WASHINGTON — The Navy is making a massive bet on cutting-edge technology to modernize its fleet, pumping $448 million into AI and autonomous systems to supercharge shipbuilding efforts.
“Ship OS” uses AI-giant Palantir’s software to help streamline production, reduce costs and enhance the Navy’s ability to build ships faster and more efficiently as the service addresses years-long woes over shipbuilding delays.
With the funds, the Navy will focus on advancing artificial intelligence and autonomy across key areas, including ship design, construction and operational support, giving commanders unparalleled access to real-time intelligence.
“This investment provides the resources our shipbuilders, shipyards, and suppliers need to modernize their operations and succeed in meeting our nation’s defense requirements,” Navy Secretary John Phelan said in a statement. “By enabling industry to adopt AI and autonomy tools at scale, we’re helping the shipbuilding industry improve schedules, increase capacity, and reduce costs.
“This is about doing business smarter and building the industrial capability our Navy and nation require.”
Officials are confident that these innovations will increase the speed and efficiency of the shipbuilding process, helping the Navy meet operational deadlines.
The program is already providing “transformational” results, Palantir’s head of defense and former Rep. Mike Gallagher (R-Wisc.) exclusively told The Post.
“ShipOS turned 1,850 production days into 75 days of work for one supplier. It turned a 200 hour process into 12 seconds — all while improving quality by 50%. And it eliminated 2,500 planning days at another,” he said.
“ShipOS is designed to make shipbuilders dominant, get taxpayers more bang for every shipbuilding buck, and ensure America continues to dominate the seas,” he added.
The Navy’s move comes as global maritime competition continues with China rapidly modernizing its fleet — which is already larger than America’s. In response, the US military has been leaning into innovations like AIand robotics to stay ahead.
The plan is part of a broader effort to modernize the Navy’s fleet by incorporating advanced technologies into all stages of shipbuilding, from design and construction to deployment and maintenance, according to the service.
By leaning on artificial intelligence to optimize workflows and automate key processes, the Navy hopes to shave years off the timeline for constructing new ships.
“The initiative … will aggregate data from enterprise resource planning systems, legacy databases and operational sources to identify bottlenecks, streamline engineering workflows and support proactive risk mitigation, providing a unified, data-driven approach to production management that enables faster, more informed decisions,” the Navy said in a statement.
The initiative falls in line with President Trump’s push to support American AI initiatives, a key theme of his second term in office.
The post Navy invests $448 million in Palantir tech to speed up shipbuilding with AI appeared first on New York Post.
