Endeavor Stingray, an unmanned ship developed by Taiwanese shipbuilding industry. (Photo by reporter Hong Chenhong)
[Reporter Hong Chenhong/Kaohsiung Report] Taiwan Shipbuilding Corporation and American autonomous systems company Havoc announced the establishment of a partnership in Rhode Island, the United States, on the 10th Eastern Time (Taiwan 11th). The two parties will combine Taiwan Shipbuilding and production capabilities with Havoc’s advanced independent technology to jointly promote the production, maintenance and related technical cooperation of independent unmanned surface vehicles in Taiwan, and strengthen Taiwan’s independent unmanned vehicle industry.
This cooperation will combine the respective advantages of both parties, with Havoc providing advanced independent technology, and combining it with Taiwan Shipbuilding's existing shipbuilding, production and follow-up maintenance capabilities to promote the production and continuous support of relevant unmanned vehicle platforms in Taiwan. Through cooperation between the two parties, in addition to helping to establish local production capabilities for independent unmanned surface vehicles, it is also expected to gradually promote the participation of the domestic supply chain and establish an industrial foundation for sustainable development.
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Partners took photos after inspecting the performance of the unmanned ship. (From left) Taiwan Strategy and Business Development Director Luke Donohue, Chen Zhenghong, Zhou Zhiming, deputy general manager and leader of the unmanned ship project, and senior deputy general manager of mission operations Mike Collins. . (Provided by Taiwan Shipping)
Chen Zhenghong (right) and Havoc co-founder and CEO Paul Lwin signed a letter of intent for cooperation. (Provided by Taiwan Shipping)
Chen Zhenghong, chairman of Taiwan Shipbuilding Corporation, said that by cooperating with Havoc, he hopes to combine Taiwan Shipbuilding, production and full life cycle support capabilities with Havoc's advanced independent technology, while strengthening Taiwan's local supply chain and defense industry foundation, and establishing a solid foundation for the long-term development of Taiwan's independent unmanned vehicles.
Paul Lwin, co-founder and CEO of Havoc, said that the U.S. Congress has included content related to co-production with Taiwan in the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2026, and specifically covers unmanned systems. Havoc believes that this cooperation is in line with relevant policy directions and will jointly establish a sustainable development cooperation model through U.S. independent technology, Taiwan-made unmanned vehicle platforms and Taiwanese industrial manpower.
Havoc, a cross-domain independent technology company, announced its cooperation with Taiwan Shipbuilding Corporation. The picture shows the Havoc unmanned ship. (Provided by Taiwan Shipping)
Taiwan Shipbuilding stated that this cooperation also echoes the policy direction of Section 1266 of the U.S. National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 regarding the joint production of U.S.-Taiwan unmanned systems, as well as Taiwan’s policy goals of promoting national defense independence and domestic production of unmanned vehicles. The two parties hope to establish an scalable cooperation model through this cooperation, using Taiwan's industrial foundation and U.S. independent technology to continue to enhance the production and application capabilities of independent maritime systems.
Havoc is a cross-domain autonomous technology company. Its software-defined hardware architecture is applied to autonomous systems in different fields such as sea, air, and land, allowing different vehicles to share information, real-time adjustments, and jointly perform tasks. Even in environments where communications are interfered with or interrupted, they can still continue to operate to improve mission efficiency and reduce personnel risks.
