DNV and Fassmer to Cooperate on Autonomous Naval Vessels

Classification society DNV and German shipbuilder Fassmer agreed to cooperate on autonomous naval-vessel development. Fassmer contributes ship design, construction and integration experience, while DNV provides classification, safety assurance and regulatory expertise for operating with reduced or no crew. Their work is intended to address architecture, verification, cyber risk, remote control and the evidence needed for certification. The memorandum creates a development framework rather than a contract for a named navy, and no vessel count, design baseline, budget or launch date was disclosed for subsequent fleet deployment.