HII Teams with Path Robotics to Integrate Physical AI into Shipbuilding

HII and Path Robotics sign an MOU to integrate physical AI-powered welding into shipbuilding. The partnership targets 15% throughput gains and supports unmanned vessel production.

HII, America's largest military shipbuilder, has signed a memorandum of understanding with Path Robotics to integrate physical artificial intelligence into manned and unmanned shipbuilding operations. The partnership aims to deploy Path's Obsidian™ physical AI welding model across HII's shipyards to accelerate throughput, strengthen the maritime industrial base, and augment the skilled workforce.

Path's physical AI transforms traditional industrial robot arms from rigid, repeat-only machines into real-time perception and decision-making systems that can see, understand, and adapt to the variations of a shipbuilding environment. The proprietary sensing and vision system addresses welding as one of the hardest processes to automate, handling unpredictable conditions like fit variations and complex joint types that traditional automation cannot manage.

HII currently uses automated robot welders requiring human collaboration, including panel line units and mechanized systems following pre-programmed paths. The new AI-driven autonomous welding technology presents an opportunity to expand distributed shipbuilding capacity while meeting U.S. Navy demand. HII's shipbuilding throughput increased 14% in 2025, and the company targets an additional 15% gain in 2026 through this partnership.

The collaboration focuses on three areas: autonomous shipbuilding capability development, workforce training to extend automation, and establishing an intellectual property framework for physical AI-based welding systems. The companies will also pursue R&D integrating Path's physical AI models with other innovative shipbuilding technologies, including HII's ROMULUS line of unmanned surface vehicles.

Eric Chewning, HII's executive vice president, emphasized the potential to increase throughput efficiency without sacrificing quality while meeting Navy standards. Andy Lonsberry, Path Robotics CEO, noted that partnering with the nation's largest military shipbuilder during a critical time for national defense underscores the importance of modernizing defense manufacturing.