Robot Boats Are Transforming Naval Warfare, From Hormuz Rescues to Drug Smuggling

A U.S. Navy rescue in the Strait of Hormuz last week marked a first in military history, according to the American military, when an unmanned vessel reached two downed Apache pilots before any helicopter, aircraft, or commando unit and ferried them to the extraction point. The platform was Corsair, an autonomous craft operating under Task Force 59, the U.S. Navy unit that runs a fleet of autonomous systems in the Persian Gulf. The episode highlighted how unmanned ships are moving from experiment to operational use.

The broader shift is being driven by cost and endurance. A modern warship can cost billions of dollars, while many unmanned vessels cost only a few million. U.S. forces are using them mainly for surveillance, reconnaissance, and rapid response, including Sea Hunter, an unmanned ship designed to detect and track submarines and to operate for months with minimal human contact, even far from shore.

In Ukraine, the same technology has taken a more aggressive form in the Black Sea. The MAGURA V5 remote-controlled explosive boat has become a symbol of the new naval war, and Sea Baby was developed to strike not only ships but also ports, bridges, and strategic infrastructure. These small, relatively cheap systems can threaten much more expensive targets.

The autonomous revolution is also moving underwater. The U.S. Navy’s Orca XLUUV is one of the world’s largest autonomous submarines and is designed for long-range intelligence, surveillance, and mine-laying without a crew. Manta Ray points to an even newer generation meant to remain submerged for months. Meanwhile, Latin American drug cartels have begun developing unmanned underwater vessels and mini-submarines for smuggling, showing that the technology is spreading beyond militaries and lowering the barriers to entry at sea.