January 14, 2026

HII recently demonstrated the capabilities of the HII ROMULUS family of AI-enabled unmanned surface vessels (USVs), powered by HII’s Odyssey Autonomous Control System (ACS), with a focus on the ROMULUS 7 variant.
ROMULUS 7 is a seven-foot, man-portable USV designed for expeditionary and special operations missions. During the test, its two payload bays supported mission equipment configured to validate surface–subsurface collaboration, leveraging the proven REMUS modular architecture.
At the conclusion of the test mission, ROMULUS 7 operated in concert with an HII REMUS unmanned underwater vehicle (UUV), validating coordinated operations between surface and subsurface autonomous systems. REMUS’s reliability, modularity, and endurance enabled sustained test execution across realistic operational conditions.
A key objective of the test was the use of ROMULUS 7 as a mobile surface gateway. In this role, the USV enabled real-time reach-back to the operations center and high-rate data exfiltration from the REMUS UUV, extending operational reach while preserving stealth and autonomy.
Both platforms ran HII’s Odyssey autonomy, with the mission planned, monitored, and managed through the Odyssey Mission user interface. This common autonomy backbone was central to the test, enabling seamless coordination across domains without operator burden.
The test also validated the standard ROMULUS 7 communications and sensing suite, including acoustic communications for UUV collaboration, cameras, Wi-Fi, Starlink, MANET radio, and GPS — confirming its effectiveness as a resilient, networked force multiplier when paired with REMUS.
HII’s ROMULUS 7 alongside the HII’s REMUS UUV at mission completion where the REMUS UUV leveraged ROMULUS 7 as a mobile surface gateway. The mission was facilitated by HII Odyssey Advanced Autonomy.

HII is a global, all-domain defense provider. HII's mission is to deliver the world's most powerful ships and all-domain solutions in service of the nation, creating the advantage for our customers to protect peace and freedom around the world.
As the nation's largest military shipbuilder, and with a more than 135-year history of advancing U.S. national security, HII delivers critical capabilities extending from ships to unmanned systems, cyber, ISR, AI/ML and synthetic training. Headquartered in Virginia, HII's workforce is 44,000 strong.
Sign Up for Updates
Enter your email to receive news updates and insights.
By subscribing you agree to our Privacy Policy and provide consent to receive updates from HII.