ready autonomous ships that strengthen national defense, including multi-million dollar platforms like a 100-foot, 100-ton vessel, supported by saltwater testing and early seed funding.
Company Size
51-200
Company Stage
Series A
Total Funding
$64M
Headquarters
Boston, Massachusetts
Founded
2025
Get referred to Blue Water Autonomy
See people who can refer or advise you
Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- The Navy’s Medium Unmanned Surface Vehicles program has over $6 billion in funding.
- Liberty Class construction at Conrad Shipyard creates a concrete near-term procurement proof point.
- Tulip, Caterpillar, Precise Power Systems, and Valstad support scalable shipbuilding production.
What critics are saying
- A sea-trial failure would stall Navy delivery and damage procurement credibility.
- Blue Water depends on a brittle multi-partner supply chain and interface coordination.
- Navy requirements can shift, making the current Liberty Class less relevant quickly.
What makes Blue Water Autonomy unique
- Founded in 2024, Blue Water Autonomy builds purpose-built autonomous ships for the U.S. Navy.
- Its Liberty Class is a 60-meter steel vessel with 10,000-nautical-mile range.
- The company combines naval officers, iRobot scaling expertise, and manufacturing software partnerships.
Help us improve and share your feedback! Did you find this helpful?
Benefits
Company Equity
Paid Vacation
Health Insurance
Dental Insurance
Growth & Insights and Company News
6 month growth
↓ -3%1 year growth
↓ -3%2 year growth
↓ -3%Blue Water Autonomy, Saildrone sue Navy over MUSV rejection. Two autonomous-vessel vendors, Saildrone and Blue Water Autonomy, have filed separate protests in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims challenging the Navy's rejection of their proposals for the Medium Unmanned Surface Vessel (MUSV) program... 3 reports in this intelligence package Tl;dr. Two autonomous-vessel vendors, Saildrone and Blue Water Autonomy, have filed separate protests in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims challenging the Navy's rejection of their proposals for the Medium Unmanned Surface Vessel (MUSV) program. The companies allege the Navy did not follow its own selection criteria when it selected seven contractors from roughly two dozen bidders for the $5 billion MUSV effort, which plans to procure 36 vessels in FY2026. The lawsuits directly threaten the Navy's MUSV prototype timeline and create near-term uncertainty for competitors and subcontractors tracking follow-on opportunities. Contractors active in maritime, unmanned, and autonomous systems markets should expect schedule disruption and potential re-evaluation of the program's vendor list. In the immediate term, capture teams must preserve records, monitor court filings, and re-score pipelines and bid/no-bid decisions based on potential schedule and fielding changes. Key points. * What happened: Two companies (Saildrone and Blue Water Autonomy) sued the Navy in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims after their proposals were rejected for the MUSV program; they allege the Navy failed to follow its selection criteria in choosing seven contractors from about two dozen bidders for the $5 billion MUSV program that plans to procure 36 vessels in FY2026. * Who is affected: Defense contractors in the Defense, Autonomous Systems, Maritime/Naval Systems, Unmanned Systems, and Shipbuilding segments; NAICS codes 336611, 541330, 541712, 541715, 336612; agencies: DOD, Department of the Navy; compliance surfaces include ITAR (International Traffic in Arms Regulations), DFARS (Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement), CMMC (Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification). * Timeline: The MUSV program plans to procure 36 vessels in FY2026; the legal challenge could impact the Navy's timeline for the MUSV prototype phase. * What contractors should do NOW: Preserve solicitation and proposal records, notify capture/proposal/compliance leads, rescore MUSV-related opportunities, pause irreversible subcontractor commitments tied to prototype timelines, and prepare rapid responses to any amended solicitations or corrective actions. Who is affected. * Market segments: Defense; Autonomous Systems; Maritime/Naval Systems; Unmanned Systems; Shipbuilding. * Specific NAICS codes: 336611, 541330, 541712, 541715, 336612. * Agencies: DOD; Department of the Navy. * Contract vehicle: MUSV. * Compliance regimes: ITAR; DFARS; CMMC. * Note: Specific program-level impacts on individual primes and subs are pending source review and will depend on court outcomes and any Navy corrective actions. Frequently asked questions. Q: What are the plaintiffs alleging? A: Saildrone and Blue Water Autonomy allege the Navy failed to follow its own selection criteria when choosing seven contractors from about two dozen bidders for the MUSV program. Pending source review for additional claim specifics. Q: Will this stop the Navy from procuring 36 MUSV vessels in FY2026? A: The Summary states the program plans to procure 36 vessels in FY2026 but also notes the legal challenge could impact the Navy's prototype timeline. The ultimate impact on procurement timing is pending source review. Q: What should subcontractors and supply-chain partners do right away? A: Preserve proposal and contract documentation, flag MUSV-related work for potential schedule slippage, avoid irreversible long-lead purchases tied to the prototype schedule, and coordinate with primes' capture and legal teams. Also ensure compliance posture aligns with ITAR, DFARS, and CMMC requirements. Definitions. * Saildrone: Company named in the Title and Summary that filed a protest at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims challenging the MUSV selection. * Blue Water Autonomy: Company named in the Title and Summary that filed a protest at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims challenging the MUSV selection. * MUSV (Medium Unmanned Surface Vessel): The Navy's autonomous/unmanned vessel program referenced in the Summary and Title; the program includes a prototype phase and planned procurement described in the Summary. Intelligence response. * Cabrillo Signals War Room - Already detected this event and delivered this briefing. Continuously monitors regulatory changes, contract vehicles, and policy shifts. * Cabrillo Signals Match Engine - Automatically rescores opportunity pipelines when events like this shift the competitive landscape. * Cabrillo Signals Intelligence Hub - Tracks affected agencies, NAICS codes, and contract vehicles. Saved searches alert when follow-on solicitations appear on SAM.gov (System for Award Management). * Proposal Studio (Proposal OS) - AI-powered proposal automation with compliance matrices, win theme library, and bid/no-bid decision engine. * Proposal Studio Workflow Tracker - 9-gate capture management with automated compliance routing and audit-ready documentation. Who to notify: Capture Manager, Proposals Lead, Chief Compliance Officer, Business Development Director, and Executive Sponsor. Use Cabrillo Signals War Room for alert context, Match Engine to rescore opportunities, Intelligence Hub to track new solicitations and court/corrective action notices, then run Proposal Studio and Workflow Tracker to ready proposals or document bid/no-bid decisions. First 48-hour playbook: * Hour 0-4: Use Cabrillo Signals War Room alert to confirm event details; notify Capture Manager, Proposals Lead, and Compliance Officer. Preserve all solicitation and proposal artifacts in Proposal Studio. * Hour 4-12: Run Cabrillo Signals Match Engine to rescore MUSV pipeline and update bid/no-bid recommendations in Proposal Studio. * Hour 12-24: Intelligence Hub: set saved searches for MUSV and related corrigenda; Proposal Studio Workflow Tracker: route any urgent compliance reviews (ITAR/DFARS/CMMC). * Hour 24-48: Convene executive capture huddle, lock next steps (pause long-lead buys if necessary), prepare contingent staffing/subcontractor notices, and schedule follow-on monitoring cadence via War Room. Relevant reading: Winning Federal Contracts Guide (/insights/winning-federal-contracts). See related compliance references: CMMC Compliance Guide (/insights/cmmc-compliance-guide) and CUI (Controlled Unclassified Information)-Safe CRM Guide (/insights/cui-safe-crm-guide).
America is building a new "Liberty Ship" for the 21st century. February 23, 2026 US startup Blue Water Autonomy is developing a fully autonomous cargo boat in partnership with Dutch shipbuilder Damen. During World War II, the United States mass-produced a class of cargo ships known as "Liberty Ships." With more than 2,700 of the class built between 1941 and 1945, the Liberty Ship continues to hold the record for the most large ships ever built on a single design. The low-cost, quickly-produced vessels quickly proved vital to the war effort, transporting massive amounts of cargo and personnel across war theaters in the Atlantic and the Pacific. In total, the Liberty Ships accounted for two-thirds of all US wartime cargo transported to the various theaters of operation during the conflict. In a potential war in the Indo-Pacific, the US military will again need to move equipment, and work is already underway on a 21st-century Liberty Ship. Although the role and cargo capacity will be similar, the new version will be a little different, notably in that it won't require a large crew - or indeed, any crew at all. A US defense startup is building an autonomous Liberty Ship. Blue Water Autonomy announced this month that it was developing a new Liberty-class 190-foot steel autonomous ship with a range of more than 10,000 nautical miles and the ability to carry upwards of 150 metric tons of cargo. The Boston-based technology and shipbuilder has partnered with the Dutch-based Damen Shipyards Group, which is aiding in the design, with the vessels being constructed at Conrad Shipyard's facilities in Louisiana. Work on the lead vessel will begin next month, with the first vessel on track to be delivered to the US Navy by the end of the calendar year. "Liberty's design supports a range of missions, including missile, sensor, and logistics payloads, and offers the Navy a ship immediately producible with existing US shipyards and commercial supply chains," the company explained in a statement. The new Liberty-class vessel is based on Damen's Stan Patrol 6009 hull design, which features the distinctive "Axe Bow" that reportedly can slice "cleanly through the waves," and minimize slamming. There are more than 300 Axe Bow vessels in service worldwide. "The Axe Bow hull was designed for demanding operational requirements, from speed and range to seakeeping," said Mark Honders, Design and License Manager at Damen. "Seeing the Stan Patrol 6009 adapted for autonomous operation underscores the flexibility of the design and demonstrates how proven commercial designs can serve new and emerging maritime missions." Blue Water Autonomy also claimed that the design could reduce technical risk and allow it to focus on "re-architecting the vessel's internal systems for autonomous operation." The Boston-based firm further redesigned the transport ships to accommodate the autonomous systems, along with a "fault-tolerant propulsion system," which will enable greater autonomy with limited human intervention, even for month-long deployments at sea. "The Liberty class reflects our focus on building autonomous ships that are designed from the start for long-duration operations and repeat production," explained Rylan Hamilton, CEO of Blue Water Autonomy. "By adapting a proven hull and re-engineering it for unmanned operations, we're delivering a vessel that can operate for extended periods without crew while being produced at a pace the Navy urgently needs. This is a modern take on an old idea: building capable ships quickly and at scale." Louisiana is a fitting place to build the new Liberty Ships. The original World War II-era Liberty Ships were constructed at 18 specialized shipyards, with major production occurring at Richmond, California; Portland, Oregon; Vancouver, Washington; Baltimore, Maryland; Wilmington, North Carolina; and Brunswick and Savannah, Georgia. Delta Shipbuilding, located on the Industrial Canal in New Orleans, was also a major producer of Liberty Ships, with other firms, including Pendleton Shipyards, involved in the construction or fitting out of the vessels. New Orleans was also where many of the "Higgins Boat" landing craft of D-Day fame were built. It is thus fitting that Conrad Shipyard, which has five yards and a workforce of 1,100, will produce the new Liberty Ships, employing its advanced shipbuilding approach. The future autonomous cargo boats will be manufactured via Conrad Shipyard's "highly automated panel line and welding techniques." That could enable parallel builds, significantly reducing each ship's overall build time. "Conrad has a long history of building complex vessels for both commercial and government customers," said Cecil Hernandez, president and CEO of Conrad Shipyard. "We have the infrastructure, workforce, and production readiness to begin construction and support serial builds, helping translate advanced vessel designs into operational capacity." Blue Water Autonomy is set to deliver the first ship this year and then move to serial production, aiming to deliver 10 to 20 vessels annually. Peter Suciu has contributed over 3,200 published pieces to more than four dozen magazines and websites over a 30-year career in journalism. He regularly writes about military hardware, firearms history, cybersecurity, politics, and international affairs. Peter is also a contributing writer for Forbes and Clearance Jobs. He is based in Michigan. You can follow him on Twitter: @PeterSuciu. You can email the author: [email protected].
A privately funded autonomous warship puts a new Navy shipbuilding model to the test. Total Views: 6983 February 11, 2026 Boston-based shipbuilding startup Blue Water Autonomy has unveiled the Liberty Class, a 190-foot autonomous surface vessel designed for rapid, repeatable construction as the U.S. Navy looks for ways to grow fleet capacity while its traditional shipbuilding programs remain under pressure. What sets the Liberty Class apart isn't just the mission set, but how it was developed. The vessel was designed entirely with private capital, a rare approach for a full-sized Navy ship, but one the company says allowed it to move faster and avoid the long development timelines that have become common in major federal programs. Rather than starting from a clean sheet, Blue Water developed the Liberty Class around proven commercial designs. The ship is based on Damen's Stan Patrol 6009 hull, which features the company's distinctive Axe Bow - a vertical bow intended to improve seakeeping by cutting through waves rather than slamming into them. More than 300 Axe Bow vessels are already operating worldwide, allowing Blue Water to focus its engineering effort on autonomy rather than hull development. Blue Water Autonomy was founded in 2024 by Navy veterans and robotics experts to develop, build, and operate autonomous surface vessels for the U.S. Navy and commercial use. "The Liberty Class was designed from the start for long-duration operations and repeat production," said Blue Water Autonomy CEO Rylan Hamilton. "By adapting a proven hull and re-engineering it for unmanned operations, we're delivering a ship that can operate for months without crew while being built at a pace the Navy needs." The vessel is designed to sail more than 10,000 nautical miles, carry over 150 metric tons of payload, and support a wide range of mission packages, including sensors, logistics systems, and weapons. That flexibility aligns with the Navy's broader push to deploy unmanned vessels alongside crewed ships. To support those missions, Blue Water redesigned the ship's propulsion, mechanical, and electrical systems for automated control and fault management, minimizing the need for human intervention during extended deployments. The steel-hulled design is intended to support endurance profiles that would be difficult or impractical with a traditional crew. Construction is scheduled to begin at Conrad Shipyard in Louisiana in March 2026, with the first vessel expected to be delivered later that year under a Navy program of record. After delivery of the first ship, Blue Water plans to ramp up production to between 10 and 20 vessels per year. Co-founder and CSO Austin Gray said the company was not ready to share more details about its discussions with the Navy at this time. "Liberty Class meets or exceeds all requirements for the Navy's Modular Attack Surface Craft program. Our primary focus today is the U.S. Navy, given the urgency of the mission, the pace of global competition, and the Navy's need for scalable, autonomous maritime capability. That focus is intentional and shapes how we design, test, and deploy our systems. However, Liberty is a multi-market product and is already generating significant demand from additional customers." Conrad operates five shipyards and employs roughly 1,100 workers, producing more than 30 vessels annually using automated panel lines and parallel construction techniques. "Conrad has the infrastructure and workforce to support serial production," said Conrad Shipyard President and CEO Cecil Hernandez. "That allows advanced designs to move from drawings to operational vessels without long delays." The Liberty Class name is a deliberate nod to the Liberty Ships of World War II - merchant vessels built quickly and at scale to meet wartime demand. The comparison reflects the company's broader argument that fleet capacity challenges may require simpler designs, faster build cycles, and greater use of commercial shipbuilding practices. The timing is notable. The Liberty Class arrives as the Navy continues to grapple with delays and cancellations across several major shipbuilding programs, raising questions about whether the current acquisition model can deliver ships at pace. The Liberty Class also fits a broader shift underway inside the Navy toward proven, off-the-shelf designs as a way to accelerate fleet growth. In December, the Navy selected Damen's LST-100 design for its Medium Landing Ship program, opting for an existing, in-service platform rather than a bespoke U.S. design as the service grapples with mounting delays and seeks faster alternatives for fleet expansion. The move followed the cancellation of four Constellation-class frigates and was framed by Navy leadership as a more disciplined approach to putting capability into the fleet on a realistic timeline - underscoring a growing preference for commercial designs that can be adapted and built quickly. Whether the Liberty Class becomes a blueprint for future programs or remains a niche solution, it offers a real-world test of whether private funding, commercial design discipline, and serial production can help close the gap between naval ambition and industrial capacity.
Damen and Blue Water Autonomy announce license agreement for Liberty Class autonomous ship for the US Navy. * Maritime * Posted On Feb 11, 2026 Damen Shipyards Group has announced a license agreement with Blue Water Autonomy, a Boston-based technology and shipbuilding company. Under the agreement, Blue Water Autonomy will construct its first vessel, the Liberty Class. Designed by the two companies in partnership, Liberty is a 60-m steel autonomous ship with a range of over 10,000 nautical miles and over 150 tonnes of payload capacity. Construction is scheduled to begin at Conrad Shipyard in March 2026. The first vessel is expected to be completed for the US Navy later this year under a program of record. As the US Navy looks to expand fleet capacity, accelerating the deployment of unmanned systems that complement traditional crewed ships has become a critical effort. Liberty's design supports a range of missions, including missile, sensor, and logistics payloads, and offers the Navy a ship immediately producible with existing US shipyards and commercial supply chains. Proven design. The Liberty class will be built on Damen's Stan Patrol 6009 hull design. Blue Water selected the design due to its Axe Bow, a distinctive, vertical bow that slices cleanly through the waves, minimizing slamming and allowing more gradual wave re-entry. With over 300 Axe Bow vessels operating globally, the hull shape offers proven performance. The proven design reduces technical risk, allowing Blue Water to focus engineering on re-architecting the vessel's internal systems for autonomous operation. The resulting platform retains the hull's performance, payload capacity, and seakeeping characteristics, while supporting months-long deployment and serial production. The Axe Bow design offers unprecedented seakeeping characteristics. This hull shape has been patented by Delft University of Technology in the Netherlands, and the exclusive right of use has been granted to Damen Shipyards, which has been involved in the research and development phase. The license fee and additional contribution for every ship that uses this hull shape are reinvested in Research at Delft University by the Collaborative Axe Bow fund, founded by Damen and Delft University of Technology. "The Liberty class reflects our focus on building autonomous ships that are designed from the start for long-duration operations and repeat production," said Rylan Hamilton, CEO of Blue Water Autonomy. "By adapting a proven hull and re-engineering it for unmanned operations, we're delivering a vessel that can operate for extended periods without crew while being produced at a pace the Navy urgently needs. This is a modern take on an old idea: building capable ships quickly and at scale." To achieve autonomy, Blue Water redesigned the vessel from the inside out, beginning with the engine room and extending to the ship's mechanical and electrical systems through autonomous configuration of fault-tolerant propulsion systems. Those design choices enable automated control and fault management with limited human intervention on months-long deployments, resulting in a design with an operational range of approximately 10,000 nautical miles. Wrapped around the ship's internal technology, the Axe Bow steel hull offers a rugged wave-piercing ship proven in harsh ocean environments. Damen and Blue Water saw symbiosis between Damen's proven hull and Blue Water's focus on high-endurance autonomous vessel technology. The Stan Patrol 6009 hull design has been deployed across multiple commercial and government programs and provides a well-established foundation for new applications. Damen supports the program through its Damen Technical Cooperation (DTC) licensing model, which it has applied with partners and shipyards around the world, including in the United States. "The Axe Bow hull was designed for demanding operational requirements, from speed and range to seakeeping," said Mark Honders, Design and License Manager at Damen. "Seeing the Stan Patrol 6009 adapted for autonomous operation underscores the flexibility of the design and demonstrates how proven commercial designs can serve new and emerging maritime missions." Privately funded and production ready. The launch of Liberty comes as the US Navy and Pentagon leadership push defense contractors to privately develop key military technology. Blue Water's ships will be constructed at Conrad Shipyard in Louisiana, whose five yards and 1,100-strong workforce produce 30+ ships per year. Conrad uses an advanced shipbuilding approach, including highly automated panel lines and welding techniques, that allow parallel builds and scalable throughput. "Conrad has a long history of building complex vessels for both commercial and government customers," said Cecil Hernandez, President and CEO of Conrad Shipyard. "We have the infrastructure, workforce, and production readiness to begin construction and support serial builds, helping translate advanced vessel designs into operational capacity." Liberty class is a reference to the Liberty Ships of World War II, which were produced rapidly and at scale to meet urgent national needs. Following delivery of the first ship, Blue Water plans to move into serial production, targeting ten to twenty vessels per year. Construction of the Liberty class will take place at Conrad Shipyard in Louisiana - which has produced Damen-designed hulls before - leveraging existing shipyard capacity and workforce to support efficient production, and drawing on its experience delivering complex commercial and government vessels.
Blue Water Autonomy has unveiled the Liberty Class, a 190-foot autonomous vessel for the US Navy, with first delivery expected later this year. The Boston-based startup will begin construction at Conrad Shipyard in March 2026, targeting serial production of 10 to 20 vessels annually. The vessel features a range exceeding 10,000 nautical miles and payload capacity of over 150 metric tonnes. Built on Damen's proven Stan Patrol 6009 hull design with an Axe Bow, the ship has been re-engineered internally for months-long autonomous operations supporting missile, sensor and logistics missions. Founded in 2024, Blue Water developed the vessel entirely with private capital, an unprecedented approach for a Navy ship. Construction will leverage Conrad Shipyard's five yards and 1,100-strong workforce, which produces over 30 vessels yearly.