What 2iC Limited does

2iC Limited is a Southampton-based private technology company founded in 2010 that develops uncrewed surface vessel (USV) systems, operating with a 1–10 person team. Its core capability is the Pioneer-class USV built around a SWATH (Small Waterplane Area Twin Hull) platform, delivering 50+ day endurance, a 5,000 nautical mile operational range, sea state 5 operability, and a central moonpool accommodating up to 7 tonnes of payload for rapid mission reconfiguration. The vessel is certified by Lloyd's Register under the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency Workboat Code for remotely operated unmanned vessels, an important regulatory milestone for UK-flagged autonomous operations.

2iC participates as a core member of the SCEPTRE consortium alongside Hadean, Vizgard, Kraken, Evolve Dynamics, and ACUA Ocean. Through SCEPTRE, the company has been down-selected onto the UK's Digital Decision Accelerators for Defence framework and is pursuing missions spanning civil offshore applications and naval use cases including intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), anti-submarine warfare, and the Sentinel concept for protecting UK critical maritime infrastructure. The consortium has additionally secured UK Department of Transport funding for the Pioneer vessel through the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition, with £35M allocated across three rounds.

The company's revenue model is not publicly disclosed, and there is no pricing data in the available sources. Based on the firmographic profile and programme participation, monetisation appears to flow through UK government defence and maritime framework contracts, supplemented by consortium-led subcontracting and grant-funded development work. Customer segmentation is vertical: UK Defence and Naval Forces is the primary segment, with the Civil Offshore Maritime Sector as a secondary segment. Leadership comprises co-founders Graham Booth (CEO) and Nicholas Peach (CTO).

Name

2iC Limited

Legal name

2iC Limited

Website

https://2icworld.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2010

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

2iC Limited is a Southampton-based UK SME developing long-endurance uncrewed surface vessels (USVs), including the Pioneer-class SWATH platform, for UK naval defence and civil offshore maritime missions via the SCEPTRE consortium.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Uncrewed Surface Vessels (Maritime Defence Technology)

NAICS

Search, Detection, Navigation, Guidance, Aeronautical, and Nautical System and Instrument Manufacturing (334511)

SIC

Services-Computer Integrated Systems Design (7373)

akta.pro primary industry

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

akta.pro secondary industries

Maritime Unmanned Systems (USV/UUV) & Control Stations (IMABAKAJ), Unmanned Naval Vessels (USV/UUV) (IMAJABAH), Marine & Underwater Robotics (USVs/UUVs) (HDAAAIAH)

Keywords

• Uncrewed surface vessels
• Maritime defence technology
• Naval autonomy systems
• SWATH platform engineering
• Maritime ISR solutions

Headquarters

HQ city

Southampton

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Core offering

2iC Limited develops uncrewed surface vessel (USV) technology and systems as part of the SCEPTRE consortium. Its offerings support both civil offshore applications and naval missions, including intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), anti-submarine warfare, and the protection of UK critical maritime infrastructure via the Sentinel concept, delivered through a SWATH-based platform certified for remotely operated unmanned operations.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• SCEPTRE Consortium USV Solution An uncrewed surface vessel (USV) solution developed through the SCEPTRE consortium with 2iC Limited as a core member. The SWATH-based platform is intended for UK defence customers (ISR, anti-submarine warfare, Sentinel concept) and civil offshore operators requiring long-endurance unmanned maritime operations.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 50 days endurance capability
• +3 more outcomes

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• SCEPTRE ConsortiumcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner2iC is part of the SCEPTRE consortium alongside Hadean, Vizgard, Kraken, and Evolve Dynamics. The consortium has been down-selected onto the UK's Digital Decision Accelerators for Defence framework. The consortium focuses on uncrewed surface vessel technology development for both civil offshore applications and naval missions including ISR, anti-submarine warfare, and the Sentinel concept for protecting UK critical maritime infrastructure.

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• Atlas Elektronik: Established German naval-systems prime with deep portfolio in USV/UUV command, payloads and ASW — comparable as a competitor pursuing the same UK and NATO autonomous maritime procurement contracts.
• Thales: Global naval systems incumbent delivering autonomous surface vessels, combat management and maritime C4ISR. Forms the broader competitive incumbent landscape against which SCEPTRE-style consortia bid.
• L3Harris Technologies: Major US defence prime with a portfolio of unmanned surface vehicles (e.g., ASW USV variants) and integrated maritime autonomy — relevant incumbent benchmark for capability and pricing.
• BAE Systems: UK naval prime with growing investment in autonomous surface vessels and autonomy-as-a-service for the Royal Navy; represents the strategic incumbent and likely integrator of record on follow-on contracts.

Direct peers

• AutoNaut: UK-USV specialist building unmanned surface vessels for offshore and defence customers. Highly comparable profile: small UK team, government-backed pilots and overlap with the same clean-maritime and naval demonstrators.
• ACUA Ocean: Co-member of the SCEPTRE consortium developing hydrogen-powered USVs for ISR and offshore missions; competes in the exact same UK MoD and offshore USV opportunity set as 2iC.
• Saildrone: US-based scale-up with a large fleet of wind- and solar-powered USVs delivering ISR, hydrography and ocean data services for defense and civil customers. Direct global comparable on long-endurance, autonomous maritime data collection.
• Sea-Kit International: UK-headquartered designer and operator of long-endurance, over-the-horizon USVs for survey, security and defence clients, including XLUUV-class platforms — directly comparable on endurance, payload modularity and naval/offshore dual-use use cases.

Emerging players

• Kraken Technology Group: SCEPTRE consortium partner building high-performance unmanned surface platforms for naval and security applications. Comparable UK small-craft and USV capability provider in the same programme.
• Hadean: SCEPTRE consortium partner providing distributed-scale computing and AI for the USV platform. Comparable as a UK defence-tech software stack that addresses autonomy, command/control and decision-support for uncrewed platforms.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

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 2iC Limited