SM300 / SM200

Sea Machines Robotics (Boston; founded by Michael Johnson) is the autonomy-system-vendor archetype of the maritime category: it makes the autonomy brain, not the boat. Its SM300 and SM200 autonomous-command systems are vessel-agnostic retrofit kits, about ten components installed in two days or less on existing or new-build workboats from 10 to 300 feet, so the customer owns and operates the hull while Sea Machines licenses the autonomy onto it. The September 2025 SM300-NG adds class-society-approved hardware, a 200-percent compute increase, full voyage control with collision avoidance and sensor fusion, and worldwide remote command, alongside an attritable SM300-SP defense variant. A late-2024 leadership change brought David Wasson (formerly of Huntington Ingalls) in as CEO with founder Johnson moving to president and CTO, a defense-pull hire on a $10M Series C (March 2025) and about $52M total raised. DEPLOY records it at commercial maturity on a real shipping product, class-society approval, and more than 200 systems delivered worldwide, and it credits the company with units delivered rather than sea-days, since its autonomy runs on other companies' hulls. The SM300-SP claim of more than 100 units a month is a stated production rate. As a B2B autonomy licensing business, no consumer price is published.

Readiness

SM300 / SM200 is internal use only (not for retail), no capability claims are on file, the model has no verified field deployments in the registry, and no incidents are on record.

Availability

internal-only

Internal use only (not for retail).

see evidence →

Price honesty

no-price

No price points on file for SM300 / SM200.

see evidence →

Capability honesty

no-claims

No reviewed capability claims on file for SM300 / SM200.

see evidence →

Real-world use

commercial

Maturity: commercial. No verified deployments in the registry.

see evidence →

Safety record

no-incidents

No incidents on record. No verified deployments either.

What it claims to do

No reviewed capability claims on file.

Price

No reviewed price points on file.

Real-world use

No verified deployments on file for SM300 / SM200.

Safety record

No incidents on record. No verified deployments either, so the absence is uninformative.

Privacy

No privacy practices disclosed or on file for SM300 / SM200.

Specs

notes

[{"label":"Verified","value":"Sea Machines Robotics (Boston; founder Michael Johnson) is an autonomy-SYSTEM vendor: it sells the autonomy brain (SM300/SM200), the customer owns/operates the boat. Late-2024 leadership: David 'Chip' Wasson (ex-Huntington Ingalls) became CEO, Johnson -> President/CTO - a defense-pull hire, NOT a distress signal (record 2024 sales + defense expansion). '200+ systems delivered worldwide'. $10M Series C (Mar 2025); ~$52M total raised."},{"label":"Model + maturity (distinct)","value":"Autonomy-system SALE (B2B technology vendor), distinct from Saildrone (operator) and the vessel makers. The registry should credit it with UNITS DELIVERED (200+), NOT sea-days (its autonomy runs on others' hulls). maturity=commercial (real shipping product, class approval, 200+ deliveries); pilot-to-commercial in defense. Strongest regulatory signal of the commercial set: explicitly class-society-approved hardware."},{"label":"AI-substance: genuine (system)","value":"Edge perception, COLREGS-style collision avoidance, path-following, remote command - substantive autonomy stack, not veneer. Honest caveat: it is autonomy software/hardware on someone else's hull, so 'operational scale at sea' is not directly Sea-Machines-attributable."},{"label":"Claimed but NOT verified","value":"Specific class society (unnamed); named commercial customers; SM300-SP '100 units/month' actual throughput (stated capability); exact funding total; specific Navy program/contract value."}]

specs

SM300 / SM200 autonomous-command systems: vessel-agnostic autonomy retrofit kits installed on existing/new-build workboats (10-300 ft), ~10 components, install in <=2 days. SM300-NG (Sept 2025): class-society-approved hardware, +200% compute, full voyage control, COLREGS-style collision avoidance, ENC/radar/AIS/video fusion, worldwide remote command. SM300-SP: attritable/volume-production defense variant (claimed >100 units/month). Founded by Michael Johnson; Boston.

formFactor

maritime (autonomous-command SYSTEM retrofit for surface vessels; vessel-agnostic, not a vessel)

What's under the hood

No brain on file for SM300 / SM200.

Frequently asked questions

Is the SM300 / SM200 actually available for purchase?

Not available to consumers. In internal use by Sea Machines Robotics.Source: Sea Machines: Wasson CEO (ex-HII), Johnson -> President/CTO (late 2024; defense-pull, not distress)

What does the SM300 / SM200 cost?

Not announced.

Where is the SM300 / SM200 being used?

No verified field deployments on record.

Is the SM300 / SM200 safe?

No incidents on record, but with no verified field deployments either, the absence is uninformative.

How does the SM300 / SM200 handle privacy?

No privacy practices disclosed or on file for SM300 / SM200.

Who makes the SM300 / SM200?

SM300 / SM200 is made by Sea Machines Robotics, based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA.Source: Sea Machines: Wasson CEO (ex-HII), Johnson -> President/CTO (late 2024; defense-pull, not distress)

Compared to

• Saronic USV (Corsair / Mirage / Marauder)by Saronic Technologies · maritime
• Saildrone USV (Explorer / Voyager / Surveyor)by Saildrone · maritime

Sources

1. Sea Machines: Wasson CEO (ex-HII), Johnson -> President/CTO (late 2024; defense-pull, not distress) · https://www.workboat.com/coastal-inland-waterways/sea-machines-names-new-ceo ↗
2. Sea Machines SM300-NG (class-society-approved; +200% compute; full voyage control) + SM300-SP defense · https://sea-machines.com/news/sea-machines-sm300-ng-launch/ ↗
3. Sea Machines SM300/SM200 autonomous-command systems (vessel-agnostic retrofit; 200+ delivered) · https://sea-machines.com/products/ ↗