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Today (31 March), AUKUS partners unveiled the AUKUS Maritime Innovation Challenge 2025, a trilateral initiative designed to tap into world-class technology from industry and research sectors to deliver cutting-edge capabilities for the three nations’ defence forces.
The challenge is calling on innovators from across the globe to develop solutions that focus on undersea communications and the control of autonomous systems.
Major General Hugh Meggitt, head of the Advanced Strategic Capabilities Accelerator (ASCA), said the launch of the challenge “demonstrates how ASCA, industry and research sectors, together with our AUKUS partners, are working to get advanced capabilities to our warfighters faster”.
The Maritime Innovation Challenge builds on the success of last year’s AUKUS Innovation Challenge series – which first kicked off in 2024 – by uniting the collective innovation systems of AUKUS partners. This approach is designed to rapidly develop and securely share new capabilities for the benefit of all partners involved.
Australia’s ASCA will lead the Australian element of the project, collaborating closely with the United Kingdom’s Defence and Security Accelerator and the United States’ Defense Innovation Unit.
AUKUS partners are on the lookout for innovative solutions that achieve one or more of the following desired capability effects:
- Enable near real-time communications between undersea vehicles.
- Deliver near real-time communications from undersea vehicles to command and control systems and battle management systems.
- Ensure near real-time communications between seabed systems, undersea vehicles, and command and control and battle management systems.
- Develop a system that can efficiently allocate the right asset to the right task in a dynamic, complex environment.
- Provide optimal bandwidth utilisation and effective range, even in a contested or congested setting.
Stephen Moore, First Assistant Secretary AUKUS Advanced Capabilities, said: “It is fantastic to see AUKUS partners continue to harness the strength of our collective innovation ecosystems, delivering best-of-breed technologies for our militaries.”
In related news, in February 2025, Advanced Design Technology and Penten signed contracts with ASCA following their successful participation in last year’s AUKUS Electronic Warfare Innovation Challenge.
The combined $8 million contracts will support the development and demonstration of electronic warfare prototypes aimed at meeting the operational requirements of the Australian Defence Force.
AUKUS partners will host a market briefing on 3 April 2025 to provide the industry the opportunity to obtain further information and ask questions about the challenge. Additional information on the AUKUS Maritime Innovation Challenge 2025 is available here.
