America’s biggest military shipbuilder taps robotics to build Navy warships faster

The largest military shipbuilder in the US is targeting a 15% increase in shipyard throughput this year as the company looks to accelerate deliveries to the US Navy. The strategy combines workforce expansion, infrastructure upgrades and a broader use of technology, including physical AI, in shipbuilding operations. HII said its shipyards increased throughput by 14% in 2025, while around 40 ships are currently under construction or modernization at its Ingalls and Newport News facilities. The company says further gains will require more skilled workers, modernized production infrastructure and a larger network of suppliers capable of supporting higher volumes across the US maritime industrial base. AI enters the shipbuilding process HII’s plan focuses on three areas: hiring and retaining skilled workers, modernizing shipyard infrastructure, and expanding the industrial base supporting naval construction. “And with approximately 40 ships at Ingalls and Newport News in active construction or modernization, our focus in 2026 is clear: we must build on this momentum and continue delivering ships at a greater pace to the US Navy,” said Eric Chewning, HII’s executive vice president of maritime systems and corporate strategy. One of the more notable elements is the company’s planned use of physical AI in shipbuilding. Unlike software-based AI systems that primarily process information, physical AI is designed to interact with and operate within the physical world. In a shipyard, that could include applications involving robotics, automated production, inspection and other manufacturing processes. To achieve its goal, HII is pairing these investments with broader capital spending intended to increase production capacity. The company says modernizing its facilities will be necessary to achieve higher throughput without simply adding more workers and production hours to existing processes. The workforce remains central to the strategy, though, with HII pointing out that new collective bargaining agreements have enabled competitive wage increases aimed at retaining experienced shipbuilders while helping attract new workers into skilled trades. Outsourcing expands across the US HII also plans to shift more work to suppliers and other companies across the country. The shipbuilder expects to outsource more than 2 million hours of work in 2026, representing a 178% increase compared with 2024. The company argues that distributing work beyond its own facilities can increase shipbuilding capacity while giving small and medium-sized manufacturers greater incentives to expand their own workforce and production capabilities. HII is also pursuing a distributed shipbuilding strategy as part of its effort to strengthen the wider maritime industrial base. The approach is intended to create additional capacity outside traditional shipyard facilities and make the supply chain more resilient as demand for naval vessels increases. The company highlighted its Newport News Shipbuilding Charleston Operations as an example of how existing industrial infrastructure can be repurposed for modern naval production. As US naval expansion depends on the availability of skilled workers, specialized suppliers, and the infrastructure needed to produce increasingly complex vessels, HII’s strategy illustrates the growing role of advanced manufacturing technologies in the effort to increase US shipbuilding capacity. Get the latest in engineering, tech, space & science - delivered daily to your inbox.Bojan Stojkovski is a freelance journalist based in Skopje, North Macedonia, covering foreign policy and technology for more than a decade. His work has appeared in Foreign Policy, ZDNet, and Nature.