Taipei: Taiwan's largest shipbuilder, CSBC, announced on Friday its collaboration with the U.S.-based firm Havoc to develop autonomous surface vessels (ASVs) in Taiwan. The partnership aims to bolster Taiwan's maritime security through licensed co-production of ASVs.
According to Focus Taiwan, CSBC signed the partnership agreement with Havoc at the company's headquarters in Rhode Island on Thursday, U.S. time. This agreement will enable the integration of Havoc's leading-edge autonomy software into platforms built and maintained by CSBC in Taiwan. The collaboration not only aims to enhance CSBC's ASV production capabilities but also seeks to create opportunities for local suppliers to engage in the project.
CSBC Chairman Chen Jeng-horng emphasized the significance of the partnership in aligning with Taiwan's defense policy, which advocates for the domestic production of autonomous platforms. "Working with Havoc allows us to combine CSBC's shipbuilding, production, and lifecycle support capabilities with Havoc's advanced autonomy technology," Chen stated. This partnership is set to strengthen Taiwan's domestic supply chain and defense industrial base over the long term.
CSBC highlighted that the cooperation aligns with Section 1266 of the U.S. National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026, which promotes joint U.S.-Taiwan production of unmanned systems. The collaboration also supports Taiwan's policy objective of enhancing defense autonomy and fostering local production of unmanned vehicles.
The two companies aim to establish a scalable cooperation model that merges Taiwan's industrial capabilities with U.S. autonomous technology, thus enhancing the production and deployment of autonomous maritime systems. According to Havoc, its software-defined hardware approach enables military and commercial autonomous systems to operate cohesively across sea, air, and land in complex environments.