White House · Russia · CNBC Technology
Euroatlas says it has signed more than 100 million euros in GrayShark contracts with unnamed European navies
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For all the investment and technological advances, a fundamental problem remains, nobody can realistically protect every mile of infrastructure on the seabed.
Key facts
- In September 2022, months after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, explosions ruptured the Nord Stream gas pipelines beneath the Baltic Sea
- Italian shipbuilder Fincantieri announced in July plans to acquire majority stakes in four companies, for around 600 million euros ($689 million) to expand capabilities across underwater and surface
- More than 1.5 million kilometers of submarine communications cables are in service globally as of early 2026, according to TeleGeography, a telecommunications research firm that tracks global subsea
- Euroatlas is also developing a hydrogen fuel-cell version of GrayShark designed for up to 16 weeks underwater or 8,000 nautical miles, though the company has not yet demonstrated that endurance
Summary
Companies and governments are increasingly waking up to the fact that the future of warfare isn't in the skies, but also on the ocean floor. Nations and corporations alike are devoting attention as well as piles of cash to new technologies designed for underwater use, as concerns grow about the vulnerability of critical infrastructure like connectivity cables and energy pipelines traversing the seabed. It comes amid growing concerns of so-called hybrid warfare, a broad term which can include cyberattacks, energy sabotage, disinformation, and economic pressure, with or without being accompanied by conventional military methods. "It's the changing threat environment that's brought this to the fore," Katja Bego, senior research fellow at Chatham House, told CNBC. At the same time, rapid advances in artificial intelligence, drones and autonomous technology are making new approaches to underwater surveillance possible, she said.