The US Navy is increasingly partnering with AI companies to strengthen its maritime defense capabilities, particularly in underwater operations.

One example is a contract with Domino Data Lab, which is helping the Navy develop and manage AI systems for underwater drones designed to detect naval mines, especially in high-risk areas like the Strait of Hormuz, as reported by Reuters.

A major advantage is speed: these AI systems can be trained to identify new types of mines in days instead of months, and can be quickly updated and deployed across different regions.

The shift reflects the Navy’s move away from traditional ship-based mine detection toward faster, AI-powered autonomous systems better suited for modern conflict environments.