The UK government has announced a £90 million investment in drones, underwater sensors and artificial intelligence systems for the Royal Navy. The funding will create a network of autonomous systems designed to help counter Russian undersea threats in the North Atlantic and protect critical underwater infrastructure.
The project, known as Atlantic Net, will be developed under a framework agreement with the British company Ocean Infinity Solutions (based in Hampshire). It will deploy a network of uncrewed platforms and advanced sensors capable of patrolling the seabed, detecting Russian submarines and other suspicious activity. The unified surveillance system will feed data to warships and Astute-class nuclear submarines, providing earlier warning of threats.
The initiative forms part of the wider Atlantic Bastion programme — the Royal Navy’s plan to create a hybrid force of crewed and uncrewed platforms. It aims to protect shipping routes, undersea communications cables and energy networks on which the UK and its allies depend. The announcement was made at the International Sea Power Conference in Oslo.
Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry Luke Pollard said:
“The threats beneath the North Atlantic are changing, and we are changing with them. This investment gives the Royal Navy new technology to find threats earlier and protect our critical infrastructure, while also backing British business. It shows that we’re getting on with the job of investing in our Armed Forces and strengthening our deterrence under the sea, to support our ultimate, nuclear deterrent.”
The agreement is also expected to support almost 200 new skilled jobs and the company’s supply chain. The move comes amid Western officials’ warnings of increased Russian activity around subsea infrastructure (allegations Russia has denied). In recent years, NATO allies have stepped up surveillance of cables and pipelines.
Atlantic Net is intended to increase the scale, persistence and resilience of underwater surveillance, complementing the Royal Navy’s existing forces.
