Australian shipbuilder Austal and software firm Greenroom AI have partnered to develop an advanced autonomy and decision-support platform for naval vessels, integrating machine learning with maritime command-and-control frameworks. The collaboration seeks to enhance operational safety, reduce crew workload, and optimize fleet management through predictive analytics and real-time data fusion. The system, slated for testing aboard Austal-designed patrol vessels, will enable semi-autonomous navigation, obstacle avoidance, and mission adaptation using AI-driven algorithms. Austal’s engineering team will focus on hardware integration and maritime certification, while Greenroom AI will supply adaptive learning modules trained on large maritime datasets. The project is supported by Australia’s Defence Innovation Hub and aligns with the Royal Australian Navy’s “Smart Fleet” vision for human-machine teaming. Officials emphasized that autonomy will not replace sailors but augment decision-making in high-tempo operations such as surveillance, interdiction, and logistics. The collaboration also strengthens Australia’s sovereign capability in naval software systems, an area traditionally dominated by foreign suppliers. Trials will inform future designs for optionally crewed surface vessels, a key growth segment in the Indo-Pacific defense market. Overall, the partnership signals a convergence of shipbuilding and artificial-intelligence expertise to deliver safer, smarter, and more efficient naval platforms.
