Helsing to acquire Blue Ocean in drive for maritime autonomy

As Helsing continues its drive to deliver AI-enabled systems to European militaries, it has decided to acquire Blue Ocean, its partner in the maritime domain. This acquisition indicates that the company is following a buy-and-build strategy.

This article, originally published on October 8, has been amended with a correction clarifying the role of Ocean Infinity. 

Helsing is in the process of acquiring Blue Ocean Monitoring Ltd, a company that it had previously partnered with to develop its SG-1 Fathom underwater reconnaissance platform. The acquisition will bring Blue Ocean’s hardware and manufacturing capabilities into Helsing, the October 8 press release states.

The integration will support Helsing’s development of artificial intelligence (AI) for anti-submarine warfare and maritime surveillance, by offering customers a “unique blend of domain expertise, rapid innovation and advanced technology,” Amelia Gould, Helsing’s General Manager for the maritime domain, states in the press release. Specifically, Blue Ocean provides the glider that is used in Helsing’s SG-1 Fathom, which carries Lura, a Helsing AI platform for sonar analysis, and deployment systems from Ocean Infinity. 

The two companies plan to accelerate production of autonomous systems “for the protection of the underwater battlespace,” for allied countries across Europe and Australia, the press release adds. Helsing has already announced plans for a resilience factory in Plymouth that will support production of the SG-1. They have already been working together over the past 12 months and a partnership including Ocean Infinity and QinetiQ was announced back in April. At the time, they had set the goal of getting maritime autonomy deployed on operations by the end of 2025. 

The most immediate and obvious application for Helsing’s SG-1 Fathom and the partnership with Blue Ocean is the UK’s Project CABOT, which aims to provide an autonomous sensor network from 2026 that is contractor operated. Furthermore, Australia is naturally facing its own challenges with maritime surveillance and security, with an immense coastline and multiple approaches that could be used for hostile purposes. 

Finally, the press release adds that the “acquisition will occur by means of a members’ scheme of arrangement under Australian law.” This is a court-approved compromise or arrangement between a company and its shareholders (members). It is the most common way to effect a “friendly” acquisition of a publicly listed company in Australia. The acquisition is still subject to court and state approval. 

Calibre comment: Buy-and-build

In June 2025 Helsing announced that it had acquired Grob Aircraft, a German manufacturer of training aircraft. Ostensibly the acquisition was a logical fit enabling Helsing to work on the development of its electronic warfare capabilities for Germany’s Eurofighter modernisation. More recently, Helsing launched CA-1 Europa, a collaborative combat aircraft designed to be a high end autonomous air combat platform. This indicates that the company is pursuing something close to a buy-and-build strategy, which aims to use a central platform and offering – Helsing’s AI capabilities – as a value driving core. Strategic acquisitions like that of Blue Ocean and Grob then enable Helsing to expand into new markets or acquire new capabilities that would take it many years to develop independently. 

By Sam Cranny-Evans, published on October 8, 2025. The lead image shows SG-1 Fathom glide vehicles positioned on the deck of a ship. Credit: Helsing/Blue Ocean.