Leidos built the Navy's historic drone ship. Three other firms got the $1.2 billion.
A Leidos-built Seahawk became the first large uncrewed ship to deploy with a US carrier strike group, the acting Navy secretary confirmed on October 14. Leidos' opening now is a $15 million prototype award and a bidding slot on the Navy's marketplace, with the first of 30 hulls from other builders due before fiscal 2027 ends.
Vincent Jiang · 3 min read
On October 14, Acting Navy Secretary Hung Cao told an Army conference in Washington that the USS Theodore Roosevelt strike group is "the first carrier strike group to ever deploy with a large-size unmanned surface vessel" 12. "This is a force multiplier," he said. "Imagine having more guns out there." Cao dated the deployment to October 8; the group had left San Diego in late September, bound for the Middle East 13.
The escort is Seahawk, built by Leidos+2.83% — Leidos, up 2.83 percent today, the Reston, Virginia defense contractor: 137 feet long, 145 tons, designed to stay at sea for months 13. A US official told Bloomberg the group widens commanders' options should President Donald Trump choose to restart military strikes on Iran 3.
The first production buy went to three other builders
On September 29 the Navy said its Medium Unmanned Surface Vessel program would move to serial production: 30 hulls, under production agreements with Galliano Marine Services, a Louisiana shipyard; HII, the listed builder of the Navy's aircraft carriers; and Saronic$12.31B — Saronic, private, latest valuation $12.31B Technologies, a private startup 4. Each agreement covers 10 vessels at an average cost of $40 million, with first deliveries due before fiscal 2027 ends 4. HII's 10 will be its ROMULUS design 5.
None of the three has said what its agreement is worth; Saronic expressly declined to 6. At the Navy's average unit cost, the 30 hulls come to about $1.2 billion 7.
Ten hulls each for three builders; Seahawk's builder gets none
Data
| Value | |
|---|---|
| HII | 10 hulls |
| Saronic | 10 hulls |
| Galliano Marine | 10 hulls |
| Leidos | 0 hulls |
Leidos got $15 million and the right to keep bidding
Leidos came away with $15 million and a listing. Alongside PacMar Technologies and Sea Machines, the other two firms from the program's at-sea demonstrations 6, it was judged to have completed its prototype agreement, which pays a $15 million award, and it was accepted onto the Drones.mil Maritime Marketplace, where firms are "eligible to receive follow-on production agreements" 4. That eligibility covers none of the first 30 hulls.
L3Harris+1.47% — L3Harris, up 1.47 percent today, which pitched its own commercially derived design, appears on none of the Navy's lists 47. Leidos booked $17.2 billion of revenue in the fiscal year ended January 2, 2026 89. The whole 30-hull buy is about 7 percent of one year of that revenue, and Leidos' $15 million share rounds to zero 78.
The whole 30-hull buy is about 7% of one year of Leidos revenue
Data
| Value | |
|---|---|
| Leidos annual revenue | $17.2B |
| Whole 30-hull buy | $1.2B |
| Leidos prototype award | $15M |
The spread is policy, and the deliveries decide it
The Navy is not picking one winner. Cao's message to industry was "build fast, deliver on time," and a Phase II call for solutions opened on September 23 to widen the field 4. The Chief of Naval Operations calls the vessels a "hedge strategy" giving commanders a "Tailored Offset" 4. Leidos' record is real: its autonomy software has logged more than 200,000 nautical miles, and its Sea Hunter was the only medium uncrewed surface vessel at this year's Rim of the Pacific exercise 8.
Saronic brings combat time, not just hulls
Saronic, though, has combat time. Three of its 24-foot Corsairs struck Iranian naval infrastructure at Bandar Abbas in July, the first combat use of American sea drones, and the company is spending more than $3 billion on Port Alpha, a new Texas shipyard 6. Unmanned programs have also been favorite targets in past Navy budget fights 7.
Two dated readings settle it: whether the first 30 hulls land before fiscal 2027 closes, and whether Leidos converts its marketplace slot into an order before they do 4.
Deepdive
AI-generated from this story and its cited sources. Not investment advice.
