Maritime Applied Physics Corporation

What Maritime Applied Physics Corporation does

Maritime Applied Physics Corporation, operating commercially as BlackSea Technologies, is a privately held U.S. defense contractor founded in 1986 and headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland. The company designs, manufactures, and sustains a portfolio of autonomous unmanned surface vessels (USVs) for naval and special operations applications. Its flagship product, the Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft (GARC), is a 16-foot autonomous surface vessel designed for distributed maritime reconnaissance, with demonstrated swarm interoperability in exercises such as BALTOPS 2026 alongside NATO forces and USS Mount Whitney. The product line has expanded to include the Comet, Chaser, NightTrain, and ORCA USVs, addressing reconnaissance, special operations, and other mission profiles.

The company's business model centers on direct hardware sales to the U.S. Department of Defense under multi-year procurement contracts. Over $160 million in DoD obligations have been secured for GARC production as of January 2025, with a stated target production cadence of up to 32 GARC units per month to meet Navy demand under the Project 33 initiative targeting 2027 Pacific theater readiness. The Navy's Unmanned Surface Vessel Squadron 7 (USVDIV-7), based in San Diego, has been established as a dedicated GARC operator. Beyond hardware, the company has extended into Mission Solutions, offering motherships, logistics, training, and sustainment services that bundle autonomous-fleet lifecycle support to the operator. Revenue mechanics are entirely DoD procurement-driven, with the U.S. Navy as the sole disclosed paying customer and NATO referenced only as an exercise participant rather than a contracted buyer.

The company is supported by a workforce of 101–250 employees spanning maritime, aviation, engineering, and training disciplines, with an explicit emphasis on hiring builders, veterans, and engineers to support rapid design-to-water iteration. Recent milestones include SOF Week 2026 in Tampa (where the Comet USV was showcased to special operations buyers), BALTOPS 2026 NATO exercises, and ongoing operational deployments in the Baltic Sea and (planned) the Pacific Theater.

Name

Maritime Applied Physics Corporation

Legal name

Maritime Applied Physics Corporation

Website

https://mapcorp.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1986

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Maritime Applied Physics Corporation (BlackSea Technologies) is a U.S. defense contractor that designs, manufactures, and sustains autonomous unmanned surface vessels — led by the 16-foot GARC — for the U.S. Navy and special operations buyers under multi-year DoD procurement contracts.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Naval Defense Manufacturing / Autonomous Surface Vessels

NAICS

Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical, and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing (334511), Ship Building and Repairing (336611)

akta.pro primary industry

Unmanned Surface Vehicles (USV) & Autonomous Maritime Surface Platforms (IMABAIAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Unmanned Naval Vessels (USV/UUV) (IMAJABAH), Maritime Unmanned Systems (USV/UUV) & Control Stations (IMABAKAJ)

Keywords

• Autonomous surface vessels
• Unmanned naval vessels
• Naval defense manufacturing
• Maritime autonomy systems
• Maritime engineering services

Headquarters

HQ city

Baltimore

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Defense Government Contracts: Revenue from U.S. Navy and Department of Defense contracts for autonomous surface vessels. Over $160 million already obligated through Defense Department contracting for GARC production.
2. Defense Procurement: Direct procurement of unmanned surface vessels by U.S. Navy under Project 33 initiative, with scaling production to 32 units per month.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels2 records

Core offering

Maritime Applied Physics Corporation, operating as BlackSea Technologies, designs and manufactures a portfolio of autonomous unmanned surface vessels (USVs) for naval and defense applications. Its flagship product is the 16-foot GARC (Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft), produced at scale for the U.S. Navy, alongside the Comet, Chaser, NightTrain, and ORCA USVs. The company also delivers Mission Solutions covering motherships, logistics, training, and sustainment to support autonomous fleet operations.

Product overview

Maritime Applied Physics Corporation (operating as BlackSea Technologies) manufactures a portfolio of unmanned surface vessels (USVs) for naval and defense applications. The core product is the GARC (Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft), a 16-foot autonomous vessel being produced at scale for the U.S. Navy. The product line also includes Chaser, Comet, NightTrain, and ORCA USVs, all designed for maritime autonomy operations including reconnaissance, swarm exercises, and special operations support. The company also provides mission solutions encompassing systems and support for autonomous fleet operations including motherships, logistics, training, and sustainment.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• GARC: Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft - 16-foot unmanned surface vessels built for the U.S. Navy

Products and services

• GARC (Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft) 16-foot autonomous unmanned surface vessel (USV) built for the U.S. Navy's Project 33 initiative, targeted at robotic platform deployment in Pacific conflict scenarios including Taiwan Strait operations and Baltic Sea exercises. Produced at scale with a target capacity of up to 32 units per month.
• Comet Unmanned surface vessel (USV) in the BlackSea Technologies product portfolio, showcased at SOF Week 2026 in Tampa for special operations applications.
• Chaser Unmanned surface vessel (USV) in the BlackSea Technologies product portfolio for maritime autonomy operations.
• NightTrain Unmanned surface vessel (USV) in the BlackSea Technologies product portfolio for maritime autonomy operations.
• ORCA Unmanned surface vessel (USV) in the BlackSea Technologies product portfolio for maritime autonomy operations.
• Mission Solutions Mission Solutions team delivers the systems and support that make unmanned operations possible, spanning motherships, logistics, training, and sustainment to connect every part of the mission so operators can deploy, recover, and maintain autonomous fleets anywhere in the world.

Quantifiable outcome

• Target production rate of 32 GARC units per month
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• U.S. Navy / Department of DefensecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary defense contractor relationship with U.S. Navy for autonomous surface vessel procurement. Navy standing up Unmanned Surface Vessel Squadron 7 in San Diego to operate GARCs. Over $160M in DoD contract obligations for GARC production. Part of Navy's Project 33 initiative targeting 2027 Pacific readiness.
• NATO ForcesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerGARC systems demonstrated in BALTOPS 2026 exercises operating alongside NATO forces and USS Mount Whitney. USVDIV-32 conducted swarm exercises and live fire exercises with NATO forces, indicating interoperability and international defense applications.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Saronic Technologies: Builds autonomous surface vessels for defense and naval customers, including the U.S. Navy. Directly competes with BlackSea in the small-to-medium affordable USV segment, pursuing similar prime-contractor relationships with DoD.
• HavocAI: Developer of AI-powered autonomous surface vessels for defense applications. Competes head-to-head with BlackSea in unmanned maritime autonomy, with overlapping DoD customer targeting.
• Saildrone: Producer of autonomous ocean-going USVs for defense, maritime security, and ocean data. Directly comparable in unmanned surface vessel category, though more oriented toward long-endurance ocean surveillance than short-range tactical reconnaissance.
• Sea Machines Robotics: Provider of autonomous vessel control systems and autonomy software for marine and defense applications. Comparable as a USV autonomy specialist, though more software/integration focused versus BlackSea's hull manufacturing emphasis.

Broad incumbents

• Textron Systems: Operates the Common Unmanned Surface Vehicle (CUSV) program for the U.S. Navy. A larger, established defense prime with overlapping USV capability and direct Navy prime-contractor relationships.
• Huntington Ingalls Industries: Largest U.S. military shipbuilder with growing investment in unmanned maritime systems. Competes as a broad incumbent expanding into the same affordable USV and distributed maritime operations space.
• L3Harris Technologies: Major defense prime with surface and maritime autonomy programs. Relevant as an incumbent player that competes for Navy USV contracts and can bundle autonomy with broader defense electronics portfolios.

Emerging players

• Anduril Industries: Expanding defense autonomy company pursuing maritime autonomy alongside aerial and underwater platforms. Increasingly relevant as Anduril scales into USVs, with substantial capital and DoD relationships that could pressure BlackSea's positioning.
• ThayerMahan: Provider of unmanned maritime systems and maritime domain awareness solutions for defense and intelligence customers. Comparable in autonomous naval systems focus, particularly in surveillance and reconnaissance use cases.

Others

• Oceaneering International: Provides marine robotics, subsea assets, and unmanned systems for defense and commercial customers. Adjacent peer via maritime robotics expertise and naval customer relationships, though broader in scope than USV manufacturing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/map_corp
• Facebookfacebook.com/mapcorp
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/maritime-applied-physics-corporation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Maritime Applied Physics Corporation